Social Impact Projects
Facilitating connection and social change.
I'm driven by collaborative, purposeful thinking and action that leads to tangible impact and social change.
From growing up in a family that fostered children to volunteering in a male juvenile prison and travelling to the Sahara desert to donate a goat to a women's refuge in Morocco, contributing to the wider community is part of my DNA.
These are the current projects I'm supporting and why.
The Man cave
I have seen first-hand the impacts of mental illness and domestic violence on our community. As the single parent of a little boy, I want to see healthy masculinity become the norm, and fast. That’s why I invest and support preventative programs like The Man Cave.
The Man Cave’s school programs aim to give young men the permission and skills to lead happier and healthier lives through positive mental health, respectful relationships and gender equality.
I’m proud to be working with CEO Hunter Johnson, who was named 2018 Queen’s Young Leader by Her Majesty The Queen, on a social research project exploring the impact of social media on the mental health of our boys.
FLOURISH GIRL
As a teenage girl, life was just ‘ok’. Not really knowing how to deal with boys, periods, body image and peer groups, I fumbled my way through high school not really knowing who being ‘me’ truly was.
Flourish Girl believe that in order for girls to flourish into confident, authentic and connected young women, there needs to be different journey to womanhood that includes deep behavioural work.
I believe our education system lacks this integral support and space for young girls and as a community, we need to do better for the next generation of girls.
I’m proud to be the first female donor of Flourish Girl, a non-profit organisation who brings empowering programs to girls in schools around Australia.
Visibility Co
After losing myself in a break-up marriage and the early days of motherhood, I re-emerged knowing I wanted to live a more purposeful life.
Working with the team at Visibility Co, I was able to unlock my potential and forge a new path towards meaningful impact, and came to see the power of supporting other women to do the same.
That’s why I’m supporting Visibility Co by mentoring other high-potential women and championing the Visibility methodology, which combines purpose, leadership, strategy and communications to accelerate change for a better world.
The Business Chicks Leadership Gathering
In 2018, I experienced a life-changing stay on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island as a member of the Business Chicks Leadership Gathering, which brings together social changemakers from around the world and inspires them to disrupt and innovate to make an impact.
This experience included meeting some of the women from Necker Island, and hearing stories of heartbreaking abuse. I was galvanised to help where I could, joining forces with Business Chicks founder, Emma Isaacs and her team, to help build a domestic violence refuge for women in the Caribbean.
Philanthropy is not about the money. It's about using whatevever resources you have at your fingertips and applying them to improve the world.
— Melinda Gates