About Paula
Elected in October 2019, Deputy Shire President Paula Cristoffanini was born and raised in Chile and came to Australia as an 18 year old in 1970.
She has spent most of her life in Western Australia and since 2008 has lived full-time in Margaret River. She was married for 40 years and has a family of four children and seven grandchildren, all of whom live in Western Australia. Paula speaks Spanish and Italian. She was elected Deputy Shire President in October 2023 and her term expires in October 2027.
Paula has a proven record of leadership and achievement at an executive level in the public sector, as a consultant and in the community. Early in her life in Australia, Paula worked as a draftswoman and was co-owner of a boat building business.
Currently retired from full-time work and involved in her own art practice, Paula has been a member and volunteer in a range of local activities, including Transition Margaret River, Willing Walkers, the Italian speakers’ group and Mediterranean Gardening Margaret River. She is a volunteer with Augusta Margaret River Clean Community Energy (AMRCCE) and was a member of the Augusta Margaret River Shire’s Public Arts and Culture Advisory Committee.
Paula has had a number of significant roles which have called for careful consideration of complex issues and independent decision-making. These include Senior Member of the Refugee Review Tribunal in Sydney and Director of the Office of Multicultural Interest of WA. She also had significant appointments to government advisory bodies and in the community sector, the most significant of these as President of Western Australia’s Women’s Advisory Council and a member of the Bureau of Immigration Research Advisory Council.
Paula's Term Expires
October 2027