About this grant
For over 50 years, The James N Kirby Foundation has been and continues to be committed to supporting organisations that provide innovative solutions and opportunities to those in our community who need it most. Our Foundation considers requests under the following four categories, seeking to support organisations and programs whose work benefits:
- Education and Technology
- The Environment
- Health
- Social Welfare, and The Arts
Within these four categories, The James N Kirby Foundation is guided by the following philanthropic objectives that target the key priority areas shown below:
| Category | Objectives | Priority Areas |
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| Education and Technology |
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| Environment |
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| Health |
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Definition of ResearchThe James N Kirby Foundation does not normally fund research commercialisations or applications that are subject to commercial arrangements and IP ownership. It will consider funding for highly advanced equipment that will be used by multiple research projects that are synergistic with the James N Kirby Foundation mission. The Foundation will consider applications for research or its application which will directly benefit the welfare of the community. These areas might include research that benefits community groups that might not otherwise be commercially feasible, research evaluations of the effectiveness of existing programs, or outstanding but small or pilot pieces of research unlikely to have an alternate funding source. |
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| Social Welfare and the Arts |
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Funding Principles
Taking into account the philanthropic objectives outlined above, the Foundation seeks to support projects and organisations whose work:
- is innovative in nature;
- will be capacity building;
- will inspire and provide lasting social change.
Our Foundation also takes into account whether an organisation:
- uses innovative or ground breaking concepts or methodologies;
- has sufficient capacity to carry out the proposed activity;
- collaborates with others in their field;
- will be able to sustain results into the future;
- has other financial support or will leverage the James N Kirby Foundation’s support to obtain further funding;
- is committed to providing measurable outcomes that can be shared with a broader community.
Applications for Small Grants – $15,000 or less
Applications for Small Grants are open from 1 November to 28 February 5pm ESDT each year. Applicants will be notified of the outcome within a month of the Board Meeting held in May. It is preferable for applicants to apply earlier in the process rather than leaving it to the last minute of the closing date.
Small Grants are the most popular bracket of funding either requested from applicants or eventually distributed by the James N Kirby Foundation. Please note Small Grants encapsulate funding from $3,000 to $15,000 inclusive.
Applications for this funding category must include the following three items:
- A completed on-line Small Grants application form available on this website. Please note that all fields of the application form must be completed. Applications received after 5pm ESDT on 28th February will not be accepted.
- A covering letter of no more than 1 x A4 pages that must be on the letterhead of the entity endorsed as the DGR and must be signed by a Director, CEO or responsible person of the DGR. It should provide a brief description of your organisation, advise any previous grant history with the James N Kirby Foundation, and also include a list of the names and qualifications of your organisation’s Chair, Directors, CEO or Department Head.
- On no more than one A4 page, a total cost and breakdown of the budget of the project and how you will be meeting those costs. In addition, please advise if you are seeking funding as a one-off cost or will it continue past the funding period, and if so, how will you secure future funding.
Applications for Large Grants – More than $15,000
Applications for Large Grants require a more extensive application process with greater scrutiny.The Foundation introduced an internal system whereby grantees were identified, researched and shortlisted for final selection. More detailed proposals will be presented during the financial year and finally assessed at the board meeting held in May each year.
