Why community foundations should talk to government about the projects they support

We all know that community foundations play a key role in funding, supporting, and connecting local social purpose and not-for-profit organisations, but community foundation boards should also consider the role they could play in raising the profile of the organisations they support with government. This article steps into the why, what and how of this vital profile work.

Firstly, why should community foundations profile the organisations they support with government?

Community foundations hold a unique space in the Australian philanthropic environment. They are not actively seeking funding or projects from government (unlike some of the organisations they fund); they are integral and connected to their local community (which inspires the interest of politicians); and they are across a wide variety of topics and issues, as opposed to a single issue area. For all these reasons, community foundations can be an invaluable bridge to promote, profile, and raise the awareness and advocacy needs of the organisations they actively support.

Secondly, what could community foundations be doing to engage with government?

As I have mentioned in previous columns, if community foundations can track the projects they fund to postcodes, they can then extrapolate that to both state and federal electorates. Perhaps twice a year, commit to writing to your local coverage MPs and share the quantum of your commitments, the types of projects and organisations you support, and maybe conclude with an invitation to meet with your local MP. Community foundations often host a huge number of events and local activities – each of these is an opportunity to engage local political stakeholders.

Thirdly, how should you go about engagement?

It’s important to know (perhaps through the application process, or through discussions after) whether the organisations you support have specific advocacy or engagement asks with government. Work with them to see if you can assist or complement their engagement.  You may be able to assist with depth of relationship, or breadth, or you may be able to introduce them to someone politically who they have previously been unable to access – all of these things open up opportunities for them to achieve their objectives (and in doing so the objectives of the community foundation as well).

Lastly, if you do find there are a number of organisations you are supporting – all of whom have needs, aspirations and desires around government – it may be worth bringing them together.  This could take the form of a workshop, or some training or information sharing. However it looks, community foundations can play a vital role in connecting organisations to political groups. Community foundations with greater capacity could even consider hosting a roundtable with all the organisations they support, jointly hosted with their local MPs – a great way to create access and opportunities.

About the author: Neil Pharaoh has spent most of his voluntary and professional life in and around social purpose organisations, government, public policy, and advocacy. Neil has been behind many leading social policy and advocacy campaigns on gender rights, equality, medical research, and education, and ran for Parliament in Victoria in 2014 and 2018. Neil is co-founder and director of Tanck, which focuses on better engagement with government, and regularly runs workshops and advocacy sessions and advises leading social purpose organisations on their government engagement strategy and systems.

Advocacy Matters is a monthly column focusing on all things politics, policy, campaigns and advocacy. Stay tuned for updates around political trends and elections, lobbying and advocacy news, and hints, tips and ideas on government engagement that are specifically written for Australia’s community foundations.

If you have any ideas, suggestions, tips or questions, please feel free to email Neil Pharaoh at neil@tanck.com.au or reach out to him via social media at LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.