philanthropyOz Blog

New Position Vacant - Program Manager, The R.E. Ross Trust

The R E Ross Trust is a perpetual charitable trust established in Victoria in 1970 by the will of the late Roy Everard Ross. Since its inception, the Ross Trust has distributed over 80 million dollars in more than 4,000 grants for charitable purposes in Victoria. The Trust is seeking a Program Manager, one of two equivalent full time positions at the Trust. The role is responsible for contributing to the Trust’s grant making and value adding strategies, as well as participating in the overall effectiveness of the Trust’s activities.

The Program Managers have a portfolio of responsibilities which support the areas of impact of the Trust and work alongside each other to ensure high quality grant making outcomes, in a team environment. The role reports to the CEO and supports the Grants & Office Manager and is part of a small team.

For more information on this position see the Positions Vacant page.

Consultation paper: Review of Not-for-profit Governance Arrangements

Treasury has today released a Consultation Paper into governance arrangements for not-for-profit (NFP) organisations, including charitable trusts. Final submissions to Treasury are due Friday 20 January 2012 (this date was first stated as 6 January 2012, but has been extended!)

The paper looks to implement a single governance scheme across the NFP sector regardless of structure. It is intended that it will cover charitable trusts.

Philanthropy Australia will be making a brief submission in response to this paper. We have not had time to adequately review this paper in detail at this stage, but will be arguing against a one-size-fits-all approach. The paper covers a very broad range of issues and Philanthropy Australia will be focusing mainly on those which affect philanthropic sector entities.

For more information:

Download consultation paper and associated Fact Sheet from Treasury website:
http://treasury.gov.au/contentitem.asp?NavId=002&ContentID=2252

Final Charity Definition Submission available

Philanthropy Australia’s final submission in response to the Consultation Paper, ‘A Definition of Charity’, is now available for download.

Many thanks to our Members who made comments and suggestions.

Download the submission in PDF format.

ACNC Community Consultation Schedule and Employment Opportunities

The Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission Taskforce has posted the schedule for its community consultation sessions throughout Australia in early 2012.

• Monday 30 January 2012 - Brisbane - 10.00am to 12.00pm
• Tuesday 31 January 2012 - Townsville - 9.30am to 11.30am
• Tuesday 31 January 2012 - Townsville - 1.30pm to 3.30pm (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander session)
• Wednesday 1 February 2012 - Darwin - 10.00am to 12.00pm
• Friday 3 February 2012 - Perth - 10.00am to 12.00pm
• Monday 6 February 2012 - Adelaide - 9.30am to 11.30am
• Tuesday 7 February 2012 - Melbourne - 10.00am to 12.00pm
• Wednesday 8 February 2012 - Canberra - 10.00am to 12.00pm
• Friday 10 February 2012 - Hobart - 10.00am to 12.00pm/li>
• Monday 13 February 2012 - Sydney - 9.30am to 11.30am
• Monday 13 February 2012 - Sydney - 2.00pm to 4.00pm (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander session)

A registration form with full details (venues and times) will be available soon on the ACNC website, and there is also an email subscription service for notifications of new information.

The ACNC Taskforce has also begun recruiting for senior positions for its Melbourne-based office. More information is available here .

2011 Stegley Lecture - Prof Thomas Pogge’s presentation available

The presentation from Professor Thomas Pogge’s 2011 Stegley Lecture, What are the responsibilities of the affluent to address global poverty?, is now available for download as a PDF here.

Professor Pogge is one of the world’s most ardent critics of global injustice. His presentation examines the massive disparity between the relative wealth of most citizens in affluent countries and the profound poverty of the rest of the world, and asks whether the governments of wealthy countries and their citizens perpetuate this injustice.

Many thanks to the Asia Pacific Centre for Social Investment at Swinburne University for allowing us to share this stirring presentation.

Public Ancillary Funds legislation passed

The Tax Laws Amendment (2011 Measures No. 7) Bill 2011, the legislation which allows for the new regulatory framework for Public Ancillary Funds, was passed by the Senate in late November with no amendments and was given Royal Assent on November 29. The new regulatory framework will therefore become law on 1 January 2012.

A final version of the Guidelines is not yet available. Philanthropy Australia continues to check very regularly for the final Guidelines and will provide further information as soon as it is available.

Philanthropy Australia encourages Members with Public Ancillary Funds to familiarise themselves with the legislation, which can be found on the Parliament website at the link below.

For more information:

Homepage for Tax Laws Amendment (2011 Measures No. 7) Bill 2011
http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fbillhome%2Fr4676%22

Exposure Draft, Draft Guidelines, Consultation Summary
http://treasury.gov.au/contentitem.asp?NavId=037&ContentID=2048

Published submissions in response to Exposure Draft & Draft Guidelines
http://treasury.gov.au/contentitem.asp?ContentID=2166&NavID=037

Alice Macdougall wins Pro Bono Leadership Award

Philanthropy Australia extends warmest congratulations to Alice Macdougall, Special Counsel at Freehills, who has been announced as the winner of the inaugural Keith Steele Pro Bono Leadership Award. Many Members and others in the sector will know Alice through her advice for charities and foundations, as well as her papers and workshops on not-for-profit sector issues. She has provided invaluable advice and support for Philanthropy Australia’s policy work.

The Keith Steele Pro Bono Leadership Award was created to honour the memory of Keith Steele, Freehills partner and a founding member of the Sydney Pro Bono Committee, which also established the Shopfront Youth Legal Centre in inner Sydney. The award recognises individuals within the firm who have demonstrated outstanding contribution to the pro bono sector.

Alice Macdougall, Special Counsel for Freehills’ charity law group in Melbourne, was the first Freehills employee to receive this award. Freehills Partner and Chair of the Freehills Foundation, Peter Butler, said: ‘Through her legal support in hundreds of matters for charity organisations, Alice has indirectly helped thousands of people across Australia and internationally. She has built a strong reputation within this sector through her academic activity and made a real difference to the ability of others to access justice,’ he said.

Congratulations to Alice from staff and Council of Philanthropy Australia!