Giving Australia - Summary of Findings 

Giving Australia has been a large, multifaceted research effort spanning almost eighteen months. Through the completion of surveys and participation in interviews and group discussions, more than 10,000 people have contributed to the information presented in this report. In addition to key researchers, management and administration personnel acknowledged below, the project has also benefited from input ranging from senior representatives from peak national bodies through to volunteers. Each is acknowledged here with many thanks.

Professor Mark Lyons of the University of Technology, Sydney Centre for Australian Community Organisations and Management (CACOM) has contributed much to Australian research on the nonprofit sector and this continued through this project, his contribution being pivotal to two key components—the Individual and Household Survey and the Survey of Nonprofit Organisations. In the former task he was assisted by Mr Andrew Passey (data analysis and assisting with report writing) and in the latter by Dr Gianni Zappalà, Orfeus Research (survey design, analysis and report writing) as well as Ian Nivison-Smith (database analysis).

Dr Kym Madden and Dr Wendy Scaife of Queensland University of Technology Centre of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies (CPNS) were the key researchers responsible for the organisation, conduct and analysis of focus groups and in-depth interviews, as well as expert panel discussions, in support of the project. They were supported by Professor Myles McGregor-Lowndes, the Director of CPNS, who also provided advice on taxation data and law in relation to nonprofit organisations.

Ian McNair and Matt Balogh, McNair Ingenuity Research Pty Ltd conducted the Survey of Business, a major and complex undertaking.

Andrea Douglas, Chris Lonergan and Clare McAdam of Roy Morgan Research were central to the conduct of the Individual and Household Survey.

Dr Sue-Anne Wallace, Fundraising Institute – Australia (FIA) provided important direction for the design of the Survey of Nonprofit Organisations, and facilitated distribution and completion by members of the FIA.

Amro Abdelkarim, Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) designed the online survey and database for the Survey of Nonprofit Organisations and assisted with some combined database calculations for this report while Margaret Mudgeway, also of ACOSS provided administrative support to the project. Petrina Slaytor, a volunteer at ACOSS , Phillip Orr and Les Marsden assisted with the coordination of the the Survey of Nonprofit Organisations, distribution and database compilation as well as coordinating volunteers provided to the project through the welcome services of Volunteering NSW.

Giving Australia was fortunate to benefit from the input of a number of leaders across the business and nonprofit sectors through a Project Reference Group that met at the start and toward the end of the project. These members included: Robert Fitzgerald (Chair), National Non-profit Roundtable; Sha Cordingley, Volunteering Australia; Ken Baker, ACROD; Duncan Power, Charities Aid Foundation Australia; Richard Milroy, Givewell; Mary Nicolson, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Ben Ferguson, Business Council of Australia; Narelle Kennedy, Australian Business Foundation; Michael Liffman, Asia Pacific Centre for Philanthropy and Social Investment, Swinburne Institute of Technology; Ruth Phillips, School of Social Work & Policy Studies, University of Sydney; Andrew McCallum, Australian Council of Social Service; Andrew Johnson, Australian Council of Social Service; Peter Kaldor, Christian Research Association; Elizabeth Cham, Philanthropy Australia; Tamara Winikoff, Artspeak; Alan Coates, Cancer Council of Australia; Graham Tupper, Australian Council for International Development; Cath Smith, Victorian Council of Social Service; Sarah Lucas, Confederation of Australian Sport; Professor Adrian Sargeant, Visiting Fellow, Queensland University of Technology, Centre of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies.

Members of the secretariat to the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership in the Department of Family and Community Services (FaCS), including Glennys Purcell, Ruth Richardson, Julianne Bradley and Susan Woolias, provided overall project direction and contributions to methodology, assistance with meeting various requirements of government and assistance with publications and communications generally. Support was also provided by Clem Tozer of the Australian Bureau of Statistics in his role on the project’s Steering Committee convened by FaCS.

Day to day the project was managed by the ACOSS Deputy Director, Philip O’Donoghue, who was responsible for coordination of research, writing and editing of this and other reports based on the work of researchers, as well as input into questionnaire design for the various surveys.

Previous: Table of Contents Next: Executive Summary