The Limb Family Foundation’s multi-year grant provides journalists with the time and resources to do the painstaking and persistent investigative work that uncovers critical information, hold government’s accountable and shifts the conversation – and ultimately the culture – around climate and environmental issues in Australia.

Reporting includes coverage of Australia’s environment law failures, influencing some parliamentarians to block deregulation, and revealing links between the Federal Government’s Covid Recovery Commission and the fossil fuel industry.  

The Limb Family Foundation’s grant supports work that would not otherwise have been possible and demonstrates a significant commitment over a number of years.

Longstanding members of the AEGN, the Limb Family Foundation have recently chosen to spend down their foundation corpus. One of the reasons for this is to address the urgency of environment and climate issues. 

The Pace Foundation, The NR Peace & Justice Fund, Lenko Family Foundation, Melliodora Fund — Australian Communities Foundation Subfund, Sarah Brenan of The Hamer Family Fund, The Mullum Trust, Vicki Olsson and Beyond Zero Emissions.

• Find out more about the 10 Gigawatt Vision

The seven funders of the 10 Gigawatt Vision should be commended for working together to fund this project that is both visionary and practical. They showed that collaboration can achieve more than the sum of its parts and that by funding policy development, policy advocacy, good communications and a smart charitable organisation, government’s and industry can step up to address the greatest issue of our time – climate change.

Climate change presents existential risks to Australia’s environment. From increasing heat waves which dry out the landscape, to extreme fires, floods and storms which threaten plant and animal life, the risks of climate change are increasing. In the Northern Territory, extreme heat fuelled by climate change is creating unliveable conditions.

Developed in partnership with the Environment Centre Northern Territory, Beyond Zero Emission’s 10 Gigawatt Vision is a comprehensive plan to use abundant sunshine and low-cost solar energy to revolutionise the Northern Territory’s economy. The report shows that by 2030, the Northern Territory government could drive investment in 10 gigawatts of renewable energy — 20 times the current renewable energy target.

The 10 Gigawatt Vision put the Territory at the forefront of the global transition away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy. It described how implementation would attract private investment, be a catalyst for wider, long-lasting economic renewal, and provided recommendations for policy reform.

Subsequently, an oversubscribed investment round for one of the world’s most ambitious projects, the world’s largest solar farm (Sun Cable’s Asia-Singapore Power Link) has ensured this $20 billion project is on track to becoming a reality.

On the back of the Vision, Beyond Zero Emissions’ Chair Eytan Lenko was appointed to the Territory Economic Reconstruction Commission, ensuring renewable energy would be at the heart of economic policy discussion.

Members honoured for other philanthropy work

We also congratulate AEGN members for their outstanding contributions under other award categories. These include Carol Schwartz AO of the Trawalla Foundation for her Leading Philanthropist Award, the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation for the Better Philanthropy Award and the Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal for the Best Grant Program Award. 

We would like to especially recognise The Balnaves Foundation and Guardian Australia newspaper, winners of the Indigenous Philanthropy Award, for funding to employ an Indigenous Affairs reporter whose insightful, inquiring and Walkley Award winning journalism dug deep into issues affecting First Nations peoples around the country. 

And finally, we congratulate Philanthropy Australia for their stellar work elevating and celebrating excellent philanthropy. 

Melliodora Fund – Australian Communities Foundation Subfund (and six other sub funds of the Australian Communities Foundation, plus 10 other funders since 2014) for The Change Agency Community Organising Fellowship.

• Read their case study
• Community Organising Fellowship wins the 2019 Environmental Philanthropy Award

Purves Environmental Fund and 27 donors to the Purves Tree-Clearing Challenge for the Tree-Clearing Alliance, made up of 22 large and small community groups.

• Read their case study
• Tree clearing in Queensland: How the campaign was won

The Ian Potter Foundation for the Reef Life Survey in Tasmania.

• Read their case study