Community groups across Australia are gearing up to amplify First Nations’ efforts towards Voice after receiving funding through the Rapid Response Referendum Grant Round.

Launched in June by Australian Communities Foundation’s First Nations Advisory Group, the Grant Round is a key pillar of the Foundation’s ongoing work to amplify community voices in support of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament.

Grants between $2,500 and $15,000 are available for initiatives that elevate and amplify First Nations voices and leadership within the Yes campaign, and enable accessibility of information and resources about Voice, Treaty, Truth, and the upcoming Referendum process.

While the Grant Round will remain open in the lead-up to the Referendum, over $320,000 has already been distributed in support of 30 community groups and organisations across Australia.

Australian Communities Foundation’s Philanthropy Lead, Laura Mannix, said that moving fast was essential.

“With the Referendum fast approaching, we have tried to design the application process to be as quick and easy as possible for those doing the work. Our First Nations Advisory Group meets fortnightly to review the applications so that grants can be awarded quickly in response to immediate needs.”

Chris Croker, Australian Communities Foundation Director and First Nations Advisory Group member, said the breadth and diversity of applicants demonstrate the extensive work communities are undertaking towards Voice.

“From community consultations in Dubbo to information sessions in the Torres Strait and community campaigns in the East Kimberley, it is clear that First Nations leaders, friends and allies from across all walks of life are coming together in all corners of Australia.”

The Grant Round has been made possible by the contributions of many into the Rapid Response Referendum Grants Pool as part of Australian Communities Foundation’s Voices for Impact program.

Maree Sidey, Australian Communities Foundation CEO, said Voices for Impact is the Foundation’s most successful collective funding campaign to date.

“We aimed to catalyse our community to support First Nations organisations and allies working on the Voice, and we have been delighted by the response.”

“The prospect of the Referendum can be incredibly daunting for an individual funder, and it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the size of the task, but when we give together, we can make a real difference to important issues facing Australia.”

Interested in contributing to the Grants Pool? Contact us: grants@communityfoundation.org.au or call 03 9412 0412.

Learn more about the Grant Round: communityfoundation.org.au/support/referendum-grants-round

Grant recipients

Aboriginal Family Legal Services WA
Africause
Agency Projects
Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition
Binarri-binyja yarrawoo Aboriginal Corporation
CASSE Australia
Climate And Health Alliance
Dubbo Local Aboriginal Land Council
Edmund Rice Community Services
Gur A Baradharaw Kod Torres Strait Sea and Land Council
Karrkad-Kanjdji Trust
Melbourne Community Television Consortium
Melbourne International Film Festival
National Indigenous Intervention Network
Nungaroo Local Aboriginal Land Council
Orange Local Aboriginal Land Council
Port Phillip Citizens For Reconciliation
Shara Clarke Aboriginal Cultural and Education Centre Limited
Southern Women’s Action Network
Stand Up: Jewish Commitment to a Better World
SUDD Foundation
Tearfund Australia
Wellsprings for Women
West Australian Stolen Generations Aboriginal Corporation
Willum Warrain Aboriginal Association
YES Uraidla

Thank you

Thank you to the funders who have helped make the RRR Grant Round possible through their contributions to the Grants Pool, including:

Australian Indigenous Persons Initiative Fund
Ballandry (Peter Griffin Family) Fund
Beeton Family Fund
Dorrie Alcock Memorial Fund
EM Horton Family Fund
Fiona Shields Fund
Firmly Planted
JRA Support Fund
Kapscalu Rejenerative Fund
Keith and Jeanette Ince Fund
O’Shea Thompson Family Fund
Oranges & Sardines Foundation
Tass Nyungar Fund