As the community foundation for Greater Melbourne, it means a major focus of our work is in the Country of the Wurundjeri-Woiwurrung, Bunurung-Boonwurrung, Taungurung, Djadja wurrung, and Wadawurrng clans. Our office is situated on Wurundjeri-Woiwurrung Country. A key part of placing social justice at the heart of everything we do, involves supporting communities to shape and lead local initiatives that reflect their unique strengths, needs, and aspirations. That is, supporting community self-determination. This is why we work to understand and support First Peoples’ self-determination. The U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) “affirms the fundamental importance of the right to self-determination of all peoples, by virtue of which they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social, and cultural development”. The Foundation has turned to First Nations developed guides, readings, and increasingly conversations, to improve our understanding of how we might better support that right. For example, we have supported The Voice campaign, the Yoorrook Justice Commission, and now Common Threads in their work to support Treaty. Through supporting and learning from organisations such as Woordungin, we recognise that First Peoples have cultivated relationships of mutual aid and sharing of surplus that have connected communities and supported cultures working together for millennia. Our support of First Nations organisations and communities has evolved over the last decade. This evolution has been more than just an increase in grants funding; it has included an explicit shift to ensuring our work is with and for First Nations’ led organisations, projects, or collaborations. Some of our most recent support has included:
Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation in design and development of Wurundjeri educational resources and display units.
Moondani Balluk at Victoria University working with a network of Aboriginal community controlled organisations across the west of Melbourne, including the The Koling wada-ngal Aboriginal Corporation, as they support Aboriginal women to connect and share cultural practices and community support as they strengthen community resilience.
Environmental Justice Australia working for First Peoples in addressing barriers and enablers in their caring for Country
The Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) and Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation’s collaboration to strengthening community/food system resilience through the Culture+Kinship Model
Woordungin’s development of their "Decolonising Philanthropy: Cultural Audit and Toolkit"
The Aboriginal History Archive (AHA) at VU to identify needs and opportunities to change existing offerings in Aboriginal Healthcare Worker (AHW) training so that it reflects the knowledge and experience of the Koori Kollij training that was developed and delivered for and by Aboriginal Health Workers.
Aboriginal Housing Victoria’s Aboriginal Home Ownership Hub
Yawa, an independent Indigenous network that provides a ‘safe space for yarning’ and planning actions regarding climate, health, Country and culture
Djirra’s Aboriginal Women's Centre Feasibility Study
We also released our first Reconciliation Action Plan in December 2024 and continue to learn through that process. Finally, as we continue to learn and walk in solidarity, we encourage everyone to read the official public record of the Yoorrook Justice Commission, Truth Be Told, and to learn more about the Treaty process here.