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Topical Issues: VICTORIAN BUSHFIRES 2009

Late on Saturday February 7 amidst record temperatures and a prolonged heatwave, several firestorms merged and raged across the state of Victoria, culminating in Australia's worst natural disaster in recorded history. The fires were catastrophic, covering over 400,000 hectares and leaving behind 173 confirmed fatalities, hundreds injured, and over 7,000 homeless. Countless wildlife have also been destroyed and as of February 19, several of these fires were still burning out of control in many areas of Victoria. Humanitarian responses to the fires have come quickly with over $330 million raised for the 'Victorian Bushfire Relief Fund 2009' on top of the corporate and goverment donations, but with the physical and psychological trauma expected to last many years in the bushfire affected communities the need for aid is far from over.

Recent News

Recent News
Date	News

9 February 2010	FRRR 2009 Victorian Bushfires - Progress Update The Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal have provided an update on their collaborative and coordinated philanthropic response to the 2009 Victorian bushfires, based on FRRRs experience as grantmaker in rural and regional Australia, as a provider of programs post natural disaster events and based on knowledge and experience of collaborative grants programs on behalf of a large number of partners. Download the FRRR Bushfires Update for full project details (PDF)
18 August 2009	Victorian Bushfire - tax amendments and interim reports The Assistant Treasurer, Senator Nick Sherry, and the Hon Bill Shorten MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction, today announced that the Rudd Government will amend Federal tax law to allow the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund to conduct a broader range of charitable and community activities. The amendments to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 will apply retrospectively from 29 January 2009 and will apply only to the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund, giving it extra flexibility to support bushfire-affected communities as they recover and rebuild. The new provisions will enable the Fund to: Provide for long-term assistance to orphaned minors, under the age of 18, without the need for annual assessments; provide reimbursements to individuals or organisations for performed eligible charitable activities; provide a discretionary payment of up to $15,000 to assist households for the period in which they are in transitional housing; provide a grant of up to $10,000 to affected primary producers to use for repair and restoration of farm activities, including re-fencing of properties; and establish what is called a 'look-through provision' so, if a family has a farm in a trust or company, they will also be eligible for assistance. For more information see the Assistant Treasurer's press release. The Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority has released its six-monthly report into the reconstruction and recovery efforts. The report is available for download from VBRRA's website. The 2009 Victorian Bushfire Royal Commission has released its interim report into the February 2009 bushfires. The interim report makes recommendations of measures that could be implemented to make Victoria safer for the next fire season. It is available to read or download from the Royal Commission website.
11 August 2009	Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund - 6 Month Progress Report FRRR over the past few months has convened a series of 3 meetings with trusts and foundation who expressed interest in a coordinated and collaborative philanthropic response to the Victorian bushfires. The purpose of the meetings has been to share information, identify philanthropic support given and liaise with bodies such as Red Cross and the Victorian Bushfire Recovery and Reconstruction Authority (VBRRA). As a result of this work FRRR is pleased to announce inkind support from both Bendigo Bank's Community Enterprise Foundation (CEF) and VBRRA in the form of shared human resources to enable FRRR to have capability to put in the place the coordinated and collaborative philanthropic response. FRRR is extremely grateful for this support. FRRR will lead a response which has four aspects. Starting a with a RRR: Repair, Restore, Renew grants program (similar to FRRRs Small Grants for Small Rural Communities) which will open in September 2009 with support from RE Ross Trust, CEF, FRRR and a number of private donors, with around $700,000 to offer in grants. FRRR is seeking other partners and they are welcome to join this program at any time. Granting will be done in close consultation with VBRRA and its community planning information, as well as direct requests from bushfire affected communities. FRRR will also act as a clearing house to refer grant requests to other potential sources of funding and conduct a leverage program working with governments, business and individuals to put together appropriate partnerships. And the fourth response will be to work with communities and areas of interest to develop donations accounts in response to their needs. FRRR should also acknowledge the immediate support provided by the Lord Mayors Charitable Foundation for Back to School vouchers for school children in bushfire affected communities and education support from Myer Philanthropy. Download the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund - 6 Month Progress Report. For more information contact Sylvia Admans, CEO FRRR on 03 5430 2305 or Natalie Elliott, Bushfire Manager, Community Enterprise Foundation/FRRR on 0427 804 293, or visit FRRR.
28 April 2009	Victorian Bushfire Recovery Meeting Philanthropy Australia convened a meeting of Members, the Office for the Community Sector, Christine Nixon, Head of the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority, and John Landy, Chair of the Bushfire Appeal Fund, held at VECCI. The meeting highlighted progress to date, future directions of the Appeal Funds and the VBRRA plans. For further updates and contact details, visit VBRRA and the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund.
17 April 2009	Bushfire Appeal Fund Closed The Victorian and Commonwealth Governments' Bushfire Appeal Fund, coordinated by the Red Cross, closed on Friday, April 17. Anyone planning a Bushfire Appeal fundraiser after this date should contact the Red Cross on 1800 811 700 before proceeding. Further information on Appeal Fund grants is available at www.dhs.vic.gov.au/bushfireappeal.
8 April 2009	FRRR Seeking Collaborative Partners The Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal (FRRR) is seeking partners for a collaborative program to respond to community needs as a result of the Victorian Bushfires this year. The program will seek to address community need in the medium to longer term by making available grants to a broad range of organizations in the bushfire affected areas for projects which have a broad community benefit. Granting through the program will be informed by previous FRRR experience in post disaster granting in rural Australia. FRRR wishes to invite other trusts and foundation, businesses, organisations and individuals to join in making a coordinated and collaborative response to the Victorian bushfires. The program will aim to provide support to grassroots organizations at a local level and be complementary to other funding sources. Partners will be able to join together and ensure that the program works in a manner that meets their individual needs, at the same time ensuring philanthropy reaches the affected communities in the best possible way. Partners already committed to such a program are the RE Ross Trust, the Melbourne Community Foundation and ANZ Trustees wishes to support the program through the trusts they manage. These include the William Buckland Foundation, the Felton Bequest, the JO& JR Wicking Trust and Charitable Purposes in Victoria Program. Several other major trusts and foundations are actively considering such an approach. FRRR has committed $250,000 to the collaborative program and envisages that it shall operate for at least three years. Please call Sylvia Admans, FRRR CEO on 0419 921 054 to discuss the program or advise what you may already be doing in response to the bushfires.
19 March 2009	New Bushfire Recovery Initiatives The Victorian Government has announced it is contributing $500,000 towards the Victorian Employers Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI) Business Relief Emergency Fund. The fund will support small businesses indirectly affected by the fires and will give priority to businesses that employ fewer than 20 people that had little or no alternative sources of income following the February 7 bushfires. Small businesses in bushfire-affected areas that were not burnt out but are experiencing financial hardship as a result of the fires may be eligible for grants of up to $5,000 initially. Small businesses and individuals who provided exceptional support to communities in the aftermath of the bushfires will be acknowledged with a Local Heroes Grant from the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund. Grants of up to $8,000 to support local heroes will be available to acknowledge the tremendous efforts of those who supported others during and after the bushfires.
17 March 2009	Members' Bushfire Response Meeting Philanthropy Australia and the Office for the Community Sector jointly hosted a meeting of Members of Philanthropy Australia at Incolink, Melbourne, to hear more about what is happening 'on the ground' in local communities. A priority was to explore closer collaboration with government around bushfire response and to ensure that efforts are not duplicated.
20 February 2009	Lasting Help For Fire Survivors Gina Anderson was invited to write an article on the philanthropic response to the Victorian bushfires in the Business Spectator. You can read the full article here: 'Lasting help for fire survivors'.

Recent Resources

Recent Resources
Date	Title & Summary of Resource	Download / Access

4 May 2009	Summary of Assistance Available to Communities The Helen Macpherson Smith Trust has produced an excellent summary of assistance available to communities (rather than households) impacted by the Victorian Bushfires. Many thanks to the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust for this resource.	Click here to download the summary.
28 April 2009	Response to the Bushfires by Philanthropy Australia Members A list of Philanthropy Australia Members' responses to the bushfires is available for Members to access. Please email info@philanthropy.org.au to update or add an entry for your bushfire response. (If you have forgotten your password please contact us at the email above or on (03) 9662 9299). We will soon extend this document to record Member's ideas for bushfire-related projects and possible collaborative efforts, in order to minimise duplication and ensure the maximum effectiveness of the philanthropic dollar.	Members' responses to the bushfires
24 April 2009	Bushfire Recovery - Government Bodies Overview This chart seeks to show the various government bodies involved in responding to the Victorian bushfires and the relationships between them. In particular, it highlights the different roles and responsibilities of the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority (VBRRA) and the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund.	Download the Bushfire Recovery - Government Bodies Overview chart
	The Philanthropic Role in the Victorian Bushfires Effective Philanthropy have written an excellent paper entitled 'Responding to the Victorian Bushfires - What Role for Philanthropy?'. It has been structured to help philanthropists get a better understanding of what support affected communities will need, and what role philanthropy can best play, to support the community recovery and renewal process. It draws on Australian and overseas practice to identify good grantmaking principles in a disaster recovery context and provides an overview of the types of activities that philanthropy support.	The paper is available for download at the PhilanthropyWiki: Responding to the Victorian Bushfires - What Role for Philanthropy?
	Philanthropic Response to the Victorian Bushfires Philanthropy Australia and the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR) co-hosted a meeting in the Melbourne Town Hall on February 17 to discuss how the philanthropic community can best respond to the Victorian bushfires and support affected communities. The general consensus at the meeting was that the time when philanthropy is most needed is more likely to be in the medium to long term recovery period, when the immediacy of the crisis has left the public consciousness and the initial rush to donate subsides. Philanthropic individuals, companies and trusts wish to respond to this crisis in a well-considered, strategic and thoughtful manner, and are particularly concerned that their efforts do not overlap or duplicate the existing projects.	You can read detailed notes from that meeting here: Philanthropic Response To The Victorian Bushfires [PDF] You can also download the powerpoint presentation by Andrew Coghlan, National Manager, Emergency Services, Australian Red Cross.
	Disaster Management Lessons have been distilled from experience in post-disaster funding into eight principles of good disaster management, outlined in *Disaster Grantmaking: A Practical Guide for Foundations and Corporations* (published by the Council on Foundations and European Foundation Centre).	Download an exerpt summarising these principles. Alternatively you can download the booklet here.

Getting Involved

Bushfire-impacted areas need your support!

If you are planning to hold a business conference, seminar or meeting we encourage you to consider hosting your event in a bushfire-impacted region, to provide much needed business to these areas. The new Open for Business Campaign has information about the amazing range of venues across bushfire-affected areas in Victoria. You can visit Business Events Victoria to get more information and pledge your support for the campaign or call 1800 726 544. The Australian and Victorian Governments have also announced the new Tourism Bushfire Recovery Fund, a marketing and brand rebuilding program.

Practical ways you can help:

The Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal wishes to invite other trusts and foundations, businesses, organisations and individuals to join in making a coordinated and collaborative response to the Victorian bushfires. The program will aim to provide support to grassroots organizations at a local level and be complementary to other funding sources. Partners will be able to join together and ensure that the program works in a manner that meets their individual needs, at the same time ensuring philanthropy reaches the affected communities in the best possible way.

OurCommunity has an excellent roundup of different ways to help. Of particular note are the specific calls for skilled people such as doctors, builders, electricians and plumbers who wish to donate time and expertise. There is also a long list of ways to help assist animals and some information on how to help from interstate. OurCommunity also has a page of links to organisations seeking online donations for bushfire assistance.

The ABC's How Can I Help? page lists specific requests for assistance and is a good general source of information.

Bushfire Housing has been set up to register offers of temporary accommodation to those left homeless by the fires - preferably in or close to bushfire survivors' own communities.