Six weeks on from the launch of the Impact Fund’s 2024 annual large grant round, our giving community has contributed over $570,000 for four new initiatives working towards justice. 

We still have a little over $200,000 to go to reach our target (as at 20 November). Here’s a quick update on what our Collaborations for Justice partners have been up to since our Impact Fund Showcase on 10 October.

Missed the Showcase or want to relive the night? See highlights and full recording here.

Countering Disinformation: Equipping campaigners with the tools to respond 
$138,000 raised | $62,000 to go 
Impact Area: Strengthening Democracy 

A healthy democracy needs an informed public, but the rise of disinformation puts this essential foundation at risk. As we approach the next federal election, this threat is more urgent than ever. The Australian Democracy Network (ADN) has developed a training masterclass to equip campaigners and organisers with the tools they need to identify, assess and counter disinformation. 

ADN hosted its first Disinformation Masterclass in November with 19 campaigners working on a range of critical issues from climate and renewables to protecting LGBTQIA+ and refugee rights.

Saffron Zomer, Executive Director at ADN, has also appeared on the latest episode of the Community Advocate podcast, raising awareness of ADN’s work and the fragility of democratic institutions and trust in government in the context of the recent US election. 

Common Threads: Harnessing the power of First Nations movements 
$119,000 raised | $81,000 to go 
Impact Area: Supporting First Nations Self-Determination 

Common Threads is a new organisation that harnesses the power of emerging First Nations leadership and changemaking. Led by a First Nations team with expertise in movement building, Common Threads exists to support First Nations leaders to deliver policy wins that create a fairer, more sustainable future for all. 

Millie Telford, proud Bundjalung and South Sea Islander woman and First Nations Justice Director at Australian Progress, sits on the organisation’s steering committee alongside Larissa Baldwin-Roberts, Widjabul Wia-bal woman and CEO of GetUp, and Dr Jackie Huggins AM, Bidjara and Birri-Gubba Juru woman and leader working in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs for over forty years. 

Millie recently joined a breakfast panel, ‘Influence & Advocacy: Shaping policy with purpose’, hosted by fellow Impact Fund partner, Australian Democracy Network. Millie presented alongside Paul Ramsay Foundation CEO Kristy Muir, and Charities Minister Andrew Leigh, who gave a keynote address on the importance of community-led advocacy in shaping policy.

Building Power for Climate Justice: Uniting the movement 
$125,000 raised | $75,000 to go 
Impact Area: Safeguarding the Environment 

Australia’s leading climate organisations are coming together to build a strong people-powered movement for climate action led by those most impacted by the climate crisis. As a united coalition, these organisations are working together to develop a strategy for COP31 (the 2026 UN climate summit, which Australia is likely to host) and launch publicly next year with 1,000 volunteers organising, mobilising and shifting the narrative in the lead-up to the election and COP31. 

Larissa Baldwin-Roberts, CEO of GetUp, one of six organisations in the coalition, has been providing updates from COP29 in Azerbaijan (11 – 22 November), where she has been raising awareness of the importance of Indigenous leadership and approaches to climate solutions. 

A Place to Call Home: Co-creating a rental system that works for everyone 
$187,000 raised | $13,000 to go 
Impact Area: Tackling Inequality 

A Place to Call Home is a new national campaign bringing together renters and some of Australia’s leading not-for-profits with expertise in housing. Anika Legal, Better Renting and the Consumer Policy Research Centre are working with renters to build a national roadmap for a rental system that works for everyone and offers renters safe, secure and affordable homes. 

In an early win for the campaign, the Victorian State Government has announced sweeping rental reforms including new policies to stop rental providers from making unfounded claims against tenants’ bonds. This follows recommendations made by Anika Legal, as detailed in the Broken Bonds report, which found that up to 39% of claims made against renters’ bonds were baseless, costing the government millions in VCAT cases and creating unnecessary stress for renters. 

—

Get Involved 

Thank you to everyone who has supported this work so far. As funders, we can maximise our impact when we give together to support changemakers who are tackling our country’s biggest issues and advocating for systemic change. 

Contribute from your ACF Fund here or donate directly here. If you would like to learn more about this work or have a conversation before pledging your support, please contact me on 03 9412 0412 or email grants@communityfoundation.org.au