Help us activate community funding across North East Victoria and grow the funds available for our local projects and needs.

We want to see our communities hold their own funds and be in charge of their own preparedness, recovery and resilience activities. Community funds give our towns and neighbourhoods assets and power. They assist them to realise community visions and create positive outcomes for our region.

Into Our Hands Community Foundation intends to apply to the National Recovery and Resilience Agency’s Black Summer Bushfire Recovery grants program.

We are seeking signatures and letters of support from key stakeholders across our region for our Rural Endowment project ; Growing resilience, aspiration and economic capability in fire affected communities. 

Informed by data, this project will use the North East Transfer of wealth data developed by Into Our Hands Community Foundation to drive a regional strategy  and support program to establish community  funds in towns and communities affected by the black summer fire disaster.

At its core this is a community development project that seeks to address economic capability and recovery needs through building local resilience. The resilience will come from the process which seeks to work with communities to better network their organisations, know their plans, goals and vision and empower them to lead their own projects through helping them establish and build their own locally controlled assets.

We argue that through having these funds, plans and governance in place, such communities will be better placed to manage their local needs and responses around bushfire and less dependent on government direction and funding in the aftermath of future disasters.

Local endowments will also mean more active community led preparedness efforts through having resources available pre and post disaster. Local fund structures provide a place to direct mass donations in the event of disasters which can be community controlled and directed as grants, ensuring more localised and immediate support when disaster sistuations arise. 

To support this initiative please leave your name and comments in th e petition created.