In 2021, Philanthropy Australia launched its Blueprint to Grow Structured Giving with an aspiration to double structured giving by 2030. The Blueprint details the many levers we can pull to help deliver the outcome, one of which is to communicate and celebrate the joy of giving that philanthropy can generate for the individual donors, the service providers and the beneficiaries.

In recent times, attacks on philanthropy have become more pervasive and these are being amplified through social media channels. What often gets lost in this commentary however is that many of us have been touched by philanthropy - whether it be our health, our environment or our community, we all benefit from these philanthropic gifts.

In the first webinar of the 2022 series, we examine why the sector should be celebrated and championed to enable an abundance of causes and interests to flourish. We will meet champions of Australian philanthropy and explore their challenging yet rewarding work.

Moderators

Jack Heath - CEO, Philanthropy Australia

Jack has been a leader of for-purpose organisations for more than 25 years. He believes there has never been a more important time for philanthropy as we grapple with huge societal challenges and diminished trust in our public institutions. Jack holds a deep-seated belief in the ability of philanthropy to inspire long-lasting, positive change in individual lives and communities. He advocates for an aligned philanthropy which is big-hearted, clear-headed and joyful.  

A graduate of the University of Melbourne in Honours Arts and Law, Jack has also undertaken executive courses at Harvard and Stanford universities. He served in Government as a diplomat, speechwriter and senior adviser to Federal Ministers, including Prime Minister Keating and Foreign Minister Rudd. Following the suicide of his young cousin, Jack led the establishment of the ReachOut youth mental health organisations in Australia, Ireland and the United States before serving as CEO at the national mental health organization SANE Australia for eight years. 

Jack sits on a number of advisory boards and committees and has received awards for his contributions in mental health and community service.   He lives in Sydney with his publisher wife Catherine Milne and their dog Fred and they are parents to Lucy and Jamie.

Dylan Smith - Acting National Membership Director, Philanthropy Australia

As the founder of the Fremantle Foundation, Dylan is a highly effective collaborator. He has formed strong relationships in the social impact sector with community philanthropy, private philanthropy, non-profit leaders, government officials and elected members.

Presenters

Lesley Ray MBus CFRE FFIA - Director Philanthropy, Mater Foundation

Lesley is Director ─ Philanthropy at Mater Foundation, Brisbane – one of Australia’s leading healthcare fundraising organisations where she couples fundraising practice with organisational management and leadership. There she leads a team of fundraising professionals and is charged with the development of the organisation’s philanthropy programs.

Lesley holds a master’s degree in philanthropic studies from the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies (ACPNS) at Queensland University of Technology (QUT), where her research focused on the emergence of giving circles and their relationship with nonprofit organisations. Lesley is a Director and immediate Past Chair of Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) and is a Fellow and Past Chair of Fundraising Institute Australia (FIA).

In 2015 Lesley received the Arthur Venn Fundraiser of the Year Award from FIA, a national award which recognises an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to fundraising in Australia. Lesley is a founding member of “Women & Change,” a women’s giving circle that aims to engage women in philanthropy.

Sophie and Paul Chamberlain

Sophie and Paul have become increasingly involved in structured giving for the last 20 years. Inspired partly by Sophie’s father, Martin Copley, who founded the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, they began with involvement in their family foundation. This uplifting experience led to them wanting to enable more people to get into philanthropy and to create greater impact, so they have been instrumental in founding and running the collaborative giving groups, Impact100 WA and Arts Impact WA. They have also explored the other side of the philanthropic fence by joining the boards of not-for-profits: Sophie with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, Paul first with chairing FORM WA and now as Chair of the Foundation of the Art Gallery of WA. They are encouraging their ‘newly adulted’ daughters to continue the philanthropic legacy to whatever degree works for them.

Dr Pandora Kay - Founding Supporter, Indigenous Fashion Projects

Dr Pandora Kay FAMI CPM BEd Melb Uni GDip (ArtsAdmin) UniSA MA JCU PhD VU has a life-long passion for creative industries and as a marketing academic is undertaking research and publications on intersections between them featuring cases of artisanal fashion in India and Australia (Indigenous and non-Indigenous). With first-hand experience in the arts, cultural and creative industries as a practitioner, administrator and more recently as a collector, patron, philanthropist, and fundraiser, Pandora will share her fledgling philanthropy journey to date which in 2021 during Melbourne’s COVID lockdowns has “progressed at a cracking pace”. This is a journey inspired by her mother’s volunteer work, but also first-hand experiences working as a volunteer for Dame Elizabeth Murdoch’s Cruden Farm Garden openings while a committee member of Open Gardens Australia (OGA) Victoria, AOG National Marketing, and opening her own warehouse garden and gifting the gate takings to charities. A strategic approach to ‘giving with purpose’ is Pandora’s current focus.

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