The 58-year-old is running on the Greens ticket in the upcoming Wagga City Council election, and believes the role of political parties in local government will only increase in years to come.

He said that councillors need to think about "the big picture" and translate this into action on a local level.

"As long as people are open and clear about where they're coming from ... it doesn't matter, it's just about transparency," Mr Kaiser said.

One such "big picture" issue high on his agenda is climate change. The council this year announced a plan for net zero emissions in its facilities by 2040, and for the wider community by 2050.

The Greens ticket is instead pushing for net zero emissions by 2030, and Mr Kaiser said this will require good leadership.

"We need local leadership on that big picture because the federal government at the moment are not leading on climate change, they're dragging their heels, they're way behind nearly every other country on the planet," he said.

"Councillors need to have that mentality of inclusiveness, they have to have some vision and they [have] to be cooperative with the other councillors so that they can do things that achieve good for the entire community."

Mr Kaiser said climate action on a local level might include increasing Wagga's cycleways, making electric cars more viable and taking solar panel positioning into consideration when releasing and zoning land.

The sole-trade renovator was born in Germany and came to Australia with his parents in 1967 on a skilled migration program, living at the Bonegilla Migrant Camp before moving to Albury, where he grew up.

He studied in Wagga during the 80s and later moved to the Northern Rivers with his then-partner to establish a sustainable farm. The relationship ended around five years ago and Mr Kaiser decided to move back to Wagga.

He said the city felt like a very conservative place in the 80s, but since returning "it's changed a lot, remarkably so".

"I think Wagga's in a really good position here for us to be progressive," Mr Kaiser said. "I think it's a lot more open minded and I think people want good leadership."

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Mr Kaiser was a member of the Labor Party before officially joining the Greens, involved in Janelle Saffin's campaign for the federal seat of Page, which was typically held by the Nationals, in 2007.

"I thought at a local level it would make sense to get behind a candidate that was likely to win the seat," Mr Kaiser said, having always "held green views".

He stayed with the party for five years, and after a break from campaigning now feels re-energised to get politically involved after meeting Jenny McKinnon and the rest of the team.

In the lead up to this year's election, The Daily Advertiser has profiled the candidates looking to secure a spot on Wagga City Council

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