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Dylan joins us with a distinguished career in philanthropy, having served as Director, with our partner at Philanthropy Australia and as the founding Executive Officer at the Fremantle Foundation. He is well known to the Australian community sector through his contributions to First Nations engagement in philanthropy, enabling the growth of collective giving in Western Australia, and a leadership style predicated on relationships of trust and collaboration. This new role and Dylan&#8217;s appointment marks a key leadership position within Community Foundations Australia during a period of rapid growth in the community foundation sector.
Community Foundations Australia CEO Ian Bird shared his enthusiasm for Dylan’s appointment, stating, “We are thrilled to welcome Dylan to our team. His strong track record of values-based leadership and unwavering commitment to fostering community foundations, in Australia and internationally, make him an ideal fit. Dylan&#8217;s start-up journey in Fremantle is especially valuable as he will be working with a growing number of communities beginning their own community foundation journey. We can count on him to be a steady hand and valued mentor in the field.&#8221;
“I&#8217;m delighted to be joining the team at Community Foundations Australia at a time of excitement and opportunity. I&#8217;m keen to contribute my own experience and love of community foundations to support the growing network across the country. I&#8217;ve been committed to the community foundation movement for many years now and I&#8217;m so pleased to have the opportunity to continue our collective work in this role,” said Dylan.
Members and partners will have the chance to connect with Dylan at Horizons 2024, our bi-annual Forum being held this year in the Northern Rivers on Bundjalung Country. Learn more about our Forum events <a href="https://forumweek2024horizons.mailchimpsites.com/">here</a>.
Dylan commences in the role on 3 December 2024.

Community Foundations Australia is pleased to announce the appointment of Dylan Smith as Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development. 

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Dylan Smith appointed to Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development

Starting at CFA in 2021, Rosie has emerged as a key connector and storyteller within our network, supporting and facilitating diverse collaborative efforts and circles of practice.
The role of Director, Communities and Members will focus on supporting the people and relationships that underpin our vibrant network, and will benefit from Rosie&#8217;s three years of strong relationship building.
We couldn&#8217;t be more pleased to have her take on this new responsibility.

CFAustralia Update

We're delighted to welcome Rosie Funder into her new role as Director, Communities and Members.

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Rosie Funder steps into a new role!

&#8220;Communities can only be built by the people that live and work there.&#8221;
Jeff has been visiting with a number of established and emerging community foundations &#8211; from Kalamunda in WA, Upper Hunter in NSW and Kingaroy in Qld &#8211; sharing valuable insights on community-led approaches to creating long-term economic and social legacies.
On Friday, Victorian community foundations were lucky enough to spend some time together with Jeff at the Lord Mayor&#8217;s Charitable Foundation&#8217;s new For Purpose Hub discussing regional approaches to community development. Asset-based community development (ABCD) is core community foundation practice, with a focus on making visible the resources that are already in a community to build strength and resilience from the bottom-up.
Abundance! Not scarcity
Assets! Not needs
Opportunities! Not deficiencies
We are so thankful to Jeff for generously sharing his philosophies and experience with our network!

Member Update

This past month we've had the pleasure of hosting international guest, Jeff Yost, who has dedicated 25 years of his career to developing asset-based approaches to community development at the Nebraska Community Foundation.

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Jeff Yost visits Australia from the Nebraska Community Foundation

This vital project will address one of Australia&#8217;s most critical contemporary issues: the affordable housing crisis. Rents and house prices are at an all time high, and as the demand for affordable housing increases, more and more people are left without options.
While a number of not-for-profit developers try to address the issue, many come up against insummountable financial barriers. However, a number of models from overseas show that with low or no interest loans the cost of development can dramatically decrease, leading to a far greater range of affordable housing.
With this Fellowship, Erin Dolan will be supported to learn from these overseas models to create Australia’s first philanthropic housing fund.

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Erin Dolan receives Churchill fellowship to investigate affordable housing

Building on the strong foundations and long history of the NCFF, Forum Week 2024 offers an expanded platform for inspiration, education and connection. It’s an opportunity to share and learn, network, build collective voice and impact, and reconnect with the inspiration and motivation at the heart of community philanthropy.
We welcome stakeholders from within and beyond the community philanthropy ecosystem to come together, explore common challenges and partner for shared solutions.
We also invite leaders including policy makers, funders and philanthropists to attend, and to strengthen their commitment and practical support for community foundations and community philanthropy in Australia and beyond.
Expanding on the National Community Foundations Forum (NCFF) that CFA has been hosting for more than 15 years, our first ever <a href="http://forumweek2024horizons.mailchimpsites.com">Forum Week</a> aims to bring together member community foundations with each other, with allied organisations, and with international thought leaders in the community philanthropy space. Inspired by this year’s Northern Rivers location – and specifically, Cape Byron, the first place on the continent to be illuminated by the morning sun – Forum Week will revolve around the theme of Horizons.
Addressing crucial themes such as crisis response, recovery and rebuilding, it will provide an important opportunity for the network to come together to share stories and lessons learnt, to inspire and challenge each other, and to build the relationships and trust that will fuel the future of community philanthropy in Australia.
<a href="http://forumweek2024horizons.mailchimpsites.com">Find out more and register here</a>

You are invited to join us at our 2024 Forum Week, taking place from November 22 – 28 across three different communities in the Northern Rivers on Bundjalung Country.

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Forum Week 2024: Horizons

Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development 
OVERVIEW
Community foundations in Australia have entered a period of sustained growth – in reach, scope and depth – and represent one of the most important system-change opportunities in the community context. This is especially relevant among communities experiencing economic disruption and persistent disadvantage given that, by and large, Australia has seen a decline in community-led governance of local capital for community-determined purposes.
Our shared project at Community Foundations Australia aims to fundamentally address this situation through ongoing reform and policy change, community processes and citizen participation, and development of foundations and fund structures within enabling networks and ecosystems at the community level. If we are successful as a field catalyst, Australia will see the emergence of a network of durable community foundations and associated community funds with a growing commitment to community wellbeing, fairness and equity.
THE ROLE
The Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development is a strategic leadership role at Community Foundations Australia, responsible for spearheading initiatives that drive philanthropic engagement, enhance community foundation capabilities, and foster field growth and learning. This role is pivotal in advancing the organisation&#8217;s mission to strengthen and support community foundations across Australia by acting as both a field catalyst and a community foundation developer.
The Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development has three core functions:
<ol>
<li>Field catalyst</li>
<li>Community foundation developer</li>
<li>Senior leadership</li>
</ol>
For a full list of the key responsibilities, skill and experience required, download the full <a href="https://admin.cfaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/2024-PD-Senior-Director-Foundation-and-Field-Development.pdf">Position Description</a>.
APPLICATION
Interested candidates should submit a resume and cover letter no later than 5pm on October 24th 2024, outlining their qualifications and experience relevant to the role, as well as expectations regarding compensation: info@cfaustralia.org.au.
For further information about the role, see the full <a href="http://See the full PD for further details.">PD here</a>. For further information about Community Foundations Australia, please visit www.cfaustralia.org.au.

Community Foundations Australia is now recruiting for a full-time Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development.

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We're recruiting for a Senior Director, Foundation and Field Development

Back in July, Ben Rodgers (EO of Inner North Community Foundation) and Nina Fitzsimons (Community Impact Manager at the Ballarat Foundation) travelled to Indonesia to join with 19 other organisations (16 participants from 22 different countries!) for a 3-day ‘Measuring What Matters’ (MWM) meeting led by the Global Fund for Community Foundations (GFCF).
So what is the ‘Measuring What Matters’ movement? It&#8217;s an ongoing global discussion about the dominance of the donor voice in determining what counts as &#8216;impact&#8217; and how we measure it. As Nina writes in her blog post, it&#8217;s about putting community in the centre of our evaluation approaches. &#8216;Transformational change doesn’t have to be dramatic; little steps can become big steps&#8217;. We can reframe annual reports as learning reports, assessors as enablers, and stakeholders as careholders. Sometimes it&#8217;s an intentional shift in language that brings about new and radical ways of thinking.
We&#8217;re excited to go deeper into these discussions around measurement and learning during our Forum Week with Ben, Nina and visiting Barry Knight, advisor to the GFCF who holds the space globally for these MWM discussions.

Ben Rodgers (EO of Inner North Community Foundation) and Nina Fitzsimons (Community Impact Manager at the Ballarat Foundation) join a 3-day ‘Measuring What Matters’ meeting led by the Global Fund for Community Foundations.

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GFCF

Measuring What Matters

At the General Meeting of Members on 14 November 2024, the Community Foundations Australia Board will be seeking to appoint two new directors to fill the following vacancies:
<ul>
<li>Director Diane Bray AM, has decided to retire from the Board at the 2024 AGM.</li>
<li>One vacant Director position, as the result of a Director resignation during the year.</li>
</ul>
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PRIORITY AREAS FOR BOARD RECRUITMENT
The CFA Board aims to maintain a mix of skills, experience and attributes that include
<ul>
<li>Strategic capability and leadership (including partnership development)</li>
<li>Advocacy</li>
<li>Accounting, finance and audit</li>
<li>Legal &amp; Regulatory</li>
<li>Governance and risk management</li>
<li>Fundraising and donor engagement</li>
<li>Community and member engagement</li>
<li>Strategic communications</li>
<li>Grants, research and evaluation</li>
</ul>
and has regard to diversity including but not limited to considerations of geography, cultural background, gender, and age.
To complement the strengths and capabilities of the current Directors, the Board will be giving priority in the 2024 recruitment round to candidates keen to make a leadership contribution to the growth and impact of community foundations at a national level, and who understand contemporary community-based philanthropy.
EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
The Board invites Expressions of Interest from suitably qualified and experienced individuals. Experience as a community foundation practitioner is desirable, but not essential.
Before nominating, we ask that you contact the Board Chair for a conversation:
Ben Rodgers, Chair
ben.rodgers@innernorthfoundation.org.au
0415 731 134
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Further information regarding the selection process and how to nominate is available <a href="https://admin.cfaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Board-election-EOI-Information-2024.pdf">here</a>. Expressions of Interest close COB Monday 14 October 2024.

The Community Foundations Australia Board is seeking two individuals to join as directors.

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Join the Community Foundations Australia Board

Community-driven solutions are an essential way forward for any community, but particularly in remote settings. For the Mparntwe community, the creation of its own foundation is an essential part of a larger systems change. The local community now has a platform to harness and connect its own resources, to identify its own priorities and determine its own future.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
MASCF board director, Rayleen Brown, spoke after the event, saying she “felt the power of community in every conversation. It shows that there is something strong in this town still”.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
The community foundation is setting itself up as the durable foundation for the whole community – there for the long haul and built to withstand external forces. While governments and politics change, the Mparntwe Alice Springs Community Foundation is committed to the community, operating beyond election cycles to work towards a strong community with a shared future.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
MASCF first emerged in response to the loss of a local newspaper, paired with an increasingly negative narrative about the town as portrayed in headlines nation-wide.<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
Community members identified a vital need for a local paper in which the community could see their stories represented and told by those invested in their same community, to positively experience the breadth of diversity in the community and celebrate their shared stories. <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
Huge congratulations to the Mparntwe Alice Springs Community Foundation for its launch, and successful first venture, getting the ‘Centralian Today’ local newspaper off the ground and into the community!<span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
The MASCF board is aiming to expand to have essential representation from Mparntwe’s youth, multicultural community, and additional Aboriginal perspectives and experiences. <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}"> 
We look forward to witnessing the way this foundation grows and for the powerful community of Mparntwe Alice Springs to respond to its own identified challenges with its own community-led solutions and storytelling! <span data-ccp-props="{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:0,&quot;335551620&quot;:0,&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:279}">

Welcome to Mparntwe Alice Springs Community Foundation (MASCF)

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Centralian Today, local paper in Mparntwe Alice Springs

Mparntwe Alice Springs Community Foundation (MASCF): a vital shared future determined by community

When the devastating Black Summer Fires ravaged East Gippsland in 2019-20, the region was thrown into crisis. Over half of the municipality land area was directly fire-impacted, and hundreds of residents were suddenly thrown into a state of emergency. The community was deeply hurting. But like a phoenix, it was through the pain that it found its strength.
Local residents, determined to support those in need, banded together to provide immediate relief. But when they realised that East Gippsland also needed long-term support, they decided to establish the East Gippsland Community Foundation (EGCF). The organisation would have the ability to invest in a range of projects that would promote resilience and well-being for all East Gippslanders, with an initial focus on fire-impacted communities.
Established by the community, for the community, the Foundation was seeded by donations to the Victorian Bushfire Appeal. This was a partnership between the Victorian Government and the charitable arm of Bendigo Bank, known as the Community Enterprise Foundation.
As EGCF commenced operation in East Gippsland, Bushfire Recovery Victoria was transitioning out, so the timing was right in terms of community support at the grassroots level.
Since 2021, EGCF has had a substantial impact on the local community. This has been aided by the Foundation’s close relationship with the East Gippsland Shire. Together, the two organisations have formed partnerships and worked tirelessly to distribute funding to support community-led initiatives and assist communities on their recovery path.
Michelle Dowsett, EGCF’s Executive Officer since its beginning, has been an integral part of their success. Michelle says she has seen the community unite around EGCF and the projects it has funded in a way that makes her hopeful for East Gippsland&#8217;s future.
“The ability for EGCF to work alongside the East Gippsland Shire Council, often as co-funders of projects and activities through our various streams of funding available to each of us has worked particularly well. In 2023 and 2024, the Foundation is administering funding for community events made available by the local council &amp; Emergency Recovery Victoria. This approach has worked well for all three entities, and most importantly the community itself.”
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MD with poster and border

In this short time, EGCF has done remarkable work, delivering over $4M to the local community, and it shows no signs of slowing down.
The Board has recently developed a Growth and Sustainability strategy to ensure it is able to continue to service Gippsland in both times when natural hazards occur and the times in between when building resilience and capacity in communities is so important.
EGCF has also rolled out a new initiative to create employment opportunities through Business Corporate Scholarships, initially within the East Gippsland Shire footprint. For people like Michelle, this is precisely the kind of work that the Foundation was set up to do.
“Outside of providing Black Summer Fire recovery funding through Victorian Bushfire Appeal funds, we’re really proud to be tackling the issue of employment and capacity building in our region,” she says.
“Local businesses have found it hard to find the right people, and local people can find it difficult to gain the right experience for vacant roles. This is where we enter in an aim to match local students’ study aspirations and local workforce needs.”
While the Foundation has been built from the ground up by the community it seeks to serve, Michelle says it wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the broader community foundation ecosystem. “Personally, I’ve learned a lot from our relationship with Community Foundations Australia and the other community foundations I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. Seeing what others in our network are doing is invaluable for a young foundation like ours.”
As one of the newest members of Community Foundations Australia, EGCF has demonstrated an impressive ability to respond swiftly to the immediate needs of East Gippsland’s people, while also allocating significant resources to ensure the region&#8217;s long-term sustainability.
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Anyone looking to find out more about East Gippsland Community Foundation or make a donation can visit their website www.givetoeastgippsland.org.au
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The story of the East Gippsland Community Foundation

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Engage Grow Community Inc

East Gippslanders invest in their community

Impact

Community Foundations Australia

Policy and advocacy

Vital Signs® is a community-driven data program that uses local knowledge to measure the vitality of a community and support action towards improving the collective quality of life.
First developed by the Toronto Community Foundation in 2001, it became a national program spearheaded by Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) in 2006 and is now licenced by CFC for use by community foundations throughout the world.
In Australia, twelve Community Foundations have so far collaborated with local stakeholders to undertake this pulse check in their communities with further Vital Signs reports by Australia’s Community Foundations due to be released in 2022.