AMP Foundation, Effective Philanthropy and SVA launch a report targeting improved education outcomes for Indigenous students

28 May 2008
Even though issues facing Australia’s Indigenous people have received a great deal of attention recently, what’s often missing is practical information about how corporate, family or individual philanthropists can make a lasting difference.

The report ‘Our Children, Our Future - Achieving Improved Primary and Secondary Education Outcomes for Indigenous Students’ outlines eight interventions aimed at improving the educational outcomes of Indigenous children and young people. It covers current educational challenges and provides a framework for making philanthropic investments that will produce sustainable outcomes.
 
During the launch event held today at AMP, Tom Calma, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner and acting Race Discrimination Commissioner with the Human Rights & Equal Opportunity Commission, spoke about the current challenges in Indigenous education and how the philanthropic sector can assist in bridging the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous educational opportunities and outcomes. Effective Philanthropy's Louise Doyle and Regina Hill, authors of the report, provided an overview of the findings.

Click here to download the report in its entirety. 

Read The Australian's coverage of this report.

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The Social Entrepreneur: Making Communities Work by Andrew Mawson
 
April 2008
When Andrew Mawson arrived in Bromley-by-Bow in the east end of London in the 1980s, it was in a state of social, economic and material disrepair. By living there and getting to know the residents and institutions, he soon realised that the community could unlock its untapped potential and begin to turn itself around. The result: the Bromley-by-Bow Centre has encouraged literacy, housing, business, health, welfare and enterprise in the area to flourish. Time and again using the same approach, Mawson has succeeded where the government and others have failed. His inspiring and timely book will demonstrate how we can all make real changes in our communities by seeking creative, dynamic, entrepreneurial ways of tackling seemingly intractable social problems.
 
This book is available in your local bookshop or you can visit http://www.penguin.com.au/ordering/ordering.cfm for a list of online retailers. For a more detailed description of the book, read the press release.

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New research report shows Australia lags the world in philanthropic giving but new opportunities emerge

10 March 2008
A new report commissioned by the Petre Foundation—Good Times and Philanthropy: Giving by Australia’s Affluent—was launched on 10 March 2008. The report, produced by the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies based at Queensland University of Technology draws upon the latest research to examine giving trends by affluent individuals in Australia and how these compare with overseas counterparts.

Speaking at a briefing hosted by SVA in Sydney (SVA hosted a similar briefing in Melbourne on 11 March), Petre Foundation Chairman Daniel Petre said: 'On an asset basis affluent Americans currently give around 10-15 per cent of their net worth to philanthropy. Their Australian counterparts seem to be allocating less than three per cent.

'On an income basis wealthy Americans allocate 3.8 per cent of income to charities while average wealthy Australians give less than one half of one percent. The report shows that although the average household income of wealthy Australians rose by 36 per cent over the last decade, their charitable giving over that time only increased by from 0.36 per cent of income donated to 0.45 per cent of income donated.

Responding to the report, SVA Chief Executive Michael Traill said the report articulated some very clear opportunities to enhance the nexus between the non-profit sector and affluent Australians.

'The non-profit sector must provide evidence that giving will make a difference. Organisations need to take a more strategic, results-oriented approach and to provide their funders with engagement opportunities and an understanding of the social issues involved. At the same time, funders wanting their money to contribute to creating sustainable social and environmental change need to take a more strategic approach to their philanthropy.

'Our experience is that when this occurs funders tend to provide much larger amounts and for longer periods because they are prepared to take a long-term view and are clear about the social return on their investment. They are connecting their heads to their hearts.'

Download a podcast of Daniel Petre discussing report findings
Download the entire report
Download an executive summary of the report
Download Daniel Petre's presentation from the launch event

Read media coverage about this research...
Sydney Morning Herald, 'Rich getting richer - but giving away less'
The Australian, 'The rich are keeping it for themselves'
Australian Financial review, 'Australia's rich are poor givers'
Sydney Morning Herald, 'Australia stingy on philanthropy front'
TheAge.com, 'Rich not giving enough to charity'
Herald Sun, 'Deep pockets and short arms'

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The Perpetual Foundation releases research report on non-profit leadership and management

November 2007
The Perpetual Foundation's key objective is to promote thought leadership and best practice in philanthropy. It recently commissioned a research report on leadership and management in the Australian social economy.

This interesting report, titled 'Contrary and Congruent Views of Leadership and Management in the Australian Social Economy' was headed by researcher Hugh Morrow of the Social Economy Executive Education Network (SEEEN). Over 1,300 survey respondents and 55 focus group participants from non-profit, for-profit and government organisations contributed to the project.

The report's overarching findings conclude that:

General management skills and processes are the critical enabler of growth and sustainability in the Australian social economy.
More knowledge, data and frameworks are required to inform important decisions and to drive positive change.
The Australian social economy is larger and more complex than most people realise. It is also undergoing significant change.
Many of the challenges raised are symptoms of the complexity of the sector; others of its growth and change.
Underlying many of the effects of change are the policies of governments and funders – the key ‘enablers’ of the sector.
Most of the issues identified by the sector and its stakeholders can be overcome by improving general management capability, and the creation of a robust knowledge base and relevant frameworks for decision-making.

Download and read the full report or a summary from the Perpetual Foundation web site.

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