Topical Issues: Major Donations
Each year in Australia there are a handful of major philanthropic donations. These donations appear relatively prominently in the media, usually for a limited time.
On this page our aim is to gather all the information we can find on the individual donations at the time, providing somewhere you can go to find out the basics of the situation, and find links to further commentary and information.
Due to the comparatively brief coverage by the media of these major donations, information on them tends to not be updated beyond around a month after they occur. Dates have been provided to give you an idea of when information were last added.
The most recent donation is listed at the top.
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26 October, 2009 |
Swinburne awarded $4.4 million for groundbreaking research Swinburne University of Technology has been awarded $4.4 million from the Australian Research Council (ARC) to fund 13 innovative, high-quality research projects. The funding, administered through the ARC's National Competitive Grants Program, was announced today by the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr. |
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17 August, 2009 |
$4.7 million bequeathed to University of Melbourne A gift of $4.7 million - the residual estate of two farming brothers from Seymour - has been presented to the University of Melbourne.
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29 July, 2009 |
Major Atlantic Philanthropies donations in Australia The Atlantic Philanthropies, founded by Charles 'Chuck' Feeney, has announced major donations totalling A$102.5M to three Australian institutions - Brisbane's Translational Research Institute, located at the Princess Alexandra Hospital ($50M), Queensland Institute of Medical Research ($27.5M), and Queensland University of Technology ($25M). Reported in the 'Australian Financial Review' yesterday, 28 July 2009, The Atlantic Philanthropies has been working with federal and state governments to secure matched funding, resulting in a remarkable public-private partnership. With this new grant, The Altantic Philanthropies has donated in excess of $500M to Australian institutions, mainly in Queensland and Victoria, going largely to medical research. The Altantic Philanthropies are committed to spending down their entire endowment by 2020, granting approximately US$350M per annum till 2016. They fund in ageing; children & youth; population health; and reconciliation & human rights - in the following countries: Australia, Bermuda, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United States and Viet Nam. |
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9 June, 2009 |
$5 million gift from Betty Amsden to the Victorian Arts Centre Melbourne benefactor Miss Betty Amsden OAM has made a $5 million donation to the performing arts with a major endowment to the Arts Centre, establishing the Betty Amsden Arts Education Endowment for Children. |
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22nd May, 2008 |
Smorgons donate $15m to NGV Loti and Victor Smorgon have donated $15 million to the National Gallery of Victoria - the largest ever cash donation from an individual to an Australian art museum. The donation is part of the |
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3rd April, 2008 |
$35m collection given to Art Gallery of NSW by John Kaldor The collection, which has been built up by the prominent Australian art patron John Kaldor over 50 years, contains 260 works by a who's who of contemporary artists. |
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13th Feb, 2008 |
$6m gift to National Gallery of Victoria from Allan Myers Lawyer Allan Myers, QC, who is a long-time supporter of the NGV & president of its trustees since 2004, has given the gallery its biggest ever cash donation - $6 million towards a new fund for buying Asian art. |
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29/01/08 |
Clive Palmer pledges $100m for WA Medical Research Clive Palmer, a mining magnate, has pledged $100 million from his company to establish a new foundation for medical research in WA and for support of indigenous communities in the Pilbara. He is Chairman of Mineralogy Pty Ltd and of Austeel, and is also adjunct professor in business and law at Deakin Uni. |
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19/10/07 |
The Pauline Gandel Women's Imaging Centre Pauline Gandel, co-founder of the Gandel Charitable Trust, recently pledged a gift of $1 million to the Royal Women's Hospital to assist with the purchase of the first-ever MRI machine dedicated solely to women's healthcare. (June 2007) |
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21/09/07 |
Andrew Forrest donates $80 million Billionaire mining magnate Andrew Forrest (of Fortescue Metals Group & Poseidon Nickel Ltd) has donated $80 million in options and shares to a charitable trust he started with his wife. The Australian Children's Trust helps underprivileged children. |
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05/09/07 |
Arts Philanthropy In the week beginning September 3, 2007, a number of major donations were made to arts institutions in Australia. |
