Insights from the bush – December 2024

Insights: 3 December 2024

Our team spends significant time connecting with grantseekers and community groups – on the phone, over email and face-to-face in communities. Below we’ve highlighted a few challenges and insights the FRRR team has observed or heard about in their interactions, as well as the proactive and positive steps communities are taking to address them.

Disasters and other shocks

• Conditions remain highly variable with ongoing disasters occurring, often in remote locations and with highly localised impacts. We’ve already seen fires, storms and flooding, as well as long periods of heat and dry conditions, which are worsening in many regions. FRRR’s partnerships and advocacy efforts are prioritising preparedness and resilience-building, through funding and project design, particularly initiatives that strengthen social cohesion and networks.
• We have been receiving more requests for funding to support water security for small towns, which is also affecting local food security.
• A sad development is an increase in requests in disaster-impacted areas for projects to reduce family violence or support family violence victims.
• While small and remote areas are increasingly vulnerable to climate change and disasters, small and isolated populations mean locals experience challenges around having the capacity to prepare for, and respond to disasters. Such events exacerbate structural disadvantage and social vulnerabilities. Significant investment is needed in preparedness, including strengthening social capital and built infrastructure and equipment in these communities, so they be better informed, connected and prepared for future climate events.
• The economic impact of COVID, the 2019-20 bushfires and other shocks is still being felt by small and remote communities that are still trying to stimulate the local economy and wooing back tourists by reinstating events and developing new drawcards. FRRR has seen increased investment in these kinds of events and festivals.
• The mental health implications of the sustained stress of successive shocks are clear, but so too is the commitment from local organisations to improving the wellbeing of their community, especially by combatting social isolation.
• In NSW & VIC, on-the-ground agencies and service providers reported gaps between immediate disaster response efforts and the availability of recovery support for community-based initiatives and infrastructure. More work is needed on the ground to establish clear roles and to enhance efforts to prepare people and places to prevent, reduce and recover from the impacts of future, inevitable disaster events.

Climate change and energy transition

• The energy transition continues to impact remote, rural and regional places, presenting both challenges and opportunities. In many places, it can be divisive. Community leaders want to actively engage in this issue, seeking a seat at the table and a better deal that balances energy production, biodiversity, community wellbeing and genuine enduring regional economic benefits.
• Not-for-profit organisations (NFPs) in renewable energy zones are increasingly collaborating to navigate these impending energy transitions. FRRR’s support is focussed on building the capacity of these NFPs to enable better collaboration, so these communities can secure funding opportunities to benefit their regions.
• The affordability of insuring community assets such as batteries and solar panels, remains a challenge for NFPs and may impede adoption of these climate solutions.

Shifting demographics and evolving priorities

• Rural Australia is changing and generational expectations are shifting. Communities are looking towards future generations to step up and become community-focused professionals, creatives, policy-makers and volunteers. Young people themselves are also seeking support to transition into these critical roles as the future leaders and doers of the community sectors. Investment in programs that activate this next generation and their aspirations for the future have never been more important. FRRR’s new partnership with VFFF’s Backing the Future program is revealing key insights into what young changemakers need to succeed in grantseeking  – i.e. feeling informed, connected and confident. Creating opportunities to join events like the Social Impact in the Regions conference and the Philanthropy Australia Conference fosters confidence, builds leadership and encourages collaboration.
• Against a backdrop of rising youth disengagement, prevention models like ShoreTrack are gaining attention for creating positive communities of support for RRR young people and engaging them in meaningful work to build their confidence as contributing members of their communities. However, there is more to be done to understand the issues and uncover work alongside communities and in partnership with young people to explore potential solutions. Continued investment in addressing the root-causes and in developing options for young people to build their capacity to engage and shape the solutions are important considerations in FRRR’s granting.
• Local not-for-profits are seeking ways to retain fatigued volunteers, as they struggle to meet the sustained or increasing needs of their community. FRRR has made significant investments in backfilling some roles with paid staff, relieving the burden, if only temporarily.
• Demand for mental health support in continues to increase, with requests for our In a Good Place program far exceeding available funding. However, new partners and an additional round each year of the program will help meet some of the demand, although there will still be significant unmet need.
• Groups are sharing challenges around policy issues such as housing for key workers; a shortage of venues, including shop fronts, for service delivery; how best to approach preventative solutions to youth crime as a community; and cost imposts of things like changes to health and safety requirements of community facilities. FRRR continues to share stories about the impacts of these kinds of issues, highlighting the need for localised information and context to understand the impacts of decisions.

Supporting First Nations’ Peoples

• FRRR is strengthening its commitment to First Nations funding and collaboration through culturally safe practices and partnerships, including joining Philanthropy Australia’s First Nations Funders Network. We continue to seek to direct more funding to First Nations’ controlled organisations and to ensure that First Nations voices are heard more widely, by facilitating attendance at conferences and events when we can.
• Australia’s pathway to reconciliation continues. There’s much work to do towards Closing the Gap targets. There is strong leadership in First Nations communities but stretched capacity and resourcing. In the last round of our flagship Strengthening Rural Communities program, we also saw an increase in requests to support projects focused on reconciliation, from simple community picnics to developing plans.

Liveability of non-metro regions

• The costs of delivering programs and services in outback locations are increasing, with many core expenses such as freight, wages and accommodation on the rise, and it’s often difficult to secure grant funding for these expenses. We are actively considering what a ‘right-sized’ grant is for remote and very remote communities, holding conversations to learn more about what it takes for these communities to live well.
• Outback / remote communities experience market failures at all levels due to their remoteness and size; yet these regions are drivers of significant national output. Simple, innovative and cost-effective solutions to improve liveability and health, in all its dimensions, need tailored and well-informed funding and partnerships to realise their potential.
• Pressures on community groups from the increased costs of living continue to grow month by month, such as an increase in applications for projects supporting food relief and scarcity.
• More and more regional or state organisations are applying for funding to work in remote or rural communities, but often they cannot demonstrate appropriate place-based approaches for small communities, nor offer appropriate support or engagement with those targeted communities. This has reinforced the importance of community-led solutions.
• Connectivity, both digitally and via more traditional media, remains challenging. We are seeing more frequent requests for community-owned Starlink subscriptions to ensure digital connectivity. Alongside that, we are also receiving more requests to ensure established local newspapers, newsletters and community radio are sustained, with applicants concerned about the loss of community connection and identity, and increased social isolation if these local institutions are lost.

You may also find our recent reports, including the TTTT report sharing recommendations for future drought programming; and the Black Summer Bushfires; Five Years On report of interest. These reports are complemented by videos and even a podcast series. 

There is much more that we could share, so if you’d like to know more about any of these comments, or are interested in a particular geography or issue, please get in touch via info@frrr.org.au.