Six ways to maintain (and even improve) your health during COVID-19

Download the PDF version

VOLUNTEER

Volunteering has physical and mental health benefits. It can support you to feel happier and less anxious. There are many ways to support your community even if you are limiting your contact with others and not doing your normal volunteer work. Some organisations are now recruiting volunteers to do a range of online tasks that keeps you connected with your community and feeling helpful.

DONATE

If you can, don’t stop donating and supporting your local charity or community organisation. But there are other things to donate if you have to stop giving financially. Perhaps you can share the organisation’s social media posts or just write letters of encouragement to their staff and volunteers? Find other creative ways you can continue supporting the organisations that you love and care about.

PLAY

Have some fun! Put on some music and dance, sing, do some baking, learn to sew, colour a picture, organise your book shelf, have a lego challenge, build a cubby house, do that jigsaw puzzle sitting in your cupboard. You don’t need children in the house to have fun and be creative. Research shows simply doing something creative can improve your brain function, mental and physical health.

READ

Watching the news to keep yourself updated is important. But it’s also critical to know when to unplug and communicate in ways that are emotionally healthy for you. The news and social media can be a nonstop commentary of bad news and glorified gossip. This will impact your psychological health and can have a great impact on your emotional wellbeing. Using mindfulness and being aware of your feelings can help you to make choices about what information is calming, valuable and helpful.

SMILE

Having a person or a few people you can call, text or meet online regularly with is incredibly supportive and can help you to feel more optimistic. To support your friends, ask them to talk about what they are grateful for, one thing that they are proud of, how they are tackling negative self talk and what they are looking forward to in the next few days and weeks. There is always something to be grateful for, and something to be hopeful for! These conversations will help you, and others stay more optimistic. Also, share a joke or discuss something that you find funny. Research shows laughter increases positive emotions and might even improve your immune system.

LEARN

People who are able to keep their minds active, are open to new ideas and willing to experiment are more likely to find creative solutions to challenges. These skills are really important at the moment, as we find ways to organise and manage our lives differently, perform our work and communicate more online. Think of something you’ve always wanted to learn (e.g. your family tree or a new language) or learn about and take some time to do some reading, online learning or study. There are plenty of free and low cost online courses and many study options are also online.

These evidence based strategies can make you feel good physically, mentally and spiritually because happiness comes when you feel you are living a good life that has meaning.

Found this info helpful? Print off a PDF version for sharing with your colleagues, friends and family.

USEFUL LINKS

The Australian Citizen Science Association (ACSA) was formed to advance citizen science through the sharing of knowledge, collaboration, capacity building and advocacy. Check out what you can get involved in at citizenscience.org.au

Vollie is an online marketplace that connects skilled people to non-profits and charities for skills-based online volunteering. Vollie projects are exclusively online, meaning that people can donate their skills and experience from anywhere in the world, and around their busy personal and professional schedule. vollie.com.au

GoVolunteer is an initiative of Volunteering Australia. Our aim is to match people who are interested in volunteering with appropriate volunteering opportunities. The website uses a national database of volunteering opportunities. These are listed by volunteering involving organisations, Volunteer Resource Centres and State Volunteer Centres.
govolunteer.com.au

Mindfulness is proven to lead to better attention, memory, regulation of emotions and self awareness so Smiling Mind offers mental health tools and a free app developed by psychologists and educators to help bring balance to your life.
www.smilingmind.com.au

Missing Maps is an initiative that asks volunteers to map some of the most vulnerable areas on Earth, so that crisis teams can respond whenever there’s a natural or humanitarian disaster in a more efficient way. Helping this organisation and its partners (which includes the Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières) is as simple as looking at satellite images on your computer and then adding buildings and roads to maps. There’s information on the organisation’s website on how to edit maps and you’ll have support throughout the process. missingmaps.org

Lifeline is a national charity providing all Australians experiencing a personal crisis with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services through their hotline. 13 11 14

RESEARCH

Breeze, B., & Scaife, W. (2015). Encouraging Generosity: the Organisation of Fundraising Across Nations. In P. Wiepking & F. Handy (Eds.), Palgrave Handbook of Global Philanthropy Palgrave Macmillan.

Crittall, M., McDonald, K., McGregor-Lowndes, M., Scaife, S., Barraket, J.,  Sloper, R., Williamson, A., & Baker, C. (2017). Giving and volunteering: the nonprofit perspective report. Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies, Brisbane, Qld.

Crittall, M., & Scaife, W. (2017) Fact Sheet: Nonprofit organisations overview. Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies, Brisbane, Qld.

Mancini, M. (2019). Strategic Storytelling: An Exploration of the Professional Practices of Mental Health Peer Providers. Qualitative Health Research, 29(9), 1266–1276.

Moskowitz, J., Hult, J., Duncan, L., Cohn, M., Maurer, S., Bussolari, C., & Acree, M. (2012). A positive affect intervention for people experiencing health-related stress: Development and non-randomized pilot test. Journal of Health Psychology, 17(5), 676–692.

Poulin, M. (2014). Volunteering predicts health among those who value others: two national studies. Health Psychology : Official Journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association, 33(2), 120–129.

Sin, N., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2009). Enhancing well‐being and alleviating depressive symptoms with positive psychology interventions: a practice‐friendly meta‐analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 65(5), 467–487

Stuckey, H., & Nobel, J. (2010). The connection between art, healing, and public health : a review of the current health. American Journal of Public Health, 100(2), 254–263.

Tugade, M., Fredrickson, B., & Barrett, L. (2004). Psychological resilience and positive emotional granularity: Examining the benefits of positive emotions on coping and health. Journal Of Personality, 72(6), 1161–1190.

Yeung, J., Zhang, Z., & Kim, T. (2017). Volunteering and health benefits in general adults: cumulative effects and forms. BMC Public Health, 18(1), 8.

Incorporated Association Reform

In late November 2019 the Associations Incorporation and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2019 was introduced into the Queensland Parliament. It will apply to some 22,000 incorporated association as well as some 3,200 ACNC charities that are also registered under the Queensland Collections Act for fundraising purposes. It will finally relieve Queensland charities of duplicated annual financial reporting under the Associations Incorporation Act (AIA) and also the Collections Act. Plans are for the changes to be implemented before the reporting deadlines for of 2020-21 reporting period. There are also a number of important reforms for incorporated associations including new governance standards and obligations for office holders.

NOTE: FREE Upcoming ‘Honest Conversation’ webinar where you can ask questions about the amendments directly 

 

Background

The Associations Incorporation Act has not undergone substantial reform since 2007. A major review of the Act commenced in 2003, and culminated in the 2006-2007 reforms to auditing requirements and mandatory insurance. The basis for these reforms was the recognition that ‘one size does not fit all’. It was flagged at the time that further work was being carried out on the issues of eligibility; types of associations; dispute resolution and conflicts of interest, as these were considered complex matters requiring further policy development.

In 2010, the Queensland Government conducted consultation on improving the Associations Incorporation Regulation 1999. In November 2011, Parliament enacted amendments to the Act, to allow for a seamless transition to a company structure for those incorporated associations wishing to become a national corporate ASC body. In 2012 a further policy paper and consultation was held, but a change of government disrupted the implementation of any recommendations. With the ACNC being created on 3 December, 2012 there was the opportunity to remove duplicative financial reporting which some States facilitated, but faced a number of hurdles in Queensland.

In September 2014 the government again consulted on reforms to AIA with stakeholders, but it was five years before a Bill was presented to Parliament.

Financial Reporting Streamlining

The Bill amends the financial reporting requirement provisions under both the Associations Incorporation Act and the Collections Act to allow for ACNC-registered entities to be exempt from the State-based reporting requirements. These ACNC registered associations represent almost 17 per cent of all associations incorporated in Queensland.

A power will be given to the OFT to direct an association or fundraising entity to be audited and statements filed and access financial information in respect of exempted entities, if thought prudent.
Small associations usually regarded as within the “small” or “medium” category for a financial year, can seek permission to remain unaudited if an unusual payment (an insurance payout or grant payment) would otherwise result in it reporting as a larger association (incurring audit costs).

Governance

The AIA did not spell out the duties of the management committee officers and the common law applied. The proposal is to specifically list the duties of officers in the legislation. Although not identical to the ACNC duties, they follow the broad outline of those duties. Officers will be required to:

• exercise their powers and discharge their duties with care and diligence, in good faith in the best interests of the association, and for a proper purpose;
• not improperly use their position to gain, directly or indirectly, a pecuniary benefit or material advantage for themselves or another person; and
• not improperly use information obtained from their position to gain, directly or indirectly, a pecuniary benefit or material advantage for themselves or another person.

Management committee members must:
• disclose material personal interests;
• disclose remuneration or benefits paid/given to management committee members and senior staff members, and their relatives; and
• prevent insolvent trading of the association.

Disclosure of benefits and remuneration will occur at the AGM for all management committee members, senior staff and close relatives to those persons.

There are penalties under the proposed legislation for breaches of duty and non-disclosure of conflicts of interest and benefits.

There are defences of making informed business judgements and relying on reasonable and informed advice.

Dispute Resolution

Internal disputes can severely hamper the life of incorporated associations and if judicial intervention is required, then the AIA mandates that this is by the Supreme Court. Such proceedings are usually expensive with significant delays and often cause internal disputes to fester for years and wrongs go unchecked because of the cost of doing so. The Government has not chosen a more suitable venue such as QCAT or the Magistrates Court. It seeks to introduce a requirement for the rules of an association to provide a grievance procedure and require parties to a dispute to attempt to resolve the matter internally before seeking judicial adjudication.

A new provision will require the rules of an incorporated association to set out a grievance procedure, consistent with the principles of the provision, for dealing with any dispute under the rules between a member and another member, a member and the management committee, or a member and the association.

If the rules of the association do not set out a grievance procedure that is consistent with the prescribed principles in the new provision, then the rules of the association are taken to include the model rules providing the grievance procedure. An incorporated association will not be able to exclude the operation of this provision which is possible for other rules.

The prescribed principles for the grievance procedure include:
• The procedure must include mediation;
• It may (not must) provide for a person to decide the outcome of the dispute;
• Such mediator or other adjudicator must be unbiased;
• A member may appoint any person to act their behalf;
• Each party to the dispute is to be given an opportunity to be heard on the dispute; and
• The association must not take disciplinary action against the member and their representative until the grievance procedure has been completed.

As it is unlikely that the vast majority of associations will have dispute resolution clauses that cover off on all of the principles, the new legislative grievance procedure will prevail. Associations that wish to have their own grievance procedure will have to consider amending their rules to cater for the mandated principles as well as their own.

Other Reforms

The Bill also takes the opportunity to address a number of issues such as:
• Modernising the process for OFT investigations of incorporated associations;
• Simplified mechanism for voluntary cancellation of incorporation;
• Provisions to allow for a formalised process to appoint a voluntary administrator;
• Removing the requirement for an incorporated association to use a common seal; and
• The ability for an association to conduct general meetings using communications technology without the use of such technology being addressed in the association’s rules.

Implications

This is one reforming Bill that all incorporated associations should understand. For those registered with the ACNC there will be less annual financial report filing with the OFT, and this to be welcomed.

The other amendments to impose specific duties on officers with penalties and in relation to imposed internal dispute resolution clause will require all officers to pay attention to possible implications. Committee procedures should be checked to ensure that there is a standing declaration of conflicts of interest and at the beginning of each meeting specific conflicts are identified and dealt with. A special watch should be established when the association is approaching insolvency to ensure duties are not breached.

It is highly advisable to review your association’s rules once the Act comes into force to check for inconsistencies and provide for a complying grievance procedure.

We thank Emeritus Professor Myles McGregor Lowndes for this article.

Read more of the Developing Your Organisation series

Using empathy to engage with donors and improve your fundraising by Dr Ruth Knight

Three Ways Nonprofit Boards Can Improve Its Team by Dr Ruth Knight

Three Key Questions to Ask Before Starting a Social Enterprise by Dr Craig Furneaux

How leaders can help their team become resilient when stress and change are the norm by Dr Ruth Knight

Three questions nonprofits should be asking themselves in 2019 by Glenn Poole

Four ways to promote financial sustainability for your nonprofit by Dr Mike Booth

Three Great Resources Grantseekers and Fundraisers Should be Tapping Into by Eleni Gill

FREE WEBINAR: Incorporated Associations and Collections Act Amendments
– An Honest Conversation, 15 April

REGISTER

This is your rare opportunity to join an online conversation with those in the know about the recent amendments to incorporated associations. You will hear from people with deep legal connection and experience and have the opportunity to put your thoughts and questions forward in a constructive and informed environment. Or just get up-to-speed on the state of play and what the changes mean for YOUR association.

In late November 2019, the Associations Incorporation and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2019 was introduced into the Queensland Parliament. It will apply to some 22,000 incorporated association as well as some 3,200 ACNC charities that are also registered under the Queensland Collections Act for fundraising purposes. It will finally relieve Queensland charities of duplicated annual financial reporting under the Associations Incorporation Act (AIA) and also the Collections Act. Plans are for the changes to be implemented before the reporting deadlines for of 2020-21 reporting period. There are also a number of important reforms for incorporated associations including new governance standards and obligations for officeholders.

This free webinar will be facilitated by Emeritus Professor Myles McGregor-Lowndes and he will be joined by Paul Paxton-Hall, Director of Paxton-Hall Lawyers and specialist in nonprofit law.

DATE: Wed, 15 April

TIME: 5:30 – 6:30pm

CAN’T ATTEND IN REAL TIME?
You should still register; all registrants will receive a copy of the recording.

REGISTER

Thank you to everyone who came along to last year’s Power of Community Conference – and for all the wonderful feedback!

The Power of Community Conference was a great success and provided insights, strategies and tools to support community organisations. A special thank you to our expert speakers and the conference sponsor, the Queensland Government’s Gambling Community Benefit Fund.

Over the coming months we will be releasing the conference videos and recordings so that all in the sector can benefit from the knowledge gained. Videos will include:

• workshops on fundraising, governance, marketing and volunteer management;
• keynotes on storytelling & crafting your story and the role of resilience; and
• panel discussions on finding grants and writing winning grant applications.

To receive free access to the videos, please email acpns@qut.edu.au and we will send you the links as they become available over the coming months.

Thank you to everyone who attended this week’s webinar, What can Australian charities learn from Canadian audits of charities involved in advocacy?

ACCESS THE RECORDING

The webinar generated a lot of interest and conversation around the topic of auditing charities involved in advocacy – with many lessons to be learned from what’s happened in Canada thus far.

A special thank you to our speakers who participated from many parts of the globe. Your contributions meant the topic was thoroughly and expertly considered from many different perspectives and angles.

ACCESS THE RECORDING

International Contributors

• Susan Phillips Visiting Fellow, ACPNS; Professor Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership School of Public Policy and Administration Carleton University
• Nick Robinson, Legal Advisor – International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law
• Peter Robinson, former CEO, David Suzuki Foundation
• Leilani Farha, Executive Director, Canada Without Poverty
• Bob Wyatt, Executive Director, The Muttart Foundation & Vice-President, The Pemsel Case Foundation
• Carl Juneau, former Director, Charities Directorate, Canada Revenue Agency
• Susan Manwaring, Partner, Miller Thomson LLP
• Sean Speer, Assistant Professor, Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto; Former Economic Adviser to Prime Minister Stephen Harper
• Tim Harper, Freelance Writer; Former Bureau Chief, Parliamentary Press Gallery (Canada)

Australian Responders

• Jennifer Batrouney QC, Chair, Not-for-Profit Legal Practice and Charities Committee, Law Council of Australia
• Murray Baird, Former Assistant Commissioner, General Counsel, Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC)
• Krystian Seibert, Industry Fellow at the Centre for Social Impact Swinburne
• David Crosbie, CEO, Community Council for Australia

Webinar Facilitators

• Susan Phillips (ACPNS Visiting Prof.) Professor, Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership Carleton University, Canada
• Myles McGregor-Lowndes, Emeritus Professor, ACPNS, QUT

Fundraising research continues to be helpful to fundraisers, but it can also be overwhelming in that it demonstrates the complex nature of giving and donor engagement. For example, studies show that past donation behaviour drives both donation decisions and generosity. Socio-demographic variables such as income, age and gender influence giving. Emotionally laden story telling can be very persuasive but requires strong ethics. Recommendations from other donors, social stimuli and positive social role modelling, are also predictors of whether people give and how much.

These are all very helpful insights about donors and charitable giving, but they fall short of helping an individual organisation understand what might motivate people to give to their specific organisation, cause or campaign. A possible solution might be to use empathy more intentionally when designing strategies to build more effective and stronger donor relationships.

Empathy is described as an attribute that helps you sense and understand another person’s feelings, needs or perspective. It is a complex phenomenon and has been studied extensively with the research establishing that empathy and empathic concern are typically beneficial, even therapeutic, for both giver and receiver. For this reason, it is not just psychologists and care givers who have realised that empathy is important to their work. Indeed, many disciplines such as marketing, engineering, technology and health are all using empathy and empathic design to improve policy and practices, products and services. This is supported by researchers such as David Teece who explains that the chances of organisational success are greater when a good understanding of stakeholder needs is used to create customer focused value creation.

Empathy has been established as crucial for those people using the Design Thinking process, which is a methodology adopted by some innovators and product designers to find solutions to complex problems. A simple definition of Design Thinking, which incorporates Human-Centred Design, is difficult to find, so I like to explain it as using empathy to understand the world and complex problems from multiple perspectives, in order to find human-centred solutions.

Design Thinking is also being adopted by social planners and entrepreneurs, policy makers, funders, and charitable organisations who are using the approach to improve collaboration and co-design between sectors and stakeholders including donors and beneficiaries. They are using Design Thinking tools to gain greater deeper insight into social and organisational challenges in order to identify more creative and innovative solutions.

A great example comes from The San Francisco Opera. Design Thinking was embraced and a creative exercise helped gain empathy with younger people who had never been to the Opera. They used what they learned to develop ways to engage new audiences and thereby increase their audience numbers and revenue.

Creating an Empathy Map

Fundraisers can empathise with donors and prospective donors by using a Design Thinking tool called an Empathy Map.

Empathy maps assist you to uncover and make sense of what donors think, feel, say and do. Using this tool builds understanding of how donors are reacting to and engaging with your organisation, cause, appeals and activities.

It is best to create the map with your team (not just your fundraising team), experts, and of course donors themselves. Further research such as donor interviews, focus groups or surveys can add to your insights and challenge your biases and assumptions.

Depending on what you are aiming to achieve, the goal of this empathy exercise is to start creatively thinking of changes and innovations that you and your organisation needs to make to engage, communicate and serve your donors better. You will be thinking from a donor-centric viewpoint, and you can then test if your changes build more effective and stronger donor relationships.

If you would like to know more about using Design Thinking there are plenty of helpful internet resources and books. Or, you can contact QUT’s Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies (ACPNS) to learn about our courses.

Read more of the Developing Your Organisation series

Three Ways Nonprofit Boards Can Improve Its Team by Dr Ruth Knight

Three Key Questions to Ask Before Starting a Social Enterprise by Dr Craig Furneaux

How leaders can help their team become resilient when stress and change are the norm by Dr Ruth Knight 

Three questions nonprofits should be asking themselves in 2019 by Glenn Poole

Four ways to promote financial sustainability for your nonprofit by Dr Mike Booth

Three Great Resources Grantseekers and Fundraisers Should be Tapping Into by Eleni Gill

References

Bult, J., van Der Scheer, H., & Wansbeek, T. (1997). Interaction between target and mailing characteristics in direct marketing, with an application to health care fund raising. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 14(4), 301–308.
Van Slyke, D., & Brooks, A. (2005). Why do People Give?: New Evidence and Strategies for Nonprofit Managers. The American Review of Public Administration, 35(3), 199–222.
Barraza, J., Alexander, V., Beavin, L., Terris, E., & Zak, P. (2015). The heart of the story: Peripheral physiology during narrative exposure predicts charitable giving. Biological Psychology, 105, 138–143.
Brown, A., Meer, J., & Williams, J. (2017). Social distance and quality ratings in charity choice. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 66, 9–15.
Ottoni-Wilhelm, M., Estell, D., & Perdue, N. (2014). Role-modeling and conversations about giving in the socialization of adolescent charitable giving and volunteering. Journal of Adolescence, 37(1), 53–66.
White, S. (1997). Empathy: a literature review and concept analysis. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 6(4), 253-257.
Teece, D. (2007). Explicating dynamic capabilities: the nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance. Strategic Management Journal, 28(13), 1319-1350.
https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/design-thinking-get-a-quick-overview-of-the-history
Hoyt, D., & Sutton, R. I. (2016). What Design Thinking Is Doing for the San Francisco Opera. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2016/06/what-design-thinking-is-doing-for-the-san-francisco-opera
https://www.ideo.com/blog/build-your-creative-confidence-empathy-maps

Learn the tips and tricks to writing a winning grant proposal

FIND OUT MORE AND REGISTER

Grant writing is a skill nonprofit organisations and social enterprises need if they wish to gain government or philanthropic support for their project or venture. With billions of dollars given away each year by grant makers, it is essential people wishing to apply for grants are savvy and skilled, especially since philanthropic funding is considered the toughest to apply for. While there is no one magic formula to use when writing grants, there are many best practices that can increase your chances for success.

Using a practical discussion-based approach, this workshop will cover the importance of planning and research, developing your writing skills, managing risks, and understanding funding guidelines.

Core concepts

Session 1

Lessons learned from Giving Australia research
Your planning team and identifying a need
Deciding to apply: the decision tree approach
Collaboration and relationship building
Understanding funding guidelines
How a theory of change can help
Developing a grants calendar
Risk management

Session 2

Persuasive writing skills and communicating your project well
Why your budget is more important than you think
The dos and don’ts of hiring grant writers

Session 3

What happens after submission
Insights from grant makers
Self-assessment – are you ready to write a winning grant proposal?

Details

19 March 2020, 9am – 1pm (Registration from 8:45am)

QUT Executive Education Centre
B Block, QUT Gardens Point
2 George St
Brisbane QLD 4001

Cost: $147.00 (GST included)

FIND OUT MORE AND REGISTER

What can Australian charities learn from Canadian audits of charities involved in advocacy?

REGISTER

In its 2012 budget, Canada’s Conservative (Harper) government set aside a special allocation of $13.4 million dollars to audit “political activities” of charities. Over the next few years, the charity regulator, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), undertook audits of more than 50 charities generally and specifically for the purpose of investigating whether these organizations had exceeded their allowable limits of political activities. These charities included Amnesty International Canada, a left-leaning think tank, a writers’ group that defends freedom of expression, as well as seven of Canada’s most prominent environmental charities.

Many observers accused government of using the audits to intimidate and silence opposing political views. Some charities report that their costs in legal and accounting fees incurred in the audits were in excess of CA$200,000. In addition, there may also have been a variety of costs to the regulator, the government as a whole and the not-for-profit sector that are have not been assessed or widely discussed.

In hindsight, what were the considerations and overall costs – of all kinds — of the audits? What did charities, the sector and government learn from this audit process, and what did they do right and what would they do differently?

This live webinar with key Canadian players will reflect on their experiences and Australian commentators will give their responses.

There is no cost to attend this conference.

Participants include:

International Contributors

• Susan Phillips Visiting Fellow, ACPNS; Professor Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership School of Public Policy and Administration Carleton University
• Nick Robinson, Legal Advisor – International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law
• Peter Robinson, former CEO, David Suzuki Foundation
• Leilani Farha, Executive Director, Canada Without Poverty
• Bob Wyatt, LL.D. (Hon.) Executive Director, The Muttart Foundation & Vice-President, The Pemsel Case Foundation
• Carl Juneau, former Director, Charities Directorate, Canada Revenue Agency
• Susan Manwaring, Partner, Miller Thomson LLP
• Sean Speer, Assistant Professor, Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto; Former Economic Adviser to Prime Minister Stephen Harper
• Tim Harper, Freelance Writer; Former Bureau Chief, Parliamentary Press Gallery (Canada)

Australian Responders

• Jennifer Batrouney QC, Chair, Not-for-Profit Legal Practice and Charities Committee, Law Council of Australia
• Murray Baird, Former Assistant Commissioner, General Counsel, Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC)
• Krystian Seibert, Industy Fellow at the Cenbtre for Social Impact, Swinburne
• David Crosbie, CEO, Community Council for Australia

Webinar Facilitators

• Susan Phillips (ACPNS Visiting Prof.) Professor, Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership Carleton University, Canada
• Myles McGregor-Lowndes, Emeritus Professor, ACPNS, QUT

REGISTER

Pre-reading for Australian participants

You heard it here first, folks!

Check out the very latest data (out today!) on PAFs and PubAFs on our giving statistics page!

Three great resources grantseekers and fundraisers should be tapping into

Are you a grantseeker or fundraiser? This month we’re making it super easy for you to tap into some great resources that you might not know about.

Events – Past and upcoming!

Upcoming: Free grant-seeking tutorials

In 2020 we’ll be holding free quarterly tutorials for grantseekers and fundraisers where you will gain access to high-quality resources and expertise for your organisation.

If you’re looking to secure a grant for your cause or get a behind-the-scenes look at what donors in your area are doing, this tutorial is for you. The tute allows you to view the QUT Community Collection for grant-seekers, fundraisers and philanthropists and shows you how to use the world’s leading grant-seeking database, the Foundation Directory Online. QUT is the only institution in the Southern Hemisphere to host this unique collection. We thank the experts at Strategic Grants for being the volunteer tutorial facilitators and helping real dollars to flow to attendees!

2020 dates include 7 Feb, 1 May, 7 Aug and 6 Nov (dates yet to be confirmed).

To register your interest, email acpns@qut.edu.au – but be quick, bookings fill up very quickly!

Past: Grantseeking workshops

Access free video recordings of the grantseeking workshops held at The Power of Community Conference*. These valuable workshops will give you insights and practical take-aways on improving engagement with your stakeholders and fulfilling your mission. Topics include:

Telling Tales with a Purpose: Using

Organisational Storytelling to Raise Funds, presented by Dr Anne Lane (QUT)

Why Empathy Helps you Fundraise Better, presented by Dr Ruth Knight (ACPNS)

How to Find Grants and Write Winning Grant Applications, presented by Dr Anne Lane, Jo Garner (Strategic Grants), Georgia Stafford (Gambling Community Benefit Fund), Dr Alex Williamson (ACPNS)

We will also be releasing other recordings from the conference, all designed to impart insights, strategies and tools to support community organisations. Keynotes include Strategies to Craft Your Story and The Role of Resilience. Other workshop topics include Marketing, Governance and Volunteer Management.

While the recordings are yet to be released, we encourage you to register your interest by emailing acpns@qut.edu.au. The links to recordings will be sent to you in the New Year as they are released. 

* The Power of Community Conference celebrates and builds on the impact our community organisations are having across Queensland. Grassroots organisations have a long history of bringing about positive social change, connecting people and building stronger, more resilient communities. To celebrate this, and as part of its 25th anniversary celebrations, the Queensland Government’s Gambling Community Benefit Fund (GCBF) and ACPNS partnered to present the conference in November 2019.

Past: FIA/ACPNS Alumni Anniversary Breakfast

If you’re looking for some great intel and direction for your 2020 strategy, then this podcast is for you!

QUT’s 2019 Outstanding Business Alumni Winner and one of Australia’s most senior and respected philanthropic leaders, Caitriona Fay (Head of Community and Social Investments at Perpetual Limited), presented the FIA/ACPNS Alumni Anniversary Breakfast address in November 2019. A panel of colleagues also added their views, including Cameron Prout, General Manager, Fundraising at Uniting Care; and Meredith Dwyer, Director, HomeMade Digital Australia and 2019 winner of the Arthur Venn Fundraiser of the Year Award. Pick up some great tips for your fundraising!

Access the recording via our podcast page

Tools and publications

We know fundraising and grantseeking. We’ve been researching both topics for nearly two decades and before that our researchers were working in the sector and fundraising for their causes as well. So this weekend, instead of Netflix binging, snuggle up with some great reads that will make you a smarter and more compelling fundraiser.

And don’t forget to check out our great giving tools. How ‘giving’ are your neighbours? And how ‘giving’ is your occupation? Check out our giving statistics tool to find out!

Giving Australia

Giving Australia* is the largest analysis of giving and volunteering of its kind ever undertaken in this country. Its findings and insights are changing the way nonprofits operate in many areas, from governance to ethical marketing and fundraising. The knowledge base about giving and volunteering patterns and trends is also being used to support evidence-based policy development. Fundraisers and grantseekers in particular can plan and prioritise better using the findings.

*Giving Australia was commissioned by the Australian Government Department of Social Services as an initiative of the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership. It was led by the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies (ACPNS) at QUT with the Centre for Social Impact at Swinburne University of Technology and the Centre for Corporate Public Affairs.

Foundations for giving: why and how Australians structure their philanthropy

Philanthropic foundations in Australia have traditionally been labelled ‘icebergs’ – much of what they do and who they are is not apparent on the surface. Many are unknown and apart from an occasional biography, almost all are sparsely documented in terms of the very personal decisions behind establishing them. Practically and academically, scant data exist on the decision journeys people make into formalised philanthropy. Hear the voices of Australia’s philanthropists.

Defining and Accounting for Fundraising Income and Expenses

Charities’ fundraising financial transactions should be reported in the interests of accountability, and the report should be publicly available. However, research shows that at present there is little consistency in how fundraising is defined or in how such transactions are reported, and little guidance from accounting standards. Can we find a way forward? And what does it mean for your accounting practices?

A study of professional advisers in Australia

Our researchers regularly survey professional advisers to affluent Australians intermittently to seek their views and experiences around client and personal philanthropy. Why? Because professional advisers on finance, wealth management, law, accounting, taxation, estate management and beyond are an important nexus with people who have the capacity to channel significant funding into community need.

Approaches to cross-border charity in Australia and the UK

The late twentieth century witnessed the transformation of the global economy. In just two decades, cross-border philanthropy grew from approximately USD 5 billion to USD 32 billion. This report examines what this era of “philanthropic globalisation’ means for charities across the world and how Australia’s fiscal policies regarding cross-border philanthropy can affect your fundraising.

Grantmaking in a Disorderly World: The Limits of Rationalism

This article reflects on the real world relevance of rational approaches to grantmaking. Unpacking implicit assumptions of a rational approach, eight costs to foundations and their grantees are identified. The paper also considers what grantmaking for a complex and disorderly world might encompass and how and why funders need to adapt to a little discomfort.

Domestic and international grantmaking: the comfort of codes

This paper focuses on codes of practice in domestic and international philanthropic giving/grantmaking, their similarities and differences. Codes of principle and practice are interesting not so much because they accurately reflect differences in practice on the ground, but rather because they indicate what is considered important or relevant, as well as aspirational.

Fundraising and boards: be a leader and a meddler!

The old board maxim says, ‘Be a leader not a meddler’! However, in the case of board members and fundraising, meddling is wise. Why? Because the board has a responsibility and a unique opportunity to guide and support its organisation’s fundraising. Indeed, in successful nonprofit organisations fundraising is an attitude, not a department.

Who’s asking for what? Fundraising and leadership in Australian nonprofits

The nonprofit funding landscape is in flux. Many organisations are having to think differently and develop fresh skills either to enter the fundraising market or to cope better with rising competition for community and corporate support. This new reality affects boards, CEOs and fundraisers alike. Against this backdrop, our exploratory study aims to build an evidence base and spark more discussion about: – the role Australian nonprofit CEOs and boards play in supporting fundraising/development; – current engagement levels; and – perceptions of leadership in fundraising from two possibly contrasting perspectives: NP leaders (board members and CEOs); and fundraisers.

Keeping giving going: charitable bequests and Australians

The potential of bequests to contribute to the sustainability of charities is immense, with social and economic trends opening up the bequest landscape. Yet so much is unknown about how Australians think about charitable bequests – particularly about the motivations, barriers and triggers surrounding this behaviour. Do bequestors differ from other donors? What prevents good intentions from becoming good actions? Where do charities figure in this process? This study aims at a better understanding of those Australians who make a charitable bequest and those who might.

Every player wins a prize? Family provision applications and bequests to charity

This research deals with the interaction of family provision law and charitable bequests in wills, including qualitative research relating to the practical issues arising with both legal practitioners and charities’ bequest officers.

Courses

If you want to get ahead of the crowd and fine-tune your fundraising skills, these short, sharp six-week units are for you! Taught as part of the Graduate Certificate in Business (Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies), these units will give you an in-depth understanding of fundraising principles, donor expectations and what it takes to develop and evaluate compelling fundraising programs.

Fundraising Development Principles

Learn what influences fundraising/development success. Be able to apply theories of marketing, public relations, management and beyond to fundraising and development and understand the philanthropic environment and donor perspectives. Know more about whether you’re ready to win support, how to build your story, leadership, constituencies and fundraising markets in the context of good, ethical development practice.

Fundraising Development Techniques

Study techniques including capital and major gifts, special events, bequests, direct mail, telemarketing, e-fundraising, donor circles and the art of building donor relationships – and how to plan and evaluate fundraising programs.

Want to delve even deeper? The Master of Business (Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies) is designed to extend your real-world knowledge and allows you to tailor your studies for a career in fundraising or another discipline to support your research and employment goals.

Thirsting for more info? Give us a call on +61 7 3138 1020 today. You’ll be talking directly with someone here at ACPNS who can answer all your questions or email acpns@qut.edu.au and we’ll pop a student pack in the mail to you today.

“I love fundraising and philanthropy and helping charities to do better at fundraising. My mantra is encouraging philanthropy and managing fundraising. Studying at QUT has given me confidence in my learning ability and the ability to apply these learning to real-life situations.”

Margaret Scott FFIA CFRE, ACPNS alumnus and winner of the 2014 Arthur Venn Fundraiser of the Year Award

Thanks for reading! We hope you’ve gleaned some great pointers for your fundraising! And remember, there’s even more great information on our new site at https://research.qut.edu.au/australian-centre-for-philanthropy-and-nonprofit-studies