Welcome to the first edition of Impact Fund Notes – a monthly update on what we’re working on, what we’re learning, and how this community is shaping the Fund as it grows.
The Impact Fund has always started with a simple belief: we can do more when we give together. Since 2017, the Impact Fund giving community has granted more than $11 million to bold, community-led work across Australia – work that would be hard for any one of us to resource alone.
Over the past year, we’ve been asking: how can the Fund be even more useful to the people and communities it exists to support? We spoke with more than 70 Fundholders, community partners, sector peers and ACF staff. The message was clear: people value the Impact Fund, and they want to stay closer to the thinking behind it.
So, each month, I’ll share what’s moving, what we’re noticing, and what we’re still working through.
A sharper focus
The heart of the Impact Fund isn’t changing: people coming together to back solutions to Australia’s complex challenges. What is changing is how we focus that energy.
Each year, the Fund will centre on one key national issue and back work that tackles it from different angles. A multi-year Catalyst Grant will sit at the centre, with Agile Grants helping us respond to timely opportunities along the way.
And we’re looking beyond grants. Funding matters, but so does listening well, sharing what we learn, and helping Fundholders give with confidence. Put simply, it’s not just about where we give, but how we give, learn and act together.
This year’s focus: Climate
In 2026, our Catalyst Initiative is focused on climate – an urgent, complex challenge of many intersecting issues, where community-led action has a vital role to play.
To make climate giving easier to explore, we’ve launched the Climate Giving Resource Hub. It brings together resources, events and opportunities – whether you’re just getting started or already funding in this space.
We’ll keep adding to it throughout the year, with fresh partner perspectives and practical ways to get involved.
What we’re learning
One of the biggest shifts is bringing more community voice into grantmaking.
That means listening to people closest to the issues – because they often see most clearly what’s needed, what will work, and what might get in the way.
This year, we’ve implemented a Community Advisory Group for the Impact Fund. A few insights are already standing out:
Shared power leads to better decisions. Community Advisors are helping shape priorities, identify organisations and test our assumptions. The thinking is stronger because more perspectives are in the room.
The how matters as much as the what. Clear timeframes, respectful communication and lighter admin all make a difference, especially for busy community organisations.
Sometimes, a pause helps. In one recent process, we reopened evaluations after a group discussion so advisors could reconsider with the benefit of what they’d heard. It took more time – and led to a better decision.
Trust is everything. This work depends on strong relationships. We’re deeply grateful for the generosity and expertise of our Community Advisors, and we’re continuing to invest in those relationships with care.
What’s happening now
This year’s collective effort is already moving. We’re close to reaching our $300,000 co-funding target for the 2026 Catalyst Grant partner, RE-Alliance, with a little further to go. There’s still time to join the Fund in backing work that helps farmers lead Australia’s renewable energy transition. Learn more
Coming up, we have three great opportunities to keep exploring these ideas together:
- Amplifying Your Giving with Strategy: A climate case study with the Pollinate Fund – 6 August
- Impact Beyond Giving: Aligning influence, advocacy and investments for climate action – 26 August
- Democracy and Climate: Funding at the intersection – 13 October
You can also dip into the Climate Giving Resource Hub at any time for tools, ideas and opportunities – and watch for Agile Grants and future co-funding opportunities as they arise.
We’re looking forward to sharing more each month – not just the outcomes, but the questions, choices and lessons along the way. Thank you, as always, for being part of this community and for learning alongside us as we go further together.
A Conversation with the 2026 Community Advisory Group
If you missed our recent webinar exploring how community insight can strengthen your giving, you can tune in below. Joined by the Impact Fund’s 2026 Community Advisory Group, we discussed the intersectionality of social, economic, and climate issues and the value of long-term relationships and trust in funding.
Further Reading
- Participatory Grantmaking: Building the Evidence | Philanthropy Australia
- On Our Own Terms – Systems change through Lived Experience Leadership | morgan&co
- A New Era of Philanthropy: Ten Practices to Transform Wealth | Dimple Abichandani
- How funders are using participatory granting as a tool for social impact | TACSI
