| 2025 | 2024 | |
| EDUCATION | $ | $ |
| ABCN Scholarship Foundation This project will support three NSW students from non-English speaking backgrounds to continue into Year 3 of the Accelerate program in 2026. These students are currently supported through Year 2 by James N. Kirby Foundation 2024 funding. This unique 3-year Accelerate program is a critical intervention point for students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds taking place in Years 11, 12 and the first year post-school. It combines workshops, corporate mentoring, peer mentoring, financial assistance, and workplace access to support the completion of Year 12 and transition to further education, training and employment. |
15,000 | 13,875 |
| Australian Indigenous Education Foundation The Australian Indigenous Education Foundation’s Pathways Program provides support services that help Indigenous students make a successful transition from school to further studies or employment through tailored career guidance, skills-building workshops, mentoring, networking opportunities, and job placement assistance. Funding to expand the alumni network with two-way mentoring, helping graduates access advanced professional opportunities (such as advisory and board positions) whilst supporting younger program participants. |
15,000 | 25,000 |
| Australian Museum Trust The Waranara Professional Development series offers urgently needed professional development workshops to help NSW primary school teachers confidently integrate First Nations perspectives in their teaching as new syllabuses are implemented over the next two years. The Australian Museum aims to expand their regional access and enhance First Nations teaching competency through exhibitions, documentaries, and resources. The funding will help to subsidise teachers from regional and lower socio-advantaged areas to attend online workshops for free. |
15,000 | – |
| Autism Spectrum Australia (ASPECT) Aspect delivers support services for children and adults on the autism spectrum including research, diagnostic assessments, therapy, adult community services and autism-friendly environmental evaluations. Funding to enhance literacy learning and to purchase autism-specific literacy program resources for Autistic students at Aspect Hills Shire School in NSW. The literacy resources include decodable library packs and multi-sensory phonics kits. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| BBM Youth Support BBM Global Footprint Scholarships provide a life-changing experience for young people who have outstanding potential to become leaders in their chosen fields, focusing on work experience in the vocational education training sector, specifically in agriculture, horticulture and trades. Funding for one horticultural scholar from NSW to train for one year to kick start their career and help them address the climate emergency. |
9,000 | – |
| Bravehearts Foundation To distribute child sexual abuse prevention packs to 150 schools and Early Learning Centres (ELCs) across the western suburbs of Sydney. This includes ‘Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure’ personal safety storybook Series, grooming awareness resources for educators, teachers and parents. By equipping educators, teachers and parents with tools, they will increase awareness of grooming and child safety, plus empower children to recognise, react and report unsafe situations. |
12,750 | – |
| Butterfly Foundation Wandi Nerida is Australia’s first residential eating disorder recovery centre. Operated by Butterfly, Wandi is a mental health facility providing a safe and healing environment, delivering concentrated person-centred treatment. Funding for Wandi’s Nature-Based Therapy program, using the natural environment as a facilitator during the therapeutic process. |
15,000 | – |
| Chain Reaction Foundation The project is a targeted intervention program designed to reduce student disengagement, absenteeism, and youth crime while improving mental health, resilience, and wellbeing in vulnerable high school students. This initiative will bring the Learning Ground in School model, a proven approach to behavioural change, emotional regulation, and social connection, to a Western Sydney school. |
15,000 | – |
| Country Education Foundation of Australia In 2024, Country Education Foundation proudly supported 110 students undertaking vocational education and training (VET). Funding will provide fourteen, $3,000 scholarships in 2025 and 2026. Seven scholarships were awarded in August 2025 (National Skills Week) and seven are to be awarded in February 2026. |
50,000 | – |
| Dementia Australia Dementia Australia delivers educational programs for best-practice dementia care through a variety of programs including leading-edge and award-winning virtual interactive online experiences, which has shown great results in the education of Aged Care Workers. Funding of three laptops for the staff to utilise for the education and delivery of best practice dementia care. |
15,000 | – |
| Engineering AID Australia The catchment area for the NSW Indigenous Australian Engineering School (IAES) program has been across Queensland, Victoria and South Australia as well as NSW. About 40% of the students attending the NSW program are from Queensland. The awareness of IAES program is very limited in rural and remote areas. Funding to further develop brand and promotional strategies to reach these students. |
15,000 | – |
| Gawura To fund essential therapy for speech and literacy so that students can appropriately access the educational and cultural content that Gawura School provides. Students commence school in kindergarten on average 18 months below state averages, and three years below their St Andrew’s Cathedral Junior School peers. With a high percentage of Gawura students with formal diagnoses, including intellectual, ADHD, autism, anxiety, language delay and learning disabilities, early professional structured interventions are needed. |
15,000 | – |
| Guide Dogs Association of NSW/ACT Funding to purchase vital low vision equipment to distribute to clients living with low vision or blindness, at no cost to the client. Training with Low Vision Specialists will also be provided to the clients to ensure they can use the technology to reach their personalised goals. |
15,000 | – |
| Harding Miller Education Foundation The Foundation awards many four-year scholarships to public high school girls who have proven academic talent, but are substantially hindered by socioeconomic disadvantage. The grant funds will be specifically purposed for the $700 academic expenses cards for twenty-one scholars in Year 9. Together with a comprehensive suite of support that includes a high-quality laptop with mobile broadband, annual tutoring, unlimited homework assistance and the pairing of the scholar with a coach, the overall impact on these girls’ lives is truly transformative. |
14,700 | – |
| Jane Goodall Institute Australia To equip students with the knowledge, skills, and resources to not only understand environmental issues but to actively participate in creating solutions. This is the mission of ‘ReWild Your School’, an innovative environmental education program designed to empower young people to make a tangible difference in their communities. This funding will deliver the program into twenty low socio-economic primary schools around Australia. |
10,800 | – |
| Karrkad Kanjdji Trust (KKT) This project will deliver full-time, bi-cultural, community-owned education to children living in the remote organisations of the Djelk IPA (Central Arnhem Land). Three community-owned schools will be delivered over three years, and they will operate under the governance of the Homeland School Company (HSC), an organisation established and led by Traditional Owners of the Djelk IPA. The HSC will follow the blueprint of the neighbouring Nawarddeden Academy, meaning philanthropic investment is required to raise the necessary start-up capital before the schools can qualify for government funding. |
53,000 | 15,000 |
| KidsXpress Funding to deliver one week of professional development for teachers in the NSW Northern Rivers, who are caring for children suffering mental ill-health stemming from exposure to traumatic experiences. This includes poverty, insecure housing, and family and community breakdown resulting from extensive flooding in 2022. The project will deliver workshops and intensive coaching and mentoring for educators at Casino Public School, Casino West Public School, Lilly Pilly Community Preschool in Brunswick Heads and Nimbin Central School. |
11,847 | – |
| KU Marcia Burgess Foundation Funding to provide financial assistance for low-income families facing barriers of access to developmental assessments and therapy for their children before starting school. This program is delivered in collaboration with families, KU allied health managers and early childhood educators, and with professional services provided by KU’s Early Intervention and Allied Health Services, a NDIS compliant provider with clinic rooms and mobile services. |
15,000 | – |
| Learning Links In partnership with Liverpool Local Aboriginal Education Consultative Group, Learning Links will deliver their innovative, early intervention Aboriginal Education Program in two disadvantaged primary schools in Liverpool. The program is built on a proven model of intervention to build children’s capabilities and confidence in the foundational skills of literacy and numeracy; and will enable Learning Links to help Aboriginal students struggling with learning difficulties to receive the individualised and intensive support they need to learn, develop and thrive. |
49,055 | 14,800 |
| Life Education Australia ‘Narrowing the Regional Health Education Gap’ addresses escalating demand for children’s preventative health and mental wellbeing education in regional and rural primary schools. Featuring new program delivery methods, content and interactive augmented reality, the project will facilitate preventive health programs for disadvantaged children in schools with more than a 20% Indigenous population. |
14,400 | 14,400 |
| Macquarie University Funding to develop an innovative AI-powered tool to enhance academic vocabulary: a crucial element for literacy. The tool aligns with Australian Curriculum syllabi, identifies key vocabulary by jurisdiction, grade, subject, and topic. For example, for Year 5 Science ‘water cycle’, children with low literacy practise terms like ‘evaporation’ through interactive AI exercises, enhancing the children’s literacy skills, unlocking curriculum content and allowing them to focus on learning. |
50,600 | – |
| Morris Children’s Fund The program is conducted each week of the school term by a specialist teacher who works with Special Needs schools, using music as a medium to unlock the students’ hidden potential and capabilities. Each workshop has a mix of musical approaches to maintain interest and to challenge their abilities, explore their own creativity and push their physical boundaries. |
5,000 | 15,000 |
| National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) Funding to purchase equipment to set up a theatrical lighting Previsualisation Studio for Bachelor of Fine Arts Technical Theatre and Stage Management, and VET Diploma of Live Production and Technical Services students. The Studio will provide students with applicable knowledge of real-time rendering of lighting effects in computer-aided drafting software and create high-quality lighting plots for NIDA’s live student productions. |
12,085 | – |
| OceanEarth Foundation Funding to establish a National Ocean Literacy Schools Coalition of educational stakeholders such as the Marine Teachers Association of New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, to develop a National Ocean Literacy Education Strategy for Australian schools. To support professional development for educators and to establish Australia’s Blue Schools Network. |
49,280 | – |
| Outward Bound Australia (The Outward Bound Development Fund) Outward Bound’s new Communal Centre is central to the Tharwa campus transformation, creating a hub for outdoor adventure learning that enhances capacity, inclusivity and community connections. Inspired by historic woolsheds, its three linked rustic pavilions blend with the bush landscape, offering a commercial kitchen and indoor /outdoor dining and gathering spaces for 140 people with administration areas. It replaces the no longer fit-for-purpose ‘admin block’ with energy efficiency design, solar power and bushfire safety features. Construction has commenced to be ready for 2026. |
50,000 | – |
| Primary Ethics Funding to deliver new curriculum topics for students to help guide them towards better decision-making and wellbeing when navigating the online world. To equip students with ethical decision-making skills and focus on technology’s role in their everyday life, assessing online information, understanding data privacy and AI. Each topic will include engaging lessons designed to foster critical thinking, respectful discussion and responsible digital behaviour. |
14,000 | – |
| Professor Harry Messel International Science School The Professor Harry Messel International Science School is a prestigious biennial program, that gathers 110 exceptional Year 11 and 12 students, from across the globe for two weeks of immersive STEM experiences, inspiring lectures from leading researchers, lab tours and hands-on experiments, and mentorship from early career scientists. Funding to help cover increased post-COVID costs for regional and remote students, ensuring equitable access to this transformative program. |
40,000 | – |
| Project Youth ‘Beyond Homelessness’ is a new podcast by Project Youth launching in 2025. The podcast allows young people with lived experience to work as interviewers and technical staff, providing pathways to employment. Young people need platforms to be heard, to tell stories that inspire, to have a voice at the table with decision makers. To fund specialist podcast equipment to run the podcast and record it for sharing through YouTube and Spotify platforms. |
4,821 | 14,290 |
| Reading Out Of Poverty (ROOP) ‘Books from Birth’ provides early literacy skills to ensure school preparedness for children aged 0-5 and targets children from low socio-economic backgrounds, including migrants, refugees and indigenous individuals. The program focuses on new mothers living in disadvantaged areas within the Albury/ Wodonga region. Children will gain access to a literacy starter kit which includes bilingual tools to engage their children in ready and early literacy activities. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| SDN Child and Family Services SDN’s pioneering scholarships help to reduce financial barriers for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, allowing them to access quality education and care for their children in the year before school. The scholarship enables a child to attend an SDN Centre two days a week for a period of twelve months and will have a significant impact on long-term life outcomes for all children. |
12,000 | 12,000 |
| Smart* Program (*Science, Maths and Real Technology) STEM Club is a workshop for students aged 8-12 years that provides the opportunity to develop skills and interest in STEM through hands-on experiments and activities, beyond what is offered in the school environment. To travel to recognised low socio-economic areas within the Newcastle region and deliver STEM Club within schools or community venues to engage and ignite students’ interest in STEM. |
13,297 | – |
| Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation Funding for a critical digital transformation of the online resource library and national community hub, The Shared Table. This project will enable the Foundation to scope, design, and commence development of a digital upgrade to ensure the needs of primary school, early childhood and secondary school educators are being met and enhanced. Shared Table is the delivery platform for thousands of educators who run the Kitchen Garden Program around the country. |
50,000 | – |
| Story Factory To deliver creative writing programs for up to 100 young people (aged 7-17) from under-resourced communities in Western Sydney. Expert teaching staff and volunteer writing tutors will guide students through carefully scaffolded writing activities – oriented around topics that resonate with young people – which will reignite their motivation to learn, unleash their creative potential, and strengthen their writing skills. Each program culminates in a published anthology, designed to instil an ongoing interest in writing. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Streetwork Australia The Program is an early intervention strategy that seeks to reduce engagement in youth crime by pairing at-risk young people with a Streetwork Youth Caseworker. The Program combines a community network of specialist youth services, the Northern Sydney Youth Services Collaborative, and aims to build protective factors such as community connectedness and engagement in education and employment while targeting mental health, drug and alcohol misuse and family relationships. |
15,000 | – |
| The PYJama Foundation Through the Love of Learning Program, volunteers called ‘Pyjama Angels’ are recruited, screened, trained and then matched with a child in care and spend time with them once a week, focusing on learning-based activities. NSW has been identified as an area of need for our Love of Learning Program. There are currently 212 children placed in NSW and the demand is great with 85 children on the wait list. |
13,384 | – |
| The Smith Family Darlinghurst Learning for Life (LFL) gives children living with poverty the tools and resources they need to receive a fair education. LFL provides educational support beyond the classroom in three ways: financial support for school essentials, personalised support from a dedicated Family Partnership Coordinator (who works closely with each student to problem-solve any barriers to education) and access to education programs designed to meet the needs of children from low-socioeconomic communities. |
14,616 | 14,886 |
| The University of Sydney The Agenda for Action for Adolescents calls for high-quality, affordable digital health services to improve health and wellbeing. There is a gap in community- based preventive health services across Australia that are equitable, accessible and co-designed with adolescents. This led to the development of the Health4Me intervention, including a clinical trial to test its effectiveness. To fund the next step: optimisation of Health4Me to a mobile app in collaboration with adolescents and an experienced technology partner (Curve Tomorrow), to ensure maximum impact. |
15,000 | – |
| The University of Sydney Empowering future engineers starts with access to industry-fit technology and hands-on learning experiences. By integrating AI-powered robotics into outreach programs and equipping student-led teams with the latest engineering tools, this initiative will create a stronger pipeline into STEM careers. From sparking curiosity in young minds to refining the capabilities of university students in aerospace, robotics, and advanced manufacturing, this project ensures that more graduates enter the workforce with the expertise needed to drive innovation. |
50,000 | 25,000 |
| University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney) To develop a unique Human Mobility Facility focused on upper limb mobility, augmenting existing UNSW and NeuRA capabilities in lower limb mobility/gait analysis. While gait analysis has standardised lower limb assessment approaches, Sydney lacks specialised labs for upper limb mobility assessment. Funding to purchase an Electromyography (EMG) system, enabling simultaneous capture of muscle activity and motion data. This integrated approach will be invaluable for evaluating rehab treatment effectiveness. |
45,000 | – |
| YHA Travel To Learn Foundation Adventures for Every Child will ensure no student is left behind or misses out on important and valuable learning and travel experiences. Funding to enable disadvantaged young people attending schools in NSW regional and remote areas to participate in school excursions and field trips. It aims to improve educational outcomes, provide equal opportunities, enhance wellbeing, and strengthen school communities. |
15,000 | – |
| Youth Off The Streets Funding towards Youth Off The Streets’ Step Up program offering an alternative education to disadvantaged young people who have disengaged from mainstream education. Support of this program will enable a supportive learning environment for young people at risk of or experiencing homelessness. In their pursuit of education, training and employment, this grant will further support students through wellbeing initiatives, counselling, appropriate attire, experiential outings, sports, recreation, and many other activities to enhance students’ learning outcomes. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| OTHER | – | 147,477 |
| TOTAL EDUCATION | 904,635 | 371,728 |
| 2025 | 2024 | |
| ENVIRONMENT | $ | $ |
| Aussie Ark Funding to support the Broad Toothed Rat captive breeding program. This program is based at the Australian Reptile Park in Somersby, NSW. Aussie Ark has already funded the construction of a state-of-the-art breeding facility for this species including a mostly solar-powered refrigerated room, and specialised recreated swamp aquarium-style environments to meet the highly specific requirements for this species to optimise breeding success. The funding will go towards a specialist keeper, environmental management, specialist feed, vet care and genetic testing. |
15,000 | – |
| Australian Seabird and Turtle Rescue Australian Seabird and Turtle Rescue rehabilitate impacted seabirds and turtles. The rehabilitation effort includes housing impacted birds onsite in specialised aviaries. Funding to upgrade the water ponds with custom-made polymer ponds serviced with independent biological mechanical and UV filtration units to improve the functionality and maintenance of seabird ponds. |
15,000 | – |
| Australian Wildlife Conservancy Australian Wildlife Conservancy is developing and trialling a smart-gate solution to address the need for flexible management of fenced areas. A smart-gate is a double-gated tunnel that allows target species to move through a fence based on AI recognition. A prototype is undergoing internal trials within select fenced enclosures. Funding will support development of an enhanced, more easily deployed and modular version, as well as training the AI model and trialling a range of potential applications. |
50,000 | – |
| Biodiversity Council In collaboration with Cool.org, this project will enable school students to act for threatened species and biodiversity. Biodiversity Council will design and develop educational materials that incorporate their research-based, high-impact biodiversity actions. Cool.org will map these to the Australian Curriculum ensuring these resources are available and free for teachers to use across Australia. |
15,000 | – |
| Byron Bay Wildlife Hospital The Critical Wildlife Rescue and Treatment Fund will directly support Byron Bay Wildlife Hospital and its ability to provide continuous, expert veterinary care for sick, injured and orphaned wildlife. The funding will be allocated towards medical supplies and consumables, medications, diagnostic tools and laboratory testing to ensure accurate and timely treatment, and specialised veterinary equipment maintenance to keep essential tools operational. |
15,000 | – |
| Carbon Positive Australia Located in northern NSW, this 33-hectare property in koala habitat was cleared for cattle grazing. Now an ERF-registered ecological restoration project, it connects bushland between two national parks, creating a wildlife corridor and enhancing biodiversity. Over 70,270 native trees have been planted with a 97% survival rate and 115% average growth. Funding to support a 3-year maintenance program for woody weed control to protect biodiversity gains and ensure long-term success. |
14,400 | – |
| Climateworks Centre Climateworks Centre’s Natural Capital Measurement Catalogue is a world-first open-source, science-based reference for measuring natural capital across all scales and land use types. The project will develop an online demonstration portal enabling users to access publicly available spatial data for selected metrics from various sources, easily and at no cost. By making public nature data more accessible and user-friendly, Climateworks aim to drive progress towards positive nature outcomes. |
50,000 | – |
| Environmental Justice Australia On behalf of clients, Environmental Justice Australia’s team of nature lawyers hold governments to account for failures to meet legal obligations that lead to destruction of vulnerable ecosystems, habitats and species; and scrutinises industries and projects that are the biggest contributors to ecosystem collapse. |
15,000 | – |
| Farmers For Climate Action Funding for an environmental research project to survey farmers on the best practices to reduce agricultural emissions. The survey will evaluate the effectiveness of current pathways to net zero emissions for farmers and amplify farmers’ voices to conserve natural resources. Funding to support the community work of building effective and durable support for climate action within major agricultural groups and with new farmers. |
15,000 | – |
| Foundation For Australia’s Most Endangered Species ‘Rebuilding Rainforests’ in the Northern Rivers is a three-year enrichment program restoring rainforest ecosystems by planting 12,000 trees annually to enhance biodiversity and habitat for endangered wildlife. A critical first step is expert seed collection, ensuring rare and threatened species are sourced and propagated. The funding will support 37 days of expert seed collection for one year, training a new conservation specialist, and secure diverse species essential for long-term rainforest restoration and climate resilience. |
15,000 | – |
| Hills Wildlife Sanctuary Funding to refurbish and modernise the on-site education centre, originally built in 1980. This facility is vital for training wildlife carers, veterinarians, and students from across NSW and beyond in wildlife rescue, emergency response, wildlife rehabilitation, veterinary care and biodiversity conservation. The funding will be used to improve facilities including new furniture, new AV equipment, satellite internet, as well as refurbishing the enclosures and displays of rescued reptiles and amphibians inside the education centre building. |
15,000 | – |
| Invasive Species Council Funding for Australia’s first State of Environmental Biosecurity Report, to outline how invasive species are driving extinction and causing the destruction of globally significant species and ecosystems. It will identify the next group of extinctions. This report will be used by stakeholders to understand the status of environmental biosecurity in Australia so that we can halt the extinction crisis. |
30,000 | 15,000 |
| Keep Australia Beautiful (NSW) EnviroMentors is Keep Australia Beautiful NSW’s incursion program which brings interactive sustainability workshops to classrooms across NSW. The ‘EnviroMentors FOGO Workshop Development’ project will add a new topic to the range of workshops Food Waste and FOGO (Food Organics and Garden Organics) and will be taught to primary school students. |
10,000 | – |
| Kelp Forest Alliance This project will develop a comprehensive Australian action plan to increase the area of kelp forest ecosystem protected and restored, and help Australia meet its international commitments. Funding will support an international workshop to create evidence-based recommendations and policy frameworks to restore and protect kelp forests, with a focus on sustainable solutions, Indigenous leadership, and biodiversity conservation. |
15,000 | – |
| Native Animal Trust Fund Hunter Wildlife Rescue is purchasing six Vetario T30 Portable Intensive Care Units, a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose small animal ICU specifically designed to meet the critical care needs of vulnerable wildlife. This unit is essential for providing warmth and isolation for young, sick, injured, or weak animals and birds. Hunter Wildlife Rescue operates entirely through the efforts of dedicated volunteers to cover an area of more than one million hectares. |
5,100 | – |
| NSW Wildlife Information Rescue and Education Service (WIRES) Funding for Portable Wombat Pre-release Enclosures. Each of these enclosures will be made up of cattle yard perimeter fencing panels with colour bond shielding, steel mesh floor panels and gates. Also, funding towards purchasing an appropriately sized trailer to move these portable enclosures to suitable locations. |
11,401 | – |
| Rainforest Rescue To purchase equipment to maintain momentum and expand operations this year. With a Rainforest Rescue ‘first’ involving the purchase and future restoration of 110 Cape Tribulation Road, the funding will help to increase efficiency in the nursery and land teams, to tackle this large restoration project and ensure the long-term success of their efforts. |
14,843 | 15,000 |
| Soils for Life This project will develop a set of practical soil health monitoring resources and upskilling opportunities to support profitable, resilient and environmentally sustainable farming. Soils for Life will produce a comprehensive guide with embedded videos and case studies, covering the what, why and how of monitoring and interpreting test results to inform decision making. Three live and recorded webinars will bring the guide to life through peer learning and access to specialists. Outputs will be shared via podcasts, social media and other formats to suit diverse learning styles. |
50,000 | – |
| Surfers for Climate Blue Minds Youth Ocean Leadership, a Surfers for Climate initiative with Good Human Factory, tackles youth eco-anxiety nationwide. In six months, Surfers for Climate have successfully run in-person workshops to over 5,000 youth. Funding will scale the program by creating Blue Minds Digital Resources such as video lessons, worksheets, and lesson plans for six lessons in partnership with Cool.org Australia. Covering ocean conservation, health, climate science, innovation, and eco-anxiety, these resources will bridge a critical gap in Australian schools. |
25,000 | – |
| Sydney Institute of Marine Science Foundation (SIMS) Funding to develop sample processing pipelines that integrate artificial intelligence into the monitoring of marine biodiversity. Building on Project Restore’s restoration framework in Sydney Harbour, the Foundation will collaborate with the Australian National University to develop high throughput methods for imaging and sequencing marine invertebrates. They will train AI models to identify and quantify invertebrate diversity in restored habitats. By leveraging photomicroscopy and DNA automated classification techniques, the Foundation aims to enhance the accuracy, efficiency and scalability of biodiversity assessments. |
15,000 | – |
| Taronga Conservation Society Australia Conservation science applied to koala health, reproductive biology and translocation, will help deliver translocation goals set out in the Koala Strategy. In 2024, Taronga conducted essential koala capture, collaring, and health assessments on the NSW mid-north coast. These populations were identified as low density and at risk of local extinction. Funding will support fieldwork and surveys, maintaining GPS collars and base stations, and annual health reassessments. The influence of sex, age, disease state on home range size and movement speed data will help to stabilise these populations. |
25,000 | 31,400 |
| The Australian National University Funding to establish a climate-adjusted provenance trial of high mountain snow gums and co-occurring Eucalypts to identify variants best suited to withstand warming, drying conditions and the current decline mediated by Phoracantha, a native wood boring beetle. This funding will leverage the Australian Mountain Research Facility and the ‘Save Our Snow Gum’ project. Additionally, funding for an education and outreach program focused on mountain research, conservation, and management, using snow gum decline and the planting trials as key themes. |
50,000 | – |
| UTS Fish Ecology Lab and Jordan ASkill Insurance breeding and field mapping will document the current wild weedy seadragon population, utilising data and public engagement, including citizen scientist divers to support the preservation of this iconic species. This is a partnership of science, art and community between the UTS Fish Ecology Lab and Jordan Askill Jewellery and Sculpture Lab. Funding to gather a clear data set to assess the status of wild populations of seadragons in Southeastern Australia. |
15,000 | – |
| World Wide Fund for Nature Australia (WWF-Australia) Funding to scale the Indigenous Women Rangers Environmental Network (WREN) into remote Western Australia regions, increasing job participation for Indigenous women while caring for Country. Through funding an in-depth 3-day skills share educational forum for emerging leaders from isolated communities, women will connect with local groups in the Kimberley. Through learning vital skills and culturally aligned decision-making practices, participants will form strategies and activity plans for their communities. Outcomes include boosting skills and employment, improving socio-economic inequality and enhanced biodiversity. |
15,000 | – |
| OTHER | – | 104,970 |
| TOTAL ENVIRONMENT | 515,744 | 166,370 |
| 2025 | 2024 | |
| HEALTH | $ | $ |
| Adventist Healthcare Funding towards the Tovertafel, an interactive light projector designed to engage and stimulate individuals with dementia. It promotes social interaction, sensory stimulation, cognitive engagement, and improved well-being. The Tovertafel will form part of the San Foundation’s research into a new model of care for dementia patients in hospital. |
15,000 | – |
| Arrow Bone Marrow Transplant Foundation Arrow’s ‘Patient Support Program’ provides financial, emotional and educational support to bone marrow and stem cell transplant patients, their carers and families aiming to ease the challenges and stress they face during treatment. The funding will provide financial assistance to more patients and families in NSW, helping to cover essential household utility bills. |
12,000 | – |
| Asthma Australia Smart Inhaler Research will transform asthma care by merging digital technology with inhaler use. Smart inhalers monitor medication use, provide real-time reminders, and syncs with mobile apps to track adherence and triggers. The study evaluates effectiveness of smart inhalers in improving asthma control, fewer hospital visits, and enhanced patient outcomes. Funding will support a clinical research, user trials, and data analysis to determine the impact of this technology on asthma management in Australia. This study also aims to attract larger grants for an extensive clinical trial. |
15,000 | – |
| Be Centre Foundation The ‘Hear Us Play’ program will provide free play therapy sessions for seven children facing trauma and financial hardship, ensuring they receive vital mental health support. Each child will receive individual play therapy sessions, along with guided parent support sessions, delivered at no cost to families. Held at Be Centre’s purpose-built Play Therapy Centre in Warriewood Sydney, this program removes financial barriers and helps children to process trauma, build resilience, and improve emotional well-being. |
14,333 | – |
| Birchtree Foundation Funding to deliver Empowered Self-Defence workshops at Wayside Chapel Community Service Centre at Kings Cross, Sydney. The workshops will be run by expert facilitators and attended by females aged 18-30 years. As clinical psychologists, the facilitators will optimise physical and psychological safety during the exercises. The homeless women are extremely vulnerable, and all have diagnosed and undiagnosed mental health disorders such as PTSD, anxiety, depression and self-harm. |
14,685 | – |
| Bowel Cancer Australia In 2024 Bowel Cancer Australia convened the country’s inaugural Early-Onset Bowel Cancer (EOBC) Research Symposium at Parliament House. Leveraging its success, the 2025 EOBC Research Symposium will bring together Australia’s leading clinicians and researchers for collective discussions and development of a 10-year national roadmap report for EOBC research. Funding for the production, publication and promotion of the 10-year national roadmap report ‘The 2025-2035 Early-Onset Bowel Cancer Research Roadmap and Action Plan’, scheduled for public release in June 2026. |
50,000 | – |
| Camp Quality Camp Quality’s ‘Ultimate Camp’ focuses on the health and wellbeing of children and is an opportunity for families facing a cancer diagnosis to relax, create positive memories, and connect with others facing a similar situation. This program is a 2-night weekend away for an estimated 25 families in Stanwell Tops NSW, including a range of fun activities throughout the weekend such as a giant swing, archery, pedal cards, and an orchard visit. |
15,000 | – |
| Cancer Patients Foundation ‘Look Good Feel Better’ is a free national community service program, run by the Cancer Patients Foundation, offering cancer patients of all ages, genders, and cancer types the opportunity to learn practical strategies to manage the physical, psychological and social impacts of cancer treatment. Funding to help people going through cancer treatment in Sydney through a combination of Face-to-Face workshops, home delivered Confidence Kits, access to virtual workshops and ‘Feel Better Fridays’ throughout their treatment. |
15,000 | – |
| Cancer Wellness Support Funding to offer access to lymphoedema specialists, an evidence-based approach using complementary therapies, subsidised bandaging and pressure garments, cutting edge technology and to grow the pool of specialist skills in the industry to become a lead agency in the region. Funding to assist with a mentoring and supervision program to expand the specialised lymphoedema therapist pool in collaboration with local training organisations. |
15,000 | – |
| Centenary Institute of Cancer Medicine and Cell Biology Rational anti-inflammatory drug design. One-third of Australians live with chronic inflammation. These inflammatory conditions are typically driven by the elevated expression of interferon pathway genes. Current treatments show limited efficacy with considerable side effects. Researchers have discovered a previously unknown transcriptional regulator of the interferon pathway (named TRIP) which is a master controller of genes involved in chronic inflammation. Funding to use molecular and biochemical approaches to rationally design innovative drugs directly targeting TRIP function, thereby selectively modulating the interferon response. |
15,000 | – |
| Cerebral Palsy Alliance Young Changemakers aims to accelerate leadership and advocacy skills for young people with cerebral palsy and similar disabilities, building their personal capacity, skills and confidence to be a leader in their own lives. Delivered online over 12 weeks, Young Changemakers will connect a nation of young people with disability, creating an empowered network of peers with shared experiences. They will hear from sector leaders with disability, with learning content designed by and for young people with disability, scaffolded by live, online experiences to build confidence and communities. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Children’s Medical Research Institute Gene therapies for childhood diseases. The Institute’s laboratory is focused on the research and development of gene therapies, the delivery of ‘genes as medicine’. Such therapies will correct disease in patients born with faulty genes by providing a healthy copy of a gene, or even directly act on a faulty gene. The funding will help to replace a microplate reader that is more than two decades old and used for a range of different end-point analyses including protein quantitation, gene delivery and antibody detection. |
15,000 | – |
| Children’s Tumour Foundation Funding for the NSW Neurofibromatosis (NF) camp to provide social inclusion opportunities for families who feel isolated and alone due to their experience of living with a child with a chronic, progressive and lifelong health condition. It will aim to increase the social, physical and mental wellbeing of children and their families who are living with NF. |
51,581 | – |
| Chris O’Brien Lifehouse This research project represents a transformative advancement in biomarker discovery and introduces a groundbreaking approach to treating glioblastoma, the most lethal brain cancer in adults. We are pioneering the use of lipidomic profiling in diagnosing, treating and monitoring glioblastoma, via a safe, accessible and non-invasive urine test. This world-first in glioblastoma research will advance the use of precision medicine to improve survival rates and quality of life for patients. The funding will support discovery-phase experiments and lipidomic analyses. |
50,000 | – |
| Crohn’s and Colitis Australia Funding to support a camp for young people living with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, known as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). These are chronic and incurable inflammatory conditions of the gut that have persistent and often distressing physical impacts. They can be invisible and debilitating and have a significant impact on mental health. Many children and young people with IBD are often socially isolated, not knowing anyone else who has their condition. |
10,000 | – |
| Epilepsy Action Australia ‘EmpowerHER Sydney’ is a one-day, in-person event designed exclusively for women with epilepsy. Drawing on the success of the 2024 Brisbane event, the program will deliver tailored education, peer networking, and inspirational sessions that focus on managing epilepsy amid hormonal changes. Attendees will benefit from expert-led talks by neurologists and epilepsy nurses, interactive discussions on seizure management, and facilitated sharing of lived experiences. |
15,000 | – |
| Fair Fight Foundation – Supertee Funding to alleviate the discomfort and distress children experience when battling life-threatening conditions. The Supertee is a medical garment disguised as a fun hero design costume which has been specifically designed for children facing long term treatment. This funding will help the child’s experience in hospitals around Australia by giving them a Supertee. |
50,000 | – |
| Giant Steps Australia Giant Steps has recently purchased a site at Elanora Heights to expand the post-school program, early intervention services, respite, training, outreach, family support, camps and school activities. Funding to convert one of the cabins into a purpose-built changing room for the onsite swimming pool, install a community BBQ for families, and build high steel fencing around the site to improve safety. |
50,000 | 15,000 |
| Gidget Foundation Australia This pilot offers an early intervention treatment and efficacious pathway for treating clients suffering grief, loss and /or perinatal depression and anxiety (PNDA) after miscarriage. In collaboration with one to four partner hospitals, Gidget will provide qualified clinicians to deliver a tailored consultation to clients who have been identified by midwives and nurses in those hospitals’ miscarriage clinics. This eliminates the need for the time consuming and problematic GP referral barrier, ensuring the highest level of clinical treatment can be provided at the earliest and most crucial time. |
25,000 | – |
| Heart Research Australia Dr Gentile created a novel way to 3D bioprint heart tissues using a patients’ own cells to repair heart damage and regain cardiac muscle function after a heart attack. Cells isolated from a patients’ own blood are used to generate stem cells, which are then transformed into heart cells. These cells can then generate personalised bioinks that can be extruded through the nozzle of a 3D bioprinter to produce 3D bioprinted heart tissues. Funding is sought to test the efficacy and safety of the patches in small animals before they can be transplanted in heart failure patients. |
15,000 | – |
| Melanoma Institute Australia Funding for the Melanoma Translational Research Group (MTRG) to purchase an Autostainer (AST) to facilitate research and data generation. Critical for research studies and data output, and to identify cell types and spatial relationships within tumour regions and tissue samples. This equipment is critical for research in immunohistochemistry (IHC) and critical for the Institute’s research studies, hence data output. IHC primarily performed to identify cell types and spatial relationships within tumour regions. |
100,000 | – |
| Mito Foundation The project aims to boost awareness and engagement in the Mito (mitochondrial disease) community around clinical trials. Mito is creating a knowledge hub with accessible resources for patients, caregivers, clinicians, and industry partners. Clear, evidence-based information on trial processes, expectations, and benefits will empower informed decisions. A workshop at the 2025 Mito Community Summit will enable collaboration, fostering a well-informed and engaged patient community. |
15,000 | – |
| National Stroke Foundation The ‘Our Education Journey’ project will co-design resources to help families of childhood stroke survivors navigate education from childcare to secondary school. It empowers families with knowledge and tools to advocate for their child’s learning, behavioural, and social needs. The project provides resources to track progress and collaborate with educators. By guiding families through the education system and supporting inclusive practices, it aims to improve educational support and outcomes for childhood stroke survivors. |
50,000 | – |
| NextSense Funding to install acoustic panelling in audiology rooms at the Port Macquarie and Alstonville service centres, where NextSense provides comprehensive cochlear implant-related audiology services for clients of all ages with significant hearing loss. This will minimise reverberation and background noise from traffic and adjacent clinic spaces, enhancing the accuracy of hearing assessments, cochlear implant programming, and review appointments. The project ensures the precise delivery of vital services tailored to each client’s needs, supporting better outcomes for those in regional communities. |
12,000 | 15,000 |
| Odyssey House NSW This project will transform two Re-Entry Houses into true homes, providing a safe and nurturing environment for clients at the critical ‘post-treatment’ stage of recovery. Funding to purchase furniture, essential home and kitchen appliances, décor, soft furnishings, home wares, and window curtains. |
15,000 | – |
| Pankind To design and build a web-based tool, as part of Pankind’s ‘Early Detection Initiative’. The screening tool will enable individuals to assess their risk level based on established criteria, guiding them towards appropriate medical consultation and potential clinical trials. The tool will empower individuals at high risk of pancreatic cancer through education, assessment, surveillance and proactive engagement with healthcare pathways. This will be integrated into the new Pankind website and serve as a referral pathway to the APRISE trial, co-funded between Pankind and Epworth Hospital. |
48,000 | – |
| Parkinson’s NSW The project will purchase two specialised clinical Parkinson’s disease chairs for patients who attend counselling sessions at Parkinson’s NSW in the offices at North Ryde. In addition, funding to purchase an ergonomic office chair for the counsellors, allowing them to easily reach different areas of the counselling room during their sessions without disrupting their patients. |
6,500 | – |
| Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia Funding for the ‘WOMBAT Clinical Trial’ (Working Out M0 Bipolar Androgen Therapy). The study aims to assess the efficacy and safety of cyclical testosterone and Darolutamide in non-metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, to test whether Bipolar Androgen Therapy can delay the progression of the cancer to other parts of the body. The primary outcome measure will be metastasis free survival. |
50,000 | – |
| Reachout Australia ‘PeerChat’ is a one-to-one service that connects young people 16-25 to a trained peer worker who has lived mental health experience. PeerChat is digital, enabling young people to connect from wherever they have a phone or internet connection. PeerChat is chat based to allow for young people to be able to share freely what’s on their mind, within a safe, anonymous and most importantly free space. Due to the increasing need for one-to-one mental health support, funding to expand PeerChat’s service to be available on weekends (as well as weekdays). |
15,000 | – |
| Redkite Funding for the music therapy program to support children with cancer. Professional music therapists engage with and support children during their hospital stay through playing and listening to music, song writing, performing and teaching instruments. Music activities help to brighten long hospital stays by providing opportunities for creativity and fun. Music therapists also help to calm children before and during difficult medical procedures, enabling them to cope with the pain and stress of treatment. |
15,000 | – |
| Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South Eastern Section) Funding to help deliver women’s health and wellbeing services across remote western NSW clinic locations in 2025. These clinic days will provide comprehensive women’s health services, education, and wellbeing activities in areas with limited healthcare access. Each clinic day will include women’s health checks by the Primary Health team; mental health and wellbeing support and activities from the Mental Health team; educational sessions on women’s health topics and resources; and collaboration with specialised services. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Save Sight Institute, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney Funding to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and cost-effectiveness of home monitoring of visual field function for individuals living in rural Australia. The project will evaluate the technical performance, user adherence, and economic impacts of home monitoring. Funding to procure home monitoring devices (smart glasses-based perimeters) to undertake a prospective study in Broken Hill NSW. |
15,000 | – |
| Sir David Martin Foundation Triple Care Farm is a youth-specific residential AOD program located on 110 acres in the NSW Southern Highlands. This funding will fund the Aftercare Program helping more young people safely withdraw, stabilize, and receive ongoing support to transition to independent, healthy lives and re-engage with education and employment. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Starlight Children’s Foundation Funding for ‘Starlight Moments’ at Sydney Children’s Hospital Network. Starlight Moments creates experiences of joy and happiness for families with a palliative child. Caring for a child with a life-limiting illness can be all-consuming, often leaving little time for special family moments. Recognising the unique challenges these families face, Starlight Moments offers opportunities for connection and childhood joy. |
14,940 | – |
| Sydney Eye Hospital Foundation Trust To implement a hub and spoke model of care to integrate virtual technology in partnership with primary care providers, the community and local hospitals. Funding for the ‘Tele-Vision’ pilot of ocular imaging technology and telehealth platforms, to provide virtual ophthalmology care in regional emergency departments. The pilot in Tamworth is prioritising Indigenous Australians who are three times more likely to have vision loss compared to non-indigenous. |
50,000 | – |
| The Humour Foundation Bear Cottage is the only children’s hospice in NSW to provide respite and end-of-life care for palliative-stage children and their families. The new Adolescent and Young Adult Hospice (AYAH) supports young people aged 16 to 25. Clown Doctors are purpose-trained to support the emotional wellbeing of children and young people in palliative care, delivering meaningful, personalised connections to create moments of joy and laughter when, and how, it is most needed. Funding to support ongoing visits at Bear Cottage and AYAH and some special events. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| The Northcott Society Funding to improve the accessibility of the ‘Life Skills’ space in Parramatta to better support the independence of wheelchair users. This project will involve the installation of two automated doors, providing access to both the interior hallway and outdoor courtyard. The doors will be equipped with sensors that activate from close range, ensuring they will only open when necessary and can be operated independently by wheelchair users. |
25,000 | – |
| The Project Rockit Foundation Funding to extend Project Rockit’s impact at Warrawong High School for a second year. In 2024, their programs successfully engaged students in workshops on bullying, cybersafety, leadership, and mental health, sparking ongoing cultural shifts. Some schools face significant barriers, and one year of intervention is not enough. Funding to provide additional face-to-face and online programs, school-wide support, and targeted interventions for long-term, systemic change. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| The Shepherd Centre ‘Acoustic Skills Music Group’ is an educational program created by music therapists and delivered with The Shepherd Centre clinical team. It harnesses music therapy to enhance listening, speech, and communication skills in deaf children aged 0-5 with hearing loss. The program also empowers parents to use these strategies at home. Through fun activities including singing, dancing, listening to music, and playing percussion instruments, children develop key communication skills, including listening, vocabulary, sentence formation, teamwork, and social interaction. |
15,000 | – |
| The Trustee for Raise Foundation To provide evidence-based, early-intervention youth mentoring for teenagers across Australia. With over 2,500 students anticipated for 2025, this funding will support students at a socially disadvantaged school in the Sutherland Shire. The Jannali School has had the Raise program since 2020 and has recognised the significant impact that the program has had on the entire school community. The mentees will be matched with Raise trained, and screened mentors, and supported by a degree qualified Program Counsellor. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| University of New South Wales (UNSW) Funding to help expand the usefulness of the blood test UNSW are developing, such that in addition to diagnosing ovarian cancer, it can be used for monitoring the effectiveness of cancer treatment. To create a collection of biological samples (a biobank) that consists of DNA extracted from the blood plasma of patients undergoing chemotherapy. This biobank will form the basis of a project in which the researchers measure the extent of cancer cell death during chemotherapy. The researchers anticipate that an increase in DNA from dead cancer cells indicates that the chemotherapy is working. |
43,252 | – |
| Westmead Institute For Medical Research Foundation Dr Caitlin Finney has made a breakthrough discovery, carriers of genetic variant APOE4 have protein changes indicative of an overactive immune system predisposing them to developing Alzheimer’s. These proteins may act as predictive biomarkers for APOE4 carriers and targets for personalised precision medicine. Dr Finney will rigorously evaluate her finding using AI to validate the diagnostic biomarker capabilities of the APOE4-associated proteins, then test treatment potential using brain organoids derived from people with and without APOE4. Funding will cover dataset access and laboratory costs. |
50,000 | – |
| Youth Insearch Breaking Cycles, Building Futures in Moree. Funding for young people to attend transformative weekend workshops that use a peer support model to empower participants to build connections, resilience and skills and open pathways out of disengagement and anti-social behaviours. Up to 10% of participants will progress to the Youth Leader program to learn to support peers. The program will augment a NSW Government funded project enabling provision of local support groups; and will leverage relationships with Moree High to recruit at-risk participants. |
14,927 | – |
| OTHER | – | 67,270 |
| TOTAL HEALTH | 1,107,218 | 187,270 |
| 2025 | 2024 | |
| SOCIAL WELFARE AND THE ARTS | $ | $ |
| ASYlum Seekers Centre Funding to support vital connections for people seeking asylum in Sydney, assisting clients to apply for NSW public transport Opal cards and provide free Opal card top ups and free phone top ups for an agreed period, directly to those who are unemployed, do not yet qualify for income support, and are facing severe financial hardship. In a recent strategic review, clients said that these services were amongst the most helpful during this time. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Australian Youth Orchestra The Australian Youth Orchestra returns to the world stage for the first time in six years this July, performing at six major festivals and concert hall stages in Europe before returning to Australia for a celebratory ‘homecoming’ concert at Sydney Opera House. Funding to support musicians to participate in the tour via their means-tested financial assistance program which offsets program fees for participants, and to engage with targeted secondary schools around the Homecoming Concert at Sydney Opera House, including provision of concert tickets and learning resources. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Autism Mates Funding to purchase a second van, removing transportation barriers for autistic individuals and ensuring full participation in programs. The van will provide safe, reliable transport for key initiatives, including social dinners, ‘MATES4U’ outings, and ‘Model MATES’ workshops. Group travel fosters friendships, inclusion, and independence, strengthening community ties. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Backtrack Youth Works Funding to keep some of regional Australia’s most disadvantaged young people alive, out of jail and chasing their hopes and dreams, by providing wraparound youth work, including tailored education, holistic support, housing, diversionary activities, and training and employment pathways, catering to the complex needs of each young person. This project will provide young people with safe and functional equipment to volunteer and work. |
14,177 | – |
| Ballet Without Borders Funding to provide a full term of professional ballet classes tailored for children of primary school age, at no cost. Ballet Without Borders aims to make ballet education accessible to all children, regardless of their financial circumstances. Specifically, we will deliver introductory ballet courses for children in the Penrith, Bankstown and Fairfield areas. |
9,600 | 8,400 |
| Bangarra Dance Theatre Rekindling, provides free cultural dance residencies to young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander secondary school students. It fosters pride, kinship, and strength through On Country experiences, storytelling with Elders, and skill-building. Funding for two Gatherings on Thursday Island to build cultural connections following an initial Gathering in May 2025. Gathering Two explored creativity workshops and Gathering Three prepared for a public performance. A return visit in June 2026 will reconnect with community to support journey. |
15,000 | – |
| Barnardos Australia Reconnect is an early intervention program for at-risk or homeless youth aged 12-18 in the Inner West area. It aims to break the cycle of disadvantage by helping young people maintain family and community connections, access services, and pursue education or employment opportunities. Through intensive casework, counselling, and practical goal setting, Reconnect supports vulnerable youth. Funding to purchase services and equipment like short employment courses, driver’s license courses, and reconditioned devices (laptops, phones, tablets) to enhance job readiness. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Biennale of Sydney An expansive access program for the 2026 Biennale of Sydney, allowing Australian artists and audiences with disabilities to fulsomely participate in the festival. The program includes tours and events for deaf audiences led by deaf artists; as well as a range of Auslan videos, captioning, and live event interpretation. It also includes tours and events for low vision audiences e.g. audio description and tactile tours; and digital labels and tablets to improve access when reading exhibition text. Funding for equipment and material costs, staff training, artist and facilitator fees and transcription costs. |
15,000 | – |
| Company B (Belvoir St Theatre) Funding to continue the 2024 program Unwaged. It invites unwaged and marginalized communities to visit Belvoir St Theatre completely free-of-charge for one show per production. Belvoir St Theatre will present eight Unwaged performances, equivalent to 2,500 individual tickets. For many of the Unwaged community, these performances are an opportunity to connect with each other, a reason to get out of bed and sometimes a chance to see stories from their community presented on stage. |
25,000 | 25,000 |
| Corowa and District She Shed Since 2017, the Corowa SHE Shed has provided a welcoming and supportive environment for women, offering non-traditional activities such as woodworking, metalwork and welding, plus a mosaics group. As the SHE Shed membership grows, more space is required to cater for activities and new programs. Funding to extend the existing mezzanine floor, following construction of a new internal dividing wall, plus equipment, power tools, a 3D printer and industrial vacuum cleaner. |
14,125 | – |
| Eat Up Australia Funding to help purchase fruit and snacks, critical in improving the nutrition of children in regional schools in the Wollongong and Illawarra region. Volunteer sandwich-making sessions and donations of materials, ingredients and snacks help to keep program costs low. |
14,875 | 15,000 |
| Ensemble Offspring Ensemble Offspring (EO) seeks funding to provide free access tickets for regional and low-ICSEA high school groups and First Nations Mob to attend NSW concerts in 2025-26. Concerts span metro Sydney, Sutherland, Newcastle, Wyong, Oberon and Merimbula. EO champions Australian music, commissioning living composers with a focus on First Nations and female-identifying creatives. Removing access barriers to concerts fosters cultural, representational and educational growth. The music aligns with the HSC curriculum, including the mandatory topic Australian Music of the last 25 years. |
7,985 | – |
| Foodbank NSW & ACT Over the last year, Foodbank has experienced record weekly food orders from their community partners. In fact, some of the largest community partners are anecdotally reporting an increase in demand for food by almost 40%. At the same time, there has been a gradual decline in food donations from 70% of total food supply, to 60% and they are now heading towards 50%. Funding to provide 30,000 meals and keep food on the tables of desperate families living in regional NSW and the ACT. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Freedom Solutions Australia (Formerly Solve-Tad) This project will fund custom-made bikes for children with disabilities in regional NSW, ensuring physical, geographical and financial barriers do not prevent them benefiting from participation in cycling. Innovative adaptations such as e-assist and tailored posture supports will be chosen by therapists to suit each child’s unique needs. This will enable children to ride with family and friends, often for the first time. |
15,000 | – |
| Givit Funding to support Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) survivors providing essential items such as clothing, beds, whitegoods, groceries, fuel vouchers, security cameras, and school supplies. These items are distributed free via registered support organisations. This project delivers tangible and practical support to individuals and bolsters the capacity of DFV organisations by allowing them to redirect limited resources from searching for items for clients, towards delivering front-line services, including crisis accommodation, legal support, and counselling. |
50,000 | – |
| Gondwana Choirs Gondwana Choirs’ National Choral School, Australia’s premier training program for young musicians from all over Australia, will convene at the University of Sydney’s Women’s College in January 2026 for intensive rehearsals and electives with leading music educators and artists. The Voices of Angels concert, a festive highlight at City Recital Hall, showcases the National Choirs and Sydney Children’s Choirs. The Sydney Children’s Choir offers weekly training in Sydney and Western Sydney, with bursaries ensuring access for all children. |
15,000 | – |
| Human Nature Adventure Therapy To fund one-on-one sessions and small group therapeutic activities. These highly individualised sessions are co-designed with young people to address emerging mental health issues and heal trauma and build protection. Conducted outdoors, sessions often include a fun activity and a shared meal. This holistic model provides vulnerable and at-risk young people with wraparound care, fostering confidence, resilience, and social skills to help them thrive. |
50,000 | 14,999 |
| Infants’ Home Ashfield Delivery of a free weekly playgroup for children aged 0-12 months and their parents and carers over 12 months, during school terms. The playgroup will particularly support parents who are socially isolated, struggling with the transition to parenthood or experiencing challenges in caring for, bonding with, or understanding their baby. Funding will support facilitation, planning and evaluation of the playgroup by qualified Educators, attendance by Child and Family Health Nurses, Social Workers, Allied Health Therapists and program supervision. |
14,862 | 14,932 |
| Karinya House Home for Mothers and Babies Funding to undertake an upgrade of the IT equipment utilised by the staff team daily to deliver services to women and their babies. Karinya House will purchase and install new essential IT equipment to replace existing devices which are now out of warranty. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Kids Giving Back The project funds children to participate in incursions, excursions, and interactive sessions that build empathy, enhance mental health, and promote volunteerism. By shifting roles from recipients to active givers, our initiative empowers kids with purpose and connects them with local charities for ongoing community engagement. Their hands-on age-appropriate programs include cooking meals, assembling breakfast boxes and care packs, and teaching volunteering and kindness. |
14.970 | – |
| Manly Adolescent and Young Adults Hospice The ‘My Legacy’ project at the Manly Adolescent and Young Adults Hospice (AYAH) aims to provide patients with life-limiting conditions and their families with opportunities to create tangible memories during their time together. Recognising the profound emotional and psychological benefits of creative expression and legacy-building, this project encompasses two key components – digital storytelling through audio/video production and therapeutic art creation using ceramics. Funding to purchase a laptop, pottery wheel, and kiln. |
13,857 | – |
| Milk Crate Theatre Funding for two interlinked projects driving social impact. ‘Creating Impact’ pilots a shared impact framework with arts organisations nationwide, culminating in a 2026 report. Findings will inform tools and benchmarks to assess creative practice’s impact on vulnerable communities. ‘UNIFY’ engages multicultural youth, including refugees and asylum seekers, in creative projects fostering belonging. ‘UNIFY’ expands access for these communities and contributes to the ‘Creating Impact’ measurement cohort. |
50,000 | 15,000 |
| Miracle Babies Foundation Funding for the globally recognised ‘NurtureTime’ program, an in-hospital peer support service for families going through the emotionally challenging and often traumatic journey of watching their premature or sick newborn fight for their life in the NICU. A trained support worker who has been through this journey with their own baby, will visit families weekly in the NICU to provide support, guidance, hope and information. |
15,000 | – |
| Orange SKY Funding to partially support the Kempsey laundry pod operations. Orange Sky’s mission is to positively connect communities by offering free laundry and shower services and non-judgmental conversation in metro, regional, and remote areas, assisting people experiencing homelessness or without adequate laundry resources. The metro and regional services are volunteer-driven and remotely partnering with communities to generate employment opportunities within remote communities. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Parramatta Mission Parramatta Mission’s ‘Conversational English’ helps migrants and refugees gain English skills, confidence, and connections to integrate, access education, and navigate life in Australia. Parramatta Mission helps participants to gain enough English for daily life. Funding to provide essential learning materials, train staff to improve teaching and to expand engagement opportunities. |
10,000 | – |
| Refugee Advice and Casework Service While waiting for their asylum claims to be determined, people seeking asylum are granted a bridging visa. However, this doesn’t automatically give them permission to work. People can wait years for their asylum claims to be processed and not being allowed to earn an income while waiting leaves many individuals and families homeless, destitute, and reliant on charities for food and essential supports. This project provides the necessary specialised legal services people need, to submit a detailed request to the Government for permission to work due to financial hardship. |
15,000 | 7,500 |
| South Eastern Community Connect South Eastern Community Connect (SECC) family care is about the support of FDV survivors, in particular mums with young children in southeast Sydney. Funding to provide material resources such as pantry items, baby essentials, uniforms, stationery for children, emergency relocation expenses, and food and gift vouchers. SECC alleviates financial burden and immediate needs, promoting safety and well-being, empowering victims towards long-term independence and self-sufficiency. |
15,000 | – |
| Southern Cross Kids’ Camp Southern Cross Kids’ Camps (SCKC) Illawarra provides hope to children affected by trauma with annual camps. The camps are a structured five-day intervention program, with most children attending being in out-of-home care. They are referred to SCKC by welfare organisations or foster parents. Each child is paired one-on-one with an adult volunteer who is their companion for the five days. Funding towards accommodation, catering and camp activities. |
15,000 | – |
| Stepping Stone House (Formerly Sydney Stepping Stone) The Stepping Stone House Education Program provides young people at risk of homelessness in Greater Sydney with high-quality, personalised support for school, TAFE, and /or tertiary education. The program includes homework assistance, access to external tutoring, developmental workshops, funds for school equipment, and extra-curricular activities. |
15,000 | – |
| Strong Mothers Funding to create a video to be viewed by refugee families using life-size puppets talking with a refugee mother, explaining normal feelings around the loss of family and culture, adjusting to this new culture to give a message of hope. The puppets use a large alphabet throughout. Funding to create a booklet that accompanies the puppets. Strong Mothers have created eight booklets, supported by James N. Kirby Foundation, and this project is a first for refugees. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Sydney Community Foundation Gives Launched in 2022, The Foundation has supported the ‘Ukrainian Helping Hand’ Project from its inception, providing crisis care, rental assistance, trauma support, and career pathways for over 2000 displaced Ukrainian women and children. Co-designed with the Ukrainian Council of NSW and supported by NSW STARTTS, this program now faces growing demand as humanitarian visas reach their three-year limit. Funding will provide trauma therapy, psychological support, and career pathways to help women rebuild their lives in Sydney. |
50,000 | – |
| Sydney Community Foundation Gives ‘From Now’ diverts pregnant women and mothers from incarceration, preventing family separation and breaking cycles of disadvantage. The Foundation meets them at prison gates, courthouse steps, or unstable housing, offering alternatives to prison. Without support, many would give birth behind bars and lose their children, perpetuating trauma. Instead, The Foundation provides housing, stability, and holistic care. Funding to create an outreach space for at-risk women; to cover court travel costs for regional women; and to expand trauma recovery programs like yoga and art therapy. |
50,000 | – |
| Sydney Dance Company Funding towards a scholarship for its full-time ‘Pre-Professional Year’ Program. The Company is at the forefront of contemporary dance, both in Australia and internationally, and being immersed in this environment enables the young dancer to cultivate an inquisitive mind and sophisticated movement, preparing them for the professional environment. The purpose of the scholarship is to create access for a financially disadvantaged student who otherwise could not take up their hard-earned place on the program. |
15,000 | – |
| Sydney Legacy Appeals Fund The ‘Legacy Wattle Group’ Program is a recreational and social inclusion initiative for older people with intellectual disabilities, aged 40-80, enrolled with Sydney Legacy. It creates a supportive environment, promoting diversity, accessibility, and inclusion, tailored for those experiencing social isolation and grief. |
14,225 | – |
| Sydney Symphony Orchestra Holdings The Sydney Symphony Orchestra has been dedicated to sharing music across NSW for decades. This tour is driven by the commitment to the accessibility of live symphonic music and deepens their engagement with regional audiences, particularly families with children. From August to October, the regional tour provides performances, family concerts, and educational workshops to Dubbo, Albury, Wagga Wagga, Griffith, Wollongong, Wyong, and Nowra. Funding for the family concerts in Wagga Wagga and Albury. |
15,000 | – |
| Sydney Writers’ Festival Russ the Story Bus is a retired school bus that has been converted into a moving children’s library. Across a 10-week tour, Russ brings a high-profile writer talk to 10,000 students across Western Sydney and Regional NSW. Participating children are also allowed to select a book to take home. For many this will be the first book that they own. Schools selected are economically disadvantaged, have high First Nations enrolments and at least 50% of enrolments speak a language other than English at home. Funding for an essential contribution towards purchasing books for the students to take home. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| Sydney Youth Orchestras Sydney Youth Orchestras (SYO) supports regional NSW musicians to attend Summer and Winter Schools, intensive programs held during school holidays. These provide access to conductors, full orchestra experience, and peer networking. In 2024, SYO offered 60 places to musicians from Armidale, Bega, Bellingen, Dubbo, Pambula, Port Macquarie, Raymond Terrace, Tathra, Urunga, and Wagga Wagga. Scholarships cover participation fees, with travel bursaries available. Support ensures these young musicians can access high-quality orchestral training, often not available at this scale in their hometown. |
15,000 | – |
| Symphony For Life Foundation This project will bring the Foundation’s first woodwinds (recorder, clarinet, flute) into the Program. Both intakes will have students from the Parramatta and Cumberland council areas. Funding to add solo performance instruction to the Strings Program. Solo performances were introduced at the January 2025 Music Camp and were hugely successful. Funding will help cover costs such as woodwind instruments, solo materials and staff. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| The Alannah and Madeline Foundation The Alannah and Madeline Foundation provides support and comfort for vulnerable children entering emergency accommodation by providing ‘Buddy Bags’. Each Buddy Bag contains new essentials including toothbrush/toothpaste, pyjamas, socks, underwear, a book, a toy and a teddy bear, thoughtfully packed by volunteers in a new backpack. |
10,000 | – |
| The Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet’s ‘Education and Outreach Program’ will implement a series of activities to improve the educational outcomes, arts experience and career-readiness of children and young adults with disability across Sydney. This includes an access program for children with disabilities at Sydney Opera House – a program for schools and community groups to take part in workshops and attend a relaxed performance in the Utzon Room at Sydney Opera House. True Grit, in partnership with Lifestart, is a year-long program of arts training and personal development for young adults with disability, culminating in a creative residency at Sydney Opera House. |
15,000 | – |
| The Bell Shakespeare Company Funding to develop and capture the next instalment of the digital resource series, In The Round or Macbeth:360. The 2025 project will focus on Shakespeare’s Othello, which is a popular text for Australian schools yet rarely produced or performed. The series will be available digitally and on-demand to primary and secondary students across Australia, ensuring access and equity for all Australian students. Funding for the program will support total project costs of script development, rehearsal, and a film shoot involving up to six performers, creative team and video production crew. |
15,000 | – |
| The Footpath Library Since 2003, The Footpath Library (TFL) has operated mobile library outreach services for people experiencing homelessness. In 2025, the need is greater than ever as more people are forced below the poverty line – increased cost of living, housing shortages and affordability pressures, increase in domestic and family violence. TFL aims to operate up to 15 mobile libraries in Sydney for people to access free quality books, reading glasses, and knitted goods as well as provide a safe and welcoming space for social connection and inclusion. |
15,000 | 15,000 |
| The Girls and Boys Brigade Funding to support activity and resource costs for the children’s Vacation Care program which provides 11 weeks of free holiday programming to low-income families every year. The program provides children with a safe place to spend school holidays, food relief, and educational and recreational incursions and excursions with the aim to increase their social, emotional, and educational wellbeing outcomes. |
15,000 | – |
| The Marmalade Foundation Funding to meet the food budget for the financial year. Due to the steady increase of women accessing the free meals at Lou’s Place and the rise in grocery costs, the budget has increased by 50%. This year Lou’s Place will provide over 14,000 nutritious homemade meals that are cooked from scratch by volunteers and served in a safe and caring environment. |
15,000 | 20,000 |
| The Men’s Table Funding to design, plan and conduct an in-person Training Conference for the national volunteer team providing critical support to Tables nationally. To train and increase the numbers and leverage of an expanded volunteer ‘Kitchen Team’, provide fulfilling roles to passionate volunteer men in the community and build the capacity for more community led mental health and suicide prevention support. Training will assist volunteers to build sustainable new Tables including being able to deal with complex situations. |
25,000 | – |
| The Sydney Festival Garrigarang Badu is a large-scale female led First Nations contemporary dance work in Dharug language, created and choreographed by Peta Strachan, artistic director of Jannawi Dance Clan. Garrigarrang Badu draws on a fusion of contemporary and traditional choreographic and music forms. Songs and dances, each portraying the lives of Dharug women offer a deep exploration of healing and spiritual connection. In amplifying female voices and narratives, Garrigarrang Badu plays homage to the intrinsic role women played in shaping and enriching the Dharug nation for many years. |
15,000 | – |
| The Sydney Fringe Festival Emerging Artist Share Hub (EASH) supported up to 48 emerging local performance companies (between 120-190 artists) to present their work in the 2025 Sydney Fringe Festival. This hub is the breeding ground for the next generation of artists, creatives and cultural leaders, providing them the opportunity to take part in the largest independent Arts festival in NSW, build their profile, access development space for new work, networking opportunities, capacity building programs and touring networks while generating vital performance income and most importantly have their shows seen on a Sydney stage. |
50,000 | – |
| Trustee for the Byron Bay CoMMunity Benefit Fund Fletcher Street Cottage (FSC), a homelessness support hub in Byron Bay, is launching the ‘Women’s Afternoon’, a support program for women (and their children) experiencing or at risk of homelessness in Byron Shire. Held Tuesdays after FSC has closed to the public, this safe and private program will cater to women who face unique barriers in accessing support and transitioning out of crisis. The program will provide essential basic-needs services alongside tailored wraparound supports, helping women rebuild stability and safety in their lives. |
50,000 | – |
| Vision Australia ‘Living Stories’ is a writing competition designed to ensure the stories and perspectives of residents from Western Sydney are seen, heard and celebrated. In partnership with fifty-five Western Sydney libraries serving over two million residents, and through workshops delivered by professional writers, work created to raise young people’s voices onto a highly visible platform where they communicate beyond their circles, and into the wider world. |
14,547 | 15,000 |
| OTHER | – | 324,275 |
| TOTAL SOCIAL WELFARE AND THE ARTS | 973,043 | 610,106 |
| GRAND TOTAL | 3,500,640 | 1,335,474 |