In 2016, we provided the Seed Indigenous Youth Climate Network (Seed) with one of its first grants, enabling the network to invest in growing their base of support. Seed plays a critical role in Australia’s climate justice movement as the country’s first Indigenous-led organisation working to engage young Indigenous people in developing and leading solutions to the climate crisis.

Australians hold the record for the highest gambling spending per person globally, with a disproportionate impact on low-income earners. In 2015, we backed the establishment of the Alliance for Gambling Reform (AGR), which united long-term gambling reform advocates to bolster and grow their efforts. AGR champions regulations and policies to prevent and reduce gambling harm. Now with over 60 members, including local governments, churches, and organisations formed by people affected by gambling, AGR’s impact continues to grow. 

Watch their story: Changing the Rules: Reducing Inequality

In 2018, the Reichstein Foundation provided early support to get ACOSS’ Raise the Rate campaign off the ground. The campaign tackles poverty and inequality by raising the rate of Jobseeker and Youth Allowance payments. Throughout the campaign ACOSS ensured that people on low incomes were directly involved in policy, strategy and advocacy. Over five years the campaign has secured around $9.5 billion in additional social support for people on the lowest incomes. 

In the early 1990’s the Reichstein Foundation took a chance on the newly launched Victorian Environmental Defenders Office (EDO), now known as Environmental Justice Australia (EJA), and provided the organisation with the funding needed to launch its strategic litigation and legal advocacy work. Now, 30 years on, EJA is one of Australia’s strongest climate justice advocates, using the law to protect nature and safeguard the environment. Our commitment to EJA has remained strong, and in 2014, when the EDO refined its approach and relaunched as EJA, we stuck by their side and provided support to help them through the transition.

In 1982, we provided vital funding to get The Koori Health Worker Training Program off the ground. The program, one of the first of its kind in Australia, enabled First Nations community members to receive basic healthcare training through a partnership with the University of Melbourne. Upon returning to their communities’ program participants acted as liaisons between community members and healthcare providers, creating better access to – and trust in – formal medical services. We’re proud to have supported the program’s inception, enabling First Nations community members to bridge the gap in healthcare access.

For decades the Reichstein Foundation has been backing organisations fighting on the frontlines for LGBTIQ+ rights and equality. And in 2017 the tireless endeavors of LGBTQ+ rights advocates across Australia, including a number of our grant partners, yielded a historic outcome – enshrining the right for same-sex couples to marry into law. The Reichstein Foundation put considerable resources into the YES campaign, and also helped to coordinate a collective response from foundations and private donors in support of marriage equality. 

Tom Snow from YES central, wrote that, ‘Quite simply, this result would not have happened without philanthropy. It has been critical.’

In 2021, we backed the Hands Off Our Charities Alliance, which has since become the Stronger Charities Alliance. The coalition, comprising over 120 charities under the coordination of the Australian Democracy Network, strives to safeguard the ability for not-for-profits to engage in advocacy. After years of dedicated campaigning, the alliance achieved a significant victory by successfully bringing down legislation that could have given the government authority to shut down charities engaged in advocacy. This achievement proved crucial in preserving civil society, free speech, and the integrity of our democracy.

In 2013, the Flemington & Kensington Community Legal Centre settled a landmark racial profiling suit against Victoria Police, forcing them to review their training and field practices to put an end to racial profiling and discrimination. The Reichstein Foundation provided the legal team with the resources they needed to carry out in-depth research and data analysis, which formed the basis of evidence for their litigation. 

“We turned to Reichstein in our hour of need. It was one minute to midnight. Without that funding, we would have had to withdraw from the case. When it truly mattered, they were there.” – Peter Seidel, Arnold Bloch Leibler’s and lead litigator on the case. 

Watch their story: Changing The Rules Doing Social Justice Philanthropy 

In 2018, our support played a pivotal role in the Australian Marine Conservation Society’s (AMCS) efforts to safeguard the Great Barrier Reef against further degradation and hold the Australian and Queensland Governments accountable for its rejuvenation. AMCS focused on advocating for a revision to the UNESCO World Heritage climate change policy, overseen by the UN’s World Heritage Committee.  This action prompted a notice to the governments that without intervention the reef could be added to the Committee’s endangered list, resulting in reputational damage and tourism decline. The governments were compelled to oversee a comprehensive management plan aimed at restoring the Reef’s vitality. 

In 2008, we provided support to the Yorta Yorta Nation and Friends of the Earth to establish the co-managed Barmah-Millewa National Park. This move, recognized as one of Australia’s Top 50 Philanthropic Gifts, ensured that the Yorta Yorta Nation had the management rights they needed to protect and govern their ancestral land. With other partners, a total of $180,000 was invested into creating 200,000 hectares of new red gum conservation areas and national parks, including a ban on logging and cattle grazing in these areas. 

Read more about the other big wins we’ve helped make possible in our annual reports below.