Sectors we support
The Foundation supports arts organisations across a broad range of activities, particularly those that help young people build their skills, knowledge and appreciation of the arts. In particular we support programs that help young people from disadvantaged communities access arts education and training.
The Song Room, Australia
The Song Room provides music and arts programs in Australian schools and communities with a focus on students disadvantaged through isolation, disability, recent immigration and financial difficulty. The Macquarie Group Foundation supported this innovative program from 2008-2010, run in Victoria and New South Wales, and has so far reached more than 150,000 children. Foundation funding was used to fund internationally significant research demonstrating the impact of an arts-based intervention on school attendance, academic achievement by the equivalent of 1 year improvement in NAPLAN compared to equivalent schools, as well as enhanced social and emotional wellbeing. The report was launched in Canberra in 2011 by The Hon Minister Peter Garrett AM MP at Parliament House along with 50 fellow MPs and educational leaders. Macquarie Executive Director Richard Price serves on the organisation’s Board.
National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), Australia
The NGV is one of Australia's leading galleries, with history dating back to 1861. With more than two million visitors a year, the NGV ranks as one of the 20 most popular art museums in the world, with a particular focus on supporting contemporary Australian art.
The Macquarie Group Foundation has a long standing involvement with the NGV. Projects we have supported include the Contemporary Projects Gallery, a range of innovative and challenging contemporary art exhibitions, the Macquarie Series, which showcases prominent Australian contemporary art with an emphasis on design and sculpture, and in 2011, an exhibition of works by Victoria’s most important colonial landscape painter, Eugene von Guérard. Eugene von Guérard: Nature Revealed features more than 150 works in the first exhibition dedicated to the artist since 1980. Eugene von Guérard: Nature Revealed explores the beauty, technical skill, and magnificent scale of understanding Eugene von Guérard had for the Australian landscape, bringing together works from all corners of Australia, some of them never seen outside of family homes.
Australian Business Arts Foundation (AbaF), Australia
AbaF promotes private sector support for the arts, working with the business sector, the arts and cultural sector, the philanthropic sector and local councils. Its role is to connect business, the arts, donors and foundations through three programs - Partnering, Volunteering and Giving.
The Macquarie Group Foundation has been a leading supporter of AbaF since its inception in 2000. The Foundation has recently entered a partnership to provide support to the Australian Cultural Fund. This fund is a unique facility which accepts cash donations from individuals, businesses, trusts and foundations and distributes grants to develop Australian culture and support Australian artists.
Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Australia
Over the past 50 years, the Canberra Symphony Orchestra has evolved from a community group into a professional, part-time orchestra. It has close links with the Australian National University's School of Music and many of its principal players are music lecturers and sectional heads of departments with excellent reputations around Australia and the world.
Macquarie supports Noteworthy, the Orchestra's schools-based music education program, which is designed to support and enhance music appreciation for children aged from 3 to 15 years. The Noteworthy program offers free, age-appropriate, interactive concerts; workshops and teaching kits for staff, and workbooks for students.
Bell Shakespeare
Bell Shakespeare performs the Bard's work all over Australia to audiences of all ages. Its flagship education program Actors at Work reaches more than 80,000 students across Australia each year. Three teams of four actors tour schools to deliver a one-hour performance of scenes of Shakespeare's plays with minimal sets and props. Students have the opportunity to see and interact with professional actors and explore themes inherent in the works. The Macquarie Group Foundation has provided funding to Actors at Work since its inception in 2002.
Other arts initiatives
Other arts programs supported by the Foundation and our staff include:
- Opera Australia
- The Commonwealth Foundation
- National Portrait Gallery
- National Gallery of Australia
- Australian Chamber Orchestra
The Foundation supports education programs that motivate and challenge. Our education partnerships include reading and literacy programs for disadvantaged children and their families, life skills, leadership camps and advanced tertiary education programs and scholarships for gifted students.
Cape York Institute's Higher Expectations Program (HEP), Australia
HEP was established to encourage students in remote indigenous communities to pursue tertiary education. It is part of the Cape York Institute's plan to build a self-sufficient economy and community in the Cape, by aiming to increase the number of students who complete Year 12 and continue to study.
In a major education partnership, the Foundation has contributed almost $A4 million to the program, enabling Cape York students to attend select Queensland boarding schools and giving them a greater chance to qualify for tertiary study. In addition to funding tuition, the partnership enables HEP staff to work closely with families, communities and schools to support the students involved. The Foundation and Macquarie staff have also provided in-kind support through computers and mentoring.
Big Buddy Reading
Beginning with a small number of staff visiting an inner-city school in Sydney and reading to students during their lunch hour, the Big Buddy Reading program has grown to include schools in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, London, Toronto, New York and Hong Kong.
The 'Little Buddies' (students) who take part are identified as requiring extra assistance with their reading and comprehension and are matched with two Macquarie 'Big Buddies'. Each week one of these Big Buddies attends the reading session at the school. The basis of the program is to not only assist students with their reading skills but to foster in them a love of books and reading.
Macquarie Trading Room at Bond University, Australia
A simulated trading room has been developed at Bond University, with funding from the Macquarie Group Foundation and Macquarie Capital. The trading room gives Finance and Commerce students practical experience in executing deals and managing portfolios. Bond University has worked closely with Macquarie to ensure the trading room is the leading facility of its type in Australia, using the same data and technology as financial institutions around the world.
The trading room features state-of-the-art computer systems with dual screen technology and a data screen wall projecting a live feed, with price movements continually displayed on an overhead ticker. Macquarie IT staff worked with Bond University staff for six months to ensure the trading room replicated real life trading conditions and complemented the existing curriculum.
Other education initiatives
Other education programs supported by the Foundation and Macquarie staff include:
- Duke of Edinburgh Awards
- Outward Bound Australia
- The Prince's Trust (UK)
- Centre for Independent Studies
- Australian American Education Leadership Foundation
- Australian Science Media Centre
- AFS Intercultural Programs
The Foundation supports a number of environmental initiatives, including bushland preservation, wildlife conservation, water management, and environmental education and research programs.
Greening Australia
Established in 1982, Greening Australia is the country's largest environmental organisation. Greening Australia focuses on environmental issues such as salinity, declining water quality, soil degradation, climate change and biodiversity loss through combination of practical experience, science and community engagement. The Macquarie Group Foundation has made a three-year commitment to fund the River Recovery Program, which aims to restore the health and productivity of Australia's key waterways. Greening Australia works with leading scientists and community groups to rehabilitate river systems across Australia.
Surf Lifesaving, Australia
The Macquarie Group Foundation's five-year partnership with Surf Life Saving Australia was formed to train the country's 34,000 active surf lifesavers and improve safety for the beach-going public. We have contributed $A1 million to establish the Macquarie Group Foundation Surf Lifesavers Training Fund, as part of a $A20 million fundraising drive undertaken by Surf Life Saving Australia in its centenary year.
The fund will ensure Australia's surf lifesavers have access to the latest training techniques and specialised equipment, such as specialised mannequins and computerised rescue scenarios. In the initial phase, it will enable all Australian surf lifesavers to receive training in newly approved international resuscitation guidelines, one of the biggest retraining programs of the past decade. It will also help recruit and train new lifesavers, and provide courses to increase the base of accredited trainers.
Australian Museum's 
Lizard Island Research Station, Australia
The Australian Museum's Lizard Island Research Station forms part of a network of research stations along Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Established in 1973, it attracts marine researchers from around the world.
As part of its 30th anniversary in 2003, the centre embarked on a major redevelopment to better accommodate the increasing number of scientists using the facility. The Macquarie Group Foundation committed four years' funding to the project, including the construction of the Macquarie Education Centre. Completed in mid 2006, the education centre will accommodate high school and university student groups, run daily lectures and host seminar series where scientists can share their latest research findings.
The Foundation has also provided funding for the purchase and operation of two boats, to assist in the island's education activities. The boats, Macquarie I and Macquarie II, will transport student groups easily to various sites around Lizard Island.
Bush Heritage Australia
Bush Heritage Australia is a national organisation that protects Australia's unique animals and plants and their habitats. Since 1990 Bush Heritage has managed a network of conservation reserves across Australia. Threatened wildlife and natural ecosystems are safeguarded on these reserves.
The Macquarie Group Foundation and several staff members have contributed to the purchase and protection of the largest of these reserves, the Charles Darwin Reserve. It is a 68,000 hectare property in Western Australia, home to many rare and threatened animals as well as fragile woodlands and shrublands. The Foundation also funded an ecological outcomes monitoring project on several reserve areas across Australia. This has led to improvement of the Bush Heritage ecological and property web-based information system.
Steve Irwin Fellowship, Australia
The Steve Irwin Fellowship was developed by the Australian Consulate-General in Chicago, in conjunction with the John G. Shedd Aquarium, with funding from the Macquarie Group Foundation. The Fellowship is a tribute to Steve Irwin's work in the area of animal and wildlife conservation.
The inaugural winner of the Fellowship is Chicago teenager Matt Basile. As part of the fellowship, Matt travelled to Australia for two weeks to work closely with staff at Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo in Queensland and Australia's historical Taronga Zoo in Sydney.
Other environmental initiatives
Other environmental programs supported by the Foundation and our staff include:
- National Parks Association of NSW
- Historic Houses Trust
- Earthwatch Institute
- Australian Maritime College
- Coastguard Northern Region (NZ)
- Perth Zoo
- Birds Australia
- RSPCA
The Foundation supports many initiatives in health care and medical research, with a key focus on health research community. We recognise the achievements of researchers and help them develop their work to benefit our communities.
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), Australia
Australia has one of the highest rates of type 1 diabetes in the world and, with no current cure, research into the disease is vital. Macquarie staff have been long-term supporters of JDRF through staff volunteering, direct support, fundraising initiatives and participation in events such as the Walk and Ride to Cure Diabetes. Macquarie's Australian staff have twice won JDRF's Freedom Award (in 2007 and joint winners in 2009) for the highest corporate fundraising contribution for the organisation.
The Macquarie Group Foundation's diabetes research partnership with JDRF aims to significantly increase the volume and impact of type 1 diabetes research and to support and recognise innovation in research programs.
National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre (NBOCC), Australia
NBOCC helps women with breast or ovarian cancer understand their diagnosis, treatment and support options. Its many education campaigns help raise community awareness about a range of breast and ovarian cancer issues. The centre also helps the medical profession deliver the best possible care through specialised training programs and resources to improve the skills and knowledge of health professionals.
The Macquarie Group Foundation has been a long-term supporter of breast cancer research and is the Principal Supporter of the Annual Pink Ribbon Breakfast. NBOCC's flagship event brings together leaders in the health, political and corporate arena to work together to reduce breast cancer mortality, to improve outcomes for sufferers and to broaden awareness and education of breast cancer issues.
Cure Cancer Australia
Cure Cancer Australia has provided funding for cancer and leukaemia research programs for more than 35 years. Cure Cancer Australia aims to be Australia's leading independent foundation for cancer research - funding the critical early work of researchers searching for cures for cancers.
In association with Cure Cancer Australia, the Macquarie Group Fellowship in Cancer Research was established in memory of Macquarie staff who have been lost to cancer. The fellowship is awarded each year to an outstanding researcher in a particular field of cancer research. The award provides a foundation on which recipients can develop their research, progress their career and cement their position in the cancer research community.
Can Too, a program that enables people to train for major endurance events such as while raising money for cancer research, has raised over $A6 million as at February 2011. Established with a $75,000 grant from the Macquarie Group Foundation and ongoing funding to underpin core operational expenditure, Can Too has become Cure Cancer Australia's biggest fundraiser.
Schizophrenia Research Institute, Australia
Professor Cynthia Shannon Weickert was recruited from the National Institute of Mental Health in the US to take up Australia's first Chair of Schizophrenia Research. The position brings together three of Australia's leading research organisations - the Schizophrenia Research Institute, the University of NSW and the Prince of Wales Medical Research Centre - with additional funding from the NSW Government and the Macquarie Group Foundation. It has been named the Macquarie Group Foundation Chair of Schizophrenia.
The Professor's appointment positions Australia to take a leading role in schizophrenia research internationally and develop links with the US research community. The Macquarie Group Foundation has provided support to the Schizophrenia Research Institute since 2002, while Macquarie Executive Director Peter Maher serves as the Institute's Chairman.
Murdoch Childrens Research Institute
The Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (MCRI) discovers ways to prevent and treat conditions affecting babies, children and adolescents. MCRI conducts research into most of the significant health issues affecting children, including allergies, asthma, cancer, cerebral palsy, obesity, infectious disease, premature birth and genetic conditions, and it's work has national and international reach.
The National Health and Medical Research Council has identified that clinical research is largely undeveloped in Australia and that developing and funding clinical research is a national priority. The Macquarie Group Foundation has provided capacity building funding to MCRI to establish a new Clinical Research Development Office.
Other health initiatives
Other health programs supported by the Foundation and our staff include:
- National Heart Foundation
- Fragile X Association
- Queensland Institute of Medical Research
- Alzheimer's Australia
- Cambridge Memorial Hospital (Canada)
- Diabetes UK
- Children's Hospital Westmead (NSW)
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research
- Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital (UK)
- Royal Flying Doctor Services
- Bionic Ear Institute
- Trinity House Hospice (UK)
- MS Research Australia
Macquarie Sports runs sporting clinics and associated programs for more than 8000 children each year in sports including rugby league, rugby union, cricket, netball, basketball and AFL, using major sporting identities as both coaches and role models.
The programs aim to enhance the fitness and well-being of young people, by providing positive role models to inspire and motivate young people to strive to do their best.
Funded by the Macquarie Group Foundation and business groups within Macquarie Group, Macquarie Sports also works closely with schools, clubs, government bodies, not-for-profit organisations and state and national sporting bodies to enhance their resources and ensure the programs are delivered to the highest standards.
Macquarie Sports 2010/11 Highlights video
2011 Macquarie sports and Brumbies Rugby Super Clinic.
The Foundation supports a diverse range of welfare initiatives, focusing on communities in which our staff live and work. We support programs that seek to improve the quality of life and develop opportunities for disadvantaged communities.
Mission Australia
For more than 150 years, Mission Australia's vision has been to help disadvantaged people and communities. Its services centre around family support, youth initiatives for disadvantaged young people, housing, employment and training initiatives for homeless people and those at risk of homelessness.
The Macquarie Group Foundation established a major partnership with Mission Australia in 2003 to assist research into key social issues confronting Australian society. The core component of the partnership is to fund the Research and Social Policy Unit. This research guides Mission Australia's policy development, ensuring its employment programs and community services continue to deliver to those most in need. Our contribution also allows Mission Australia to redirect money into providing better community services.
Inspire Foundation, Australia, USA, Ireland
The Inspire Foundation was formed in 1996 in response to Australia's then escalating rates of youth suicide. It offers three national programs:
- Reach Out provides information and support to help young people get through tough times
- Beanbag partners with youth centres around Australia to provide educational, employment and social opportunities for disadvantaged youth
- ActNow provides resources and skills to help young people take action on the social issues that affect them and their community.
With four million visits since its launch in 1998, Reach Out has contributed to a 40 per cent reduction in youth suicide rates over that period. Despite this success, it is estimated that two-thirds of people aged 17-21 don't yet know of Reach Out's existence. The Macquarie Group Foundation has provided three years funding to launch a national schools program, making Reach Out available to more than 100,000 students and building a greater awareness of the service among teenagers, teachers and school counsellors.
The Foundation has also recently provided funding to help launch Inspire's Reach Out program in the US.
Youngcare, Australia
In Australia, more than 6,500 young people with chronic illness or injury live in aged-care facilities because there is no alternative care option. Now, Australian organisation Youngcare is pioneering a solution that is gaining international attention. It has built Australia's first nursing home specifically designed for young people with high care needs, with three years' funding support from the Macquarie Group Foundation.
David Conry established Youngcare in 2005 when his wife’s multiple sclerosis progressed to the point where she needed 24-hour care. Located in Brisbane, the 14 apartments have large bedrooms and living areas, as well as kitchen facilities for family and friends to use. There is a communal area for residents to get together, 24-hour specialist care and two additional apartments set aside for visiting families.
Other welfare initiatives
Other welfare programs supported by the Foundation and our staff include:
- Canadian Red Cross
- Caritas Australia, CARE International
- Youth Off The Streets
- Opportunity International
- Make a Wish Foundation
- Mirabel
- Pathways Foundation
- Riding for the Disabled (Hong Kong)
- Singapore Red Cross
- Lifeline WA