The Australian Women's Register

Summary

Jean Lenane is a well known, lifetime activist, who contested the 1999 New South Wales Legislative Assembly elections for Port Jackson as an Independent candidate. In 2003 she ran for election to the New South Wales Legislative Council as a Save Our Suburbs candidate. Jean Lenane had been fighting overdevelopment of the inner west of Sydney since 1985, and was well known as the President of the Friends of Callan Park, when she ran her two campaigns. She had convened the first Mort Bay Action Group to fight for the retention of open space, and campaigned for Jubilee Park.

She was sacked from the NSW Department of health in 1990 for publicly speaking out against cuts to mental health services. Subsequently, she was co-founder and later National President of Whistleblowers Australia (2005).