Last month, I had the opportunity to travel with two colleagues to Derby in the West Kimberley region of northern Western Australia to witness firsthand the impact of World Vision Australia’s Early Childhood Care and Development Project.

This initiative establishes supported playgroups in remote communities and trains local Aboriginal people to lead them. In 2018, the Foundation granted $2.2 million in funding for Phase One of the project.

Having previously met community representatives during their visit to Melbourne in March this year, it was a privilege for the team to be welcomed into their community. We observed the playgroups in action, engaged with families and facilitators and discussed plans with their local council. 

Despite all the well-documented challenges that remote Aboriginal communities face, this trip highlighted what they can achieve when supported by continued long-term funding and partnering with organisations committed to building local capability and sharing their experience and knowledge to allow communities to be independent. The Looma community is rightfully proud of the playgroup it has established, and their engagement was evident as children, parents and elders actively participated.

I am pleased to advise that the Board of Governors has awarded World Vision Australia a further $2 million grant for Phase Two of the project.

I was also delighted to see Jimmy Frank Jupurrurla, Chair of Wilya Janta, recently announce that Wilya Janta has signed a building contractor to build the first Aboriginal-designed 'Explain' home in Tennant Creek. The Foundation is one of several philanthropic and corporate supporters of this pilot project to build the first-ever home designed by community, addressing climate and culture requirements. It will be the highest thermally performing home ever built in a remote community, at a similar cost to the current remote housing built by the NT Government.

Congratulations also to Good360 Australia, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary. Over this period, the organisation has redistributed $500 million of goods via more than 4,800 charities and schools, supported 4.8 million people during times of need, and diverted 7,000 tonnes of waste from landfills.

Closer to home, Louise Arkles, our Senior Program Manager – Environment, will be leaving us at the end of this month after 10 years with the Foundation. In that time, she headed up the Arts and Environment programs. However, her passion for the environment is well known. We thank Louise for her unflagging commitment to building a stronger environment sector, stewarding more than 120 Environment grants worth over $82 million during her tenure. We welcome Samantha Armstrong, who has been appointed as the new Environment Program Manager, and will commence the role in  August.  

This month also saw the retirement of several Governors from our Board. We acknowledge the contributions and legacy of Susan Crennan AC KC, Richard Larkins AC, Brian Schmidt AC and Alex Chernov AC KC. Each has brought wisdom, integrity and a profound commitment to the Foundation's mission. They have shaped our strategic direction, strengthened our governance and inspired us. I wish them all the best in their future endeavours on behalf of our Board and staff, and thank them for sharing their knowledge and insights over their tenure.

Lastly, I am excited to advise that Sir Jonathan Mills AC will join our Board of Governors from 1 August 2025. Sir Jonathan is the composer of several award-winning operas and works for chamber ensemble and orchestra. His opera Eucalyptus was performed in 2024 at the Perth and Brisbane Festivals, and in Melbourne by Victorian Opera and Opera Australia. He has been the director of various arts festivals, most notably, of the Edinburgh International Festival between 2007 and 2014. In 2012, he founded and was the inaugural Director (until 2022) of the Edinburgh International Culture Summit, a UNESCO-recognised biennial meeting held in conjunction with Edinburgh’s summer festivals.

In 2015, he was appointed Artistic Curator of the inaugural Lincoln Center Global Exchange at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York. He is currently Vice-Chancellor's Creative Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Creative Adviser to Museums Victoria, Trumbull Fellow and Visiting Professor of Music at Yale University, and a Guest Curator at the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford, UK.

Sir Jonathan has an outstanding international reputation and a broad understanding of cultural organisations that will enable him to make a unique contribution to the Foundation and its Arts program area in particular.