On untied giving and supporting Australian creatives

I came from a family who were comfortable but by no means wealthy. My parents were always very community minded, did a lot of volunteering and while we were growing up donated what they could, which probably wasn’t a large amount. In later years, their giving increased, and they took great interest in the organisations they donated to. There was no question as children that we were all part of something bigger and that we needed to participate in a broader world. I'm one of three sisters and each of us took away the understanding that it's not just about us. Also, the things that I give to—like music, writing and the arts—were cherished by my family.

I'm driven by the need to support creative people in Australia who have such a tough time. We are not a country that is particularly supportive of musicians or writers, which tend to be the two things I support the most. It's a real struggle to be a creative person in this country and to make any kind of living. I think these people are critical to helping us understand who we are. They entertain us, delight us, challenge us, educate us, transport us, and they add a whole dimension to our lives which we couldn't do without.

I give in various ways. I give to organisations but have also created my own fellowship, from a small inheritance from my parents, that sends writers to festivals and writers’ retreats/residencies overseas. It’s a private program that I now work on with other philanthropists via The Australian Cultural Fund [operated by federal government agency Creative Australia] which is a terrific organisation which I’m not sure how many people know of. The aim of these fellowships is to give Australian writers an international platform on which to perform, sell their books or rights, create audiences and meet other writers. It’s a way of saying thank you for what they do.

I also give directly to other organisations that focus on things I’m particularly attached to, like music and writing organisations. There are some medical issues in my extended family so I give to organisations relevant to those as well.

I ran a not-for-profit organisation for about four years which received no government funding. I know what it takes to work with volunteers and to worry about whether you can get the money in the door from donations to fund the work you do, or whether you can pay the salaries to keep things going. As a result, I generally don’t restrict my giving to organisations for specific purposes. If money needs to be spent on administration or the photocopier, spend it on administration or the photocopier. I get it.

With the writers’ fellowship program I’ve established for Australian writers I try to make it as simple as possible for the writer. They must attend and perform at the festival as per the festival invitation but beyond that, if the individual writer feels there are more appropriate opportunities for them (in addition to the festival and beyond the writers’ residency program available) such as further research or travel or finding a place to write for however long the funds last, so be it. It’s their choice and I encourage them to do what suits them best.

This program is my way of saying, ‘Thank you for doing what you do. It really matters to me and I want you to have a fruitful and useful time, feeding your brain and using the funding in the way that helps you most with the work you are doing.’

I also tend to support organisations for a long time, which I think is important.

Finally, I’m a big believer that if you join the board of an NFP, you have to give. Your time can be valuable but the organisations I support need more than time from board members. They need money. I’ve yet to find one for which this isn’t true.

Finances allowing, I hope I will be able to spend more time and money on things I believe in. Everyone who gives knows it’s a two-way street - when I think about the projects and organisations I support, I not only think of their need but of the delight it gives me to help.

The other thing I’m mulling over is whether I might revive the philanthropic literary travel company, Ponder & See, my husband and I started several years ago but took a necessary break during Covid. When I left my last executive role in publishing we started taking interested readers to writers’ festivals globally. We donated our time and gave what would have been a profit margin to the festivals or to fund writers to come with us. It was an enjoyable way to get other philanthropically-minded readers to give more funds to writers via entertaining and thoughtful travel. If we do restart the venture, and our previous customers seem to want us to, we’ll think about other ways to attract more philanthropy to the projects and potentially incorporate appropriate payments via the Australian Cultural Fund. If anyone reading this is interested in ensuring Australia continues to have a writing culture and would like to know more about what I’m doing, please get in touch.