By working with our businesses, James Remington is hoping to keep putting Ballarat on the map.
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"I'm very unashamedly pro-Ballarat," he said.
"I hope the city continues to grow, and I think it will, it's got so much on offer."
But community is important to Mr Remington - it is one of the reasons why he came back to Ballarat.
"I hope we retain that sense of community," he said.
"We're obviously a long way off being four million people like Melbourne is now, but the bigger we get the harder that will be to maintain."
The Clarendon student grew up in Ballarat, but after high school, he wasn't sure what direction he wanted to go.
"I was really interested in history and still am," Mr Remington said.
"I liked the idea of doing that and maybe I wanted to be a history teacher."
Supporting Ballarat business
"I love it here and anything that is going to put Ballarat and build its prominence up [is important]," Mr Remington said.
He said he thinks it is great to work together and talk about what the future of Ballarat should look like, especially at events with Commerce Ballarat or Committee for Ballarat
"They celebrate the fact that we have people who are really good at what they do here," Mr Remington said.
"(They're) championing those people and building awareness of what's on offer here. I think that's really important."
Making his way into law
Not 100 per cent sold on the teacher route, Mr Remington took a gap year in the UK working in hospitality and then went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts.
"I loved it, I ended up doing all sorts of weird and wonderful subjects," Mr Remington said.
"I genuinely think I've learned a lot from the degree that is useful now in terms of communication skills, interpretation and scepticism."
During his first year he was a Ballarat to Melbourne commuter and then moved into a shared house in North Carlton.
Mr Remington soon discovered that he didn't have the patience to be a teacher.
He considered going into economics but then thought the work prospects in the regions would be better as a lawyer.
"Law had been an interest, with public speaking, forming an argument and writing," he said.
"I always thought that could be a good option and it would be more compatible with living regionally."
Diversity a drawcard
Eventually, the need for balance drove Mr Remington back to Ballarat.
"I really liked working in Melbourne and I liked the firm I was working for," he said.
"The penny dropped for my wife and I - we were both working in Melbourne and we realised if we wanted to be able to have decent lifestyles and be able to afford to live close to where we worked, a move to the country might help."
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While lifestyle changes were a major factor, Mr Remington also thought Ballarat would be a great place to expose his family to more diversity.
"In Melbourne you can sort of buy your neighbourhood ... you can set yourself up in certain suburbs and you're going to get a very limited view of the world," he said.
"I felt like we would give our kids more of a broader view of how the world works and what other people go through [in Ballarat]."
"I like the size of Ballarat and I've always loved being able to go mountain biking, I think its got so much going for it from a lifestyle perspective."