Community Foundations Australia
- Project: Capacity development for community foundations in Victoria
- Amount: $1,000,000 over three years
- Year(s) Funded: 2025
Capacity development for community foundations in Victoria
Building the capacity of community philanthropy across Victoria.
Community foundations are a powerful mechanism for enabling local communities to take charge of their future, mobilising resources, fostering collaboration and creating meaningful, place-based impact. First-hand knowledge of local issues allows community foundations to support, protect, and nurture the communities from which they’ve grown.
Community Foundations Australia is the national support organisation for community foundations. In response to the rapidly growing network of community philanthropy in Australia, Community Foundations Australia launched the ‘Field Catalyst Fund’. Established in early 2025, the Field Catalyst Fund provides the opportunity for diverse actors from within the wider field, including private and public funders, local leaders and change-makers, to pool funding, share learning, and coordinate collective action.
What’s most exciting is how Victorian community foundations are stepping into their collective strength, self-organising around shared priorities, experimenting with new collaborations, and building the capacity of communities to lead with confidence. Our partnership with Helen Macpherson Smith Trust has given this network the scaffolding to accelerate what was already emerging: a vibrant ecosystem of community philanthropy in Victoria that is connected locally, aligned across the state, and contributing to the global conversation about how communities govern their future.
Ian Bird, CEO
”The Fund is grounded in the belief that community philanthropy is a powerful model for locally led development, one that strengthens community capacity and voice, builds trust, and mobilises local resources. By fostering local ownership, governance and accountability, community philanthropy has been shown to deliver deeper, more enduring outcomes.
The Field Catalyst Fund aims to invest in shared infrastructure, convene community partnerships, and facilitate knowledge exchange with the objective of accelerating the community foundation movement.
Funding from Helen Macpherson Smith Trust supports community foundations in Victoria, enabling long-term, place-based change through strategic investment in locally led development. By supporting the Field Catalyst Fund, the Trust is helping to create the conditions for a thriving community ecosystem. One that fosters collaboration, local leadership, and sustainable development.
Learn more about the Field Catalyst Fund by visiting cfaustralia.org.au