On 7 May 2026, residents in the East Acton ward will vote to choose who represents them at Ealing Council.
EALING.NEWS has asked all candidates standing to become a councillor, 7 questions about who they are, what they hope to deliver and why they want residents to vote for them.
Here’s what Marijn van de Geer standing for Ealing Green Party in East Acton, has to say:
Tell us about yourself, your priorities, and why you want to be a councillor for East Acton?
My name is Marijn (pronounced “Mah-rhine”), and I’m standing for the Green Party in East Acton. I believe politics should be led by ordinary people, not career politicians, and that public office should be about serving the common good.
Having lived in Ealing for nearly 19 years, I’ve seen a pattern of poor decision-making by Ealing Council: threats to vital nature sites like Warren Farm, divisive and poorly implemented policies like Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, overdevelopment without affordable housing, and a lack of support for residents affected by projects like HS2 and Heathrow. Much of this harm feels avoidable.
As a councillor, I would ask: why are we not listening to residents, protecting the vulnerable, and working with the knowledge already present in our communities? Ealing is full of active grassroots groups—we should be collaborating with them, not sidelining them.
I work for a nature conservation charity, cycle everywhere, and volunteer with animal and wildlife rescue organisations. I’ve previously stood in local elections and was the Green Party’s candidate for Ealing and Hillingdon in the 2021 London Assembly elections.
Earlier in my career, I supported asylum seekers and worked in international development, where I saw how inequality, conflict, and environmental damage are interconnected. This drives my belief that local action must contribute to a fairer, more sustainable world.
What motivates you?
Real change requires both leadership and community action. While we need councils to listen and act, we also need to take responsibility ourselves.
For example, concerns about waste collection should also prompt us to ask why we produce so much waste in the first place. Progress comes from working together—residents and leaders alike.
Democracy isn’t just voting every few years; it requires ongoing engagement. I want to help build a more collaborative, active local democracy in Ealing.
What is your own personal connection to either East Acton or any other part of the borough?
I moved here in my early 20s and have now lived in the borough for nearly half my life. I sometimes think what 24 year old me would have thought if I had known back then that I would put down such firm roots here. I am part of the community, made such incredible friends here and I just love living here. My connection to Ealing I guess is that it is my home, and I am very happy that it is!
What do you consider to be your 3 top political, work or personal achievements and what impact have they had?
When I ran as the Ealing and Hillingdon London Assembly candidate, together with the amazing Ealing and Hillingdon Greens’ help, I feel like I really managed to put the Green Party on the map in this area. We did really well, with the most votes we’ve ever had in the London Assembly elections. The next year I stood in Hanwell with Neil and Kate for the council elections, and again we did incredibly well. I am very proud of that campaign, because, even though we didn’t win, we increased our votes significantly and became serious contenders in the area.
I am proud that I have learned to be brave and stand up for justice, finding myself surrounded by some of the bravest and inspirational people alive today. I am incredibly proud to have been part of a movement that changed the inadequate conversation around climate ‘change’ to the serious debate we needed around the climate emergency. It still isn’t good enough, but the dial certainly has been turned up compared to what it was.
And on a much smaller scale, but equally significant, I am very proud of the tiny lives I have saved over the years looking after rescue animals, from kittens to pigeons to jackdaws and moorhens. It may seem like a small drop in an ocean, but every life is worth saving, and every little furry, feathery life I save I feel is time incredibly well spent. It also helps keep me going when everything else around me seems too big and overwhelming at times. It is good to move between the hyper local and global regularly, to make sure we don’t lose perspective.
What do you consider to be the top 3 challenges East Acton faces and how will you as a councillor address them?
1. Crime and anti-social behaviour
I know crime and anti-social behaviour are horrible and can really destroy people’s lives. The fact that these are happening reflects deep social and economic problems. Rather than only focusing on law enforcement and dealing with the symptoms, I would work with communities to understand root causes and invest in youth opportunities, employment support, and safe shared spaces.
2. Overdevelopment
Residents are concerned about disruption, lack of affordable housing, and poor planning. I would push for transparency, proper consultation, and developments that genuinely meet local needs. I want to see the waiting list of families that are desperately waiting for a home and if it has actually decreased at all with all the development happening in the borough. Who are all these development projects for. I sure can’t afford any of them, who actually can?
3. Access to nature, public spaces and community wellbeing
We know access to nature is vital for mental health, but we also need to protect and restore nature to ensure our own life support systems don’t collapse. A new attitude to nature is needed: it is not just pretty and nice to have, we literally rely on it. Clean, safe public spaces are essential for fun, community cohesion, exercise. I would push the council to prioritise maintenance and accessibility, while also encouraging community-led initiatives like litter-picking and urban gardening to strengthen local ownership and connection.
What do you love about East Acton and the Borough of Ealing?
Ealing offers an incredible mix of nature and community—from local green spaces to its diverse, multicultural high streets. I value the strong local campaigns that protect these spaces and the growing interest in sustainability and food resilience.
It’s also just a really fun place to be! So many nice restaurants and cafes, independent cinemas like ActOne cinema, lush parks to wander around and get lost in, they all make this a special place to live. While there’s more to improve, I believe that with openness, collaboration, and accountability, we can make East Acton and Ealing even better.
How accessible will you be to East Acton ward residents and how can they get in contact with you now and if elected how will you ensure you are accessible to them in the future?
Residents can contact me now at marijn@ealinggreenparty.org.uk.
If elected, I will hold regular in-person surgeries and group sessions to stay connected with residents and represent them effectively.
Click here for all East Acton candidates standing.
Full coverage of the 2026 Ealing Council local elections and candidates standing can be found here.
