Diversity, inclusivity and accessibility are themes that underpin WA-based collective giving group, 100 Women. Celebrating its 10th birthday in 2024, 100 Women has had more than 500 members and has contributed $1.26 million over the last decade.
100 Women co-founder, Alicia Curtis, says the giving circle’s success comes down to a shared belief that when it comes to creating change, “We are so much stronger together.”
It’s a belief that has shaped Alicia’s personal and professional life since being chosen to attend the first United Nations International Children’s Conference as a child.
“Here I was as a 12-year-old, sitting in a room with 800 kids from 90 different countries,” she says. “You quickly realise we're all human, we all want the same things for our families and communities.”
“Once you’ve experienced what diversity brings into a room, into discussions, into decision making, you never go back. You want to bring that into everything you do and that’s exactly what we’re aiming for at 100 Women.”
I noticed there weren’t many funding opportunities available in Western Australia or in Australia for projects that supported women and girls, and it got me interested in funding sources.
At the same time, I read the international bestseller Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn that looked at how women around the world were still without basic access to health, education, economic opportunities and safety. These stories had me in tears. I thought to myself, how can we get more diversity in leadership when half the population can’t access those basic things?
I knew I had to do something. There were organisations out there doing amazing work but they needed funding. So, I started talking with my girlfriends and I remember saying, “I’m sure we know 100 women who could come together and give a small amount of money and direct where it goes. Wouldn't that be amazing?”
We put it out there and gathered a committee to pull the idea together. Six months later we launched, and within another eight months we gave away our first $100,000, and that’s continued ever since.
When we started, there was this stereotype of who could be a philanthropist, and it did look like rich and famous businessmen. There weren't many local examples of women or young people in philanthropy. So, it's nice to see that change and shift, especially in WA.
How have we evolved? We’ve grown and we continue to challenge the stereotypes of who can be involved in philanthropy. We want to engage people who perhaps haven’t traditionally been involved before. We want to make sure that our giving is inclusive, that we engage men in this journey too, that LGBTQA+, women living with disability and First Nations and culturally diverse women feel included. We want to be the most diverse, most accessible and inclusive giving circle we can be.
100 Women is for people who are interested in change and want to give back in a tangible way. Our inaugural committee was driven mostly by women in their late 20s and early 30s. I think about half of our membership was under 40 for our first five years, and that’s broadened now. It’s wonderful to bring together people from all different generations and backgrounds for a common purpose. It's hard to describe a typical member because they do come from diverse backgrounds and sectors, bringing unique knowledge and perspectives.
In terms of how the model works, 100% of member donations go into our annual grant fund so that we can award multiple charities each year with up to $50,000 each to positively impact the lives of women and girls locally, and internationally. We have a committee, made up of members, to lead our grant making process. They take all the applications we receive to create a shortlist that is then voted on by our members.
We’ve just released our 10 Years of Impact report and in our first decade we have distributed $1.26 million to 39 projects with 37,100 women and girls positively impacted.
We've supported women and girls here in Australia, but also internationally too. We’ve always been global thinkers in that we want to create change wherever it's most needed, but always around education, health, safety and economic opportunities. The ripple effects of these outcomes are massive too, as we know when you invest in women, she invests back into her family and community.
Our learning curve has been steep, and we continue to be curious about what it means to be a good giver. You've got to have knowledge about the issues and the social change process. Our grant recipients are the real heroes! Their leadership and action to improve equality is inspiring and it’s an honour to be able to support their work.
When you're coming together as a community and giving as a community, there's something really different about that. It’s powerful. It not only unlocks funding but also awareness about the challenges. We empower our members to use their voices as well as their funds to make a difference.
I think we've only touched the surface of what collective giving can look like in Australia. We're keen to take what we've learned here in WA and build a national giving platform that encourages men and women who want to see change in gender equity.
People want to make a difference. It’s about not waiting for someone else to come and fix the problems but being part of the change-making process. We want to collaborate with communities, and with business and governments who want to empower people to be the change.
We want to keep growing our impact and the ways we collaborate with our grant recipients and keep building our capacity. There are so many people behind this amazing organisation. We’ve had more than 500 members over the last 10 years - all these incredible people who have come together, our members, our volunteers, our grant making committees. There's a huge number of people behind this organisation, and that's the pure joy of it.
Interview was conducted with Alicia Curtis from 100 women
