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Portrait of Larissa Waters

Larissa Waters

Australian Greens · Senate · QLD · incumbent

Larissa Joy Waters was born on 8 February 1977 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, while her Australian parents were there working and studying; she left as an 11-month-old and grew up in Brisbane. She attended primary school in Rainworth and completed secondary schooling at Kelvin Grove State High School, then earned a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Laws from Griffith University and a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the New South Wales College of Law. She worked as a lawyer before becoming a senator for Queensland for the Australian Greens, serving 2011–2017 and again since 2018. [source]

Lawyer with the Environmental Defenders Office 2002-2011 after roles at the Queensland Land and Resources Tribunal and Freehills. Senator 2011-2017 and since 2018. Leader of the Australian Greens since 15 May 2025 and spokesperson for Climate Change and Energy, Women and First Nations. [source]

Sourced positions

A verified position is the member's own stated view or vote, supported by the listed sources. This page records public statements and conduct only — see methodology.

Immigration verified

In a public statement on her official Facebook page (31 May 2024), Waters said 'we should be proud of multicultural and migrant communities, but the Labor and Liberal parties want to demonise migrants to distract from their own failings.' As Greens leader she has rejected cuts to overall migration numbers and the framing of migrants/international students as a cause of the housing crisis.

Foreign policy & aid verified

Waters has criticised AUKUS as wasteful, saying "We are wasting A$370 billion on nuclear submarines that actually may never even eventuate" and that the expenditure "makes us less safe". On the Middle East she has said Australia should play a stronger role in sanctioning Benjamin Netanyahu's war cabinet.

Citizenship (s44 eligibility) verified

Held Canadian citizenship from birth; she resigned from the Senate on 18 July 2017 over section 44(i), renounced her Canadian citizenship on 8 August 2017, and the High Court ruled on 27 October 2017 that she had been invalidly elected. She returned to the Senate on 6 September 2018 to fill a casual vacancy.

Record last updated 2026-08-13.