The Greek-born Lord Mayor of Darwin, Kon Vatskalis, will be stepping down as president of the Council of Capital City Lord Mayors (CCCLM).
Marking the end of his tenure in the role in July, Vatskalis will host the annual meeting of the council in Darwin.
With a history of over 50 years, the council sees the lord mayors of capital cities of Australia’s states and territories banding together to coordinate their common interests and advance their relations with other spheres of government.
“Without doubt, it has been a great honour serving in the role,” Vatskalis told Neos Kosmos ahead of the handover.
Vatskalis was elected Lord Mayor of Darwin in 2017.
Born in Argostoli, on the island of Kefalonia in 1957 and studied environmental health in Athens and served in the Greek Airforce.
His father was a builder, working on the island following the great earthquake of 1953.
Vatskalis migrated to Western Australia in the 1980s with his then wife Linda Cotton, who sadly passed a few years later.
He continued his studies at the Western Australia Institute of Technology and Murdoch University and completed a postgraduate degree in Environmental Science and Public Sector Management.
After moving to Darwin in 1993, he also worked as Manager for Environmental Health for the Department of Health before getting involved in politics.
The previous CCCLM president, Perth’s Basil Zempilas, is also of Greek descent.
The Perth Lord Mayor will be contesting in the upcoming WA state elections, with party insiders reportedly regarding him as their leader-in-waiting.
