Climate groups have said the federal election result was a clear sign that people are ready for change.
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In the New England, more than a quarter of people voted for either Labor or the Greens. With more than three quarters of votes counted at the time of writing, Labor had mopped up 18.6 per cent and the Greens 7.5 per cent, with a combined swing towards them of 9 per cent.
The swing means more people in the region are thinking about climate change when they vote, according to Tamworth Parents and Friends for Climate Action's Penny Milson.
"We fully expected [Nationals member] Barnaby Joyce would be returned to the seat, he has the popularity and a personality that appeals to a lot of people, but I think more and more people are realising they need to vote on policy not personality," Ms Milson said.
She said there was a growing section of the population who were both agriculturally and environmentally minded, and recent breakthroughs in the sector have shown how the two can work together.
"People have tried to use fear that climate action will hurt agriculture, but we know that landholders who build soil carbon actually are more drought resilient," she said.
"So it makes good sense to plant trees, but it's also about pastures and ground cover so there's great opportunities for agriculture to step up and potentially have an income stream, either from a wind turbine in their paddock or a solar panel.
"We've seen up in Uralla the way they've merged sheep grazing with solar farms, there's no reason we can't get a little bit creative and try to merge these two objectives together."
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While she had been hoping for a result that would favour the more environmentally-conscious parties, Ms Milson said even she was surprised by the national result, with the Greens picking up at least three seats and a number of 'teal' independents claiming inner-city electorates.
Of course, it is Labor that will form government however, and Tamworth Regional Council will be sweating on a number of major projects, such as the University of New England Tamworth campus and Dungowan Dam, which had been committed to by the Coalition.
Mayor Russell Webb said he often had meetings with federal ministers, and would work hard to convince new ones of the merit of council's major plans.
He also said his strong connection with the Nationals, as New England Nationals branch chair - and that of fellow councillor Bede Burke, who is the former chair of NSW Nationals - would not come into play when council negotiates with the new Labor government.
"One of the things you do when you represent in a council is you represent as an individual, and you represent as non-party aligned," he said.
"You can do what you want to do in terms of being party aligned in your private life, but when you're working for the community and as a councillor you have to be completely non-party aligned, and work the best way you can in that situation.
"We may have allegiances to the National party, but in real terms when you're working for the community, your allegiances are to the community and you work with whoever is in government whether it be state or federal."
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