Philanthropy, systems and change – The Australian Centre for Social Innovation

A collection of stories and tools aimed to support foundations in growing the mindsets, behaviours and practice that enable systems change.

The world is changing at an unprecedented pace. Our economy is restructuring, technology is disrupting the way we live and work, our population is ageing and the disparity between the haves and have-nots is growing. We have an opportunity to determine what that future looks like, but the window is closing. There has never been a more important time for philanthropy to make bold moves towards changing the world for the better.

During a recent philanthropic retreat, hosted by The Fay Fuller Foundation in South Australia and facilitated by the Global Social Innovation Exchange (SIX), a small breakout group explored the nuances for philanthropy in this changing landscape. There was a sense that some were stable and committed in their primary role as funders, while others were starting to assume additional roles to support change in systems. What quickly emerged was a spectrum of roles, all valid, important and different.

This work, taken forward by The Australian Centre for Social Innovation, Perpetual, Dusseldorp Forum and the Paul Ramsay Foundation, seeks to build on that conversation. It is not a “how-to” guide for systems change, it is a starting point for foundations who are interested in exploring how their own internal conditions align with their ambitions to create the big changes needed across many aspects of our society.

Whilst this work was centred around the role of Philanthropy, Carolyn Curtis, CEO at The Australian Centre for Social Innovation believes the themes are relevant to all people with an aspiration to operate in more systemic ways.