The Greens (WA) grew out of the growing counter-cultural, environmental, anti-nuclear and peace, social and political concerns after the fall of the Whitlam government, particularly articulated by Jim Cairns in the Down to Earth movement that saw community sustainability emerging as an important issue.

The campaign in Tasmania to prevent the damming of the Franklin River, further alerted Australia to environmental issues as never before.

[3] After the victory in saving the Gordon and Franklin Rivers in Tasmania, activists on the east coast established "Committees of Correspondence" to keep in touch and organised a "Getting Together" Conference in Sydney.

Delegates who had gone to Sydney returned and became involved in organising a "Getting Together" conference in Western Australia, held at Hollywood High School, Easter 1987.

Another example was the group established by Jan Jermalinski and others in the inner-city suburbs of Victoria Park and Carlisle called the Victoria Park/Carlisle Greens which ran Georgina Motion for Swan federal electorate under the banner of Swan Alternative Electoral Campaign (SAEC).

Later in 1987 and early 1988, these various "green" groups, along with The Democrats (Senator Jean Jenkins Office), various far left parties, peace and community activists pushed the establishment of an Alternative Electoral Coalition to plan a campaign for the 1989 State Election.

The unifying principles of the AEC were modelled on those of the German Greens; Peace; Social Justice, the Environment and Participatory Democracy.

In the south-west of the state, Louise Duxbury, who was running mate with Jo Vallentine in the 1987 federal election, a peace and environmental activist living in Denmark and Christine Sharp decided to set up a loose network called Green Development to run a candidate for the State Upper House of South West.

The real breakthrough was probably the visit, initiated by Jo Vallentine of Petra Kelly from the West German Greens, who gave a great speech to a large audience at the Octagon Theatre, University of WA and the extra push was on.

Just before the unification ceremony at the University of WA Sunken Gardens on 1 January 1990, the mailing lists of four organisations were combined which gives a reasonable measure of the support each group brought in.

Jo Vallentine retired from parliamentary politics in 1992, and her place was taken by Christabel Chamarette, added to with the election of a second Greens Senator in Dee Margetts.

This representation has grown over successive years with Christine Sharp winning the South-West Legislative Council seat at the 1996 general election and after two terms being succeeded by Paul Llewelyn.

[4] A later scandal involving former Liberal leader and Treasurer Troy Buswell saw Carles leave the Greens to sit as an independent.