Media releases: 29 January 2025
27 initiatives funded to enable change now and for the long-term
FRRR has awarded $685,242 in grants for 27 initiatives that will empower rural communities across Australia to adopt practices and solutions that reduce emissions and address the impacts of climate change. The projects will enable positive and sustainable environmental, social and economic outcomes.
Thanks to the support of FRRR’s donor partners, the Community Led Climate Solutions program (CLCS) offers grants via two streams, offering different grant funding. The program allows not-for-profit organisations (NFPs) to prioritise local needs and address factors affecting the community’s ability and capacity to adopt new ideas, adapt to a changing climate and take actions to mitigate the risks of climate change.
Organisations from every state and the NT will share $417,742 in grants via the Engage and Deliver stream. Initiatives funded through this stream promote or action practices and solutions that can reduce emissions and benefit their community’s ability to adapt to changes.
Through the Scaling stream, $267,500 has been awarded across four community groups to broaden the reach of locally-led initiatives that alleviate socio-economic challenges and enable communities to thrive.
Sarah Matthee, Climate Solutions Portfolio Lead at FRRR, said that the Community Led Climate Solutions program emphasises the importance of empowering local people to lead local climate solutions.
“Local NFPs and community organisations want to play a bigger role in creating sustainable and enduring climate solutions for their communities. This program responds to that need, which is why it continues to attract more and more applications.
“The intent is to empower and enable communities to lead change, by innovating and responding to local opportunities and challenges.
“The 27 projects funded showcase a diverse range of future-focussed, community-led climate solutions, including addressing energy supply, reuse and recycling, distributing knowledge and climate risk adaptation. This diversity reinforces the fact that each community’s experience of the social, economic and environmental impacts of a changing climate is unique.
“So too are the ways that communities want to respond to those circumstances. For example, more than half the projects funded in this round are designed to develop awareness, knowledge and skills. This perhaps also reflects that community groups are at different points in their journey – and each application reflected this,” Ms Matthee explained.
Larger grants to scale existing initiatives
FRRR recognises that NFPs in remote, rural and regional Australia can find it difficult to access funds for local initiatives that address climate change. In seeking to respond to organisations scaling their impact, FRRR also offered a small number of grants to support groups to scale long-term, future-focused solutions to address climate-related challenges.
“The four projects funded via the Scaling stream advance an existing, locally-led project to a more mature state, enhancing the capacity of the local community to take an active role in the mitigation or adaptation of climate change. We look forward to seeing the positive impact these initiatives have within their communities as they progress.
“Ultimately, we hope that the rural communities and organisations that are stepping up to roll out these initiatives will inspire and encourage other communities to take relevant action, engaging both business and philanthropy in local responses.”
FRRR is grateful to partner with a growing number of like-minded organisations including Boundless Earth, Hand Heart Pocket, Paul Ramsay Foundation and Elders Insurance, which is backed by the QBE Foundation.
FRRR and its donor partners are committed to funding community-led solutions that reduce emissions and address the impacts of climate change. FRRR welcomes further contributions to this collaborative pool of funds to grow the impact that can be generated across remote, rural and regional Australia. For more information, please visit https://frrr.org.au/giving/.
The full list of grant recipients and their projects are below.
| Organisation | Project | Location | Grant | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STREAM 1 (<$20,000) | ||||||
| NEW SOUTH WALES | ||||||
| Adavale Lane Community Centre Incorporated | Install a Solar Battery Monitor to Reduce the Use of Generated Power and Carbon Emissions Enhance community organisation operations by installing a solar battery monitor, while also activating local education on climate solutions to reduce emissions and benefit community. | Goonumbla | $3,300 | |||
| Boomerang Labs Limited on behalf of StartSomeGood | Good Hustle for Climate: Empowering Sustainable and Circular Economy Action in Regional NSW Build organisational capacity to adopt circular economy practices by hosting training workshops to create business plans for climate action initiatives. | Kempsey | $19,900 | |||
| Community Power Agency Co-Operative Limited on behalf of Sustainable Living Armidale (Electrify Armidale for a Renewable Energy Future) | Armidale Community-Driven Shift to Renewable Energy and Sustainability Support community groups in developing clean energy projects by offering training on clean energy transition and fostering collaboration with experts in the field. | Armidale | $20,000 | |||
| Growing Together South Coast Incorporated | FoodCycle: Nurturing Nature, Nourishing Neighbours Promote circular practice by setting up a worm-farm system to convert local food waste into soil conditioner, reducing landfill and supporting a small-scale, local food system. | Milton | $20,000 | |||
| Hope Bathurst Incorporated | The Junktion Repair and Repurpose Café Develop the infrastructure to support the operations of the Junktion Cafe which recycles and resells used goods, thereby promoting circular economy practices. | Bathurst | $17,090 | |||
| Mullumbimby Sustainability Education and Enterprise Development Incorporated | Northern Rivers Community-led Regenerative Food System Coalition- Regen Lab Develop local food systems in the Northern Rivers region to address food security risks related to climate change, disaster risks, and food miles, while supporting the transition to regenerative farming practices. | Mullumbimby | $20,000 | |||
| NORTHERN TERRITORY | ||||||
| Women’s Environmental Leadership Australia Limited | Northern Australia Environmental Leadership Intensive Build capacity in First Nations communities by informing and empowering local women with skills and networks that can contribute to community-led climate solution projects. | Noonamah | $20,000 | |||
| QUEENSLAND | ||||||
| Australian Youth Climate Coalition Limited | Switched on Schools Workshops Boost an organisation's capacity to build a movement of young people to lead climate solutions by supporting workshops in school. | Cairns | $20,000 | |||
| Central Highlands Science Centre Inc | Outback Circular Economy: Transforming Plastic Waste into Educational and Economic Resources Foster an active interest in circular economy practices by installing a plastic recycling machine at the Central Highland's Science Centre, helping educate regional children on climate change solutions. | Emerald | $20,000 | |||
| Darling Downs Environment Council Inc | Employment of a Part-Time Energy Transition Community Organiser Over One Year Educate and engage community members in southern inland regional Queensland on the transition to renewable energy to support informed decision making and awareness of opportunities. | Toowoomba | $20,000 | |||
| Gympie & District Landcare Group Incorporated | Working for a Green Future in the Wide Bay/Burnett Region Build organisational capacity to drive education in climate solutions via supporting trainees to gain Conservation and Ecosystem Management qualifications to support Gympie Landcare ecosystem regeneration and biodiversity preservation required in the face of climate change in the Wide Bay-Burnett region. | Gympie | $17,080 | |||
| Rainforest Rescue | The FRRR & Rainforest Rescue: 'Seeds of Change: Daintree Rainforest Restoration and Empowerment through Education' Project Restore ecosystem through revegetation and habitat restoration with educational community plantings involving local indigenous caretakers. | Daintree | $20,000 | |||
| Rockhampton Regional Council | TAG Rockhampton Region: Building Climate Resilience Through Place-based Storytelling Engage the local community to take action on sustainable and climate resilience priorities by simulating future scenarios using current local climate data. | Rockhampton | $20,000 | |||
| Sweltering Cities Ltd | Understanding Heatwave Disaster Impacts Through Scenario Workshops in Townsville Mitigate risk of climate change by engaging with local organisations to provide information, tools and resources that support local adaptation. | Townsville | $19,527 | |||
| SOUTH AUSTRALIA | ||||||
| Kangaroo Island Our Town Incorporated on behalf of Resilient Roots Grower Collective | Growing the Roots of Resilience Build community resilience through enabling local food production to increase food security and climate resilience for a Kangaroo Island community. | Gosse | $19,707 | |||
| The Food Embassy Incorporated | Local Food Solutions For Climate Resilience Promote education on local food systems and their connection to climate change, while activating the local food system to address food insecurity, reduce food waste, and build resilience. | Strathalbyn | $18,688 | |||
| TASMANIA | ||||||
| Ten Days on the Island Limited | Time Rebel Inspire community climate action through a performance and market event educating and promoting climate change awareness and behavioural change for adaptation, decarbonisation and circular economies. | Burnie | $20,000 | |||
| VICTORIA | ||||||
| Bendigo Sustainability Group | Bendigo Sustainability Festival 2025 – Many Hands Engage and support young people to be active leaders in hosting the Bendigo Sustainability forum, developing their capacity to lead this climate solution work into the future. | Bendigo | $19,900 | |||
| Committee for Ballarat Inc | The Ballarat Energy Network Support a regional community organisation to conduct a feasibility study on the establishment of a community-owned energy network, to provide a sustainable energy source. | Ballarat | $20,000 | |||
| Goldfields Historical and Arts Society Incorporated | Solar Panels Project at the Dunolly Museum Enable a community group to continue their emission reduction activities and community education by installing solar panels on the community facility. | Dunolly | $3,500 | |||
| Sandy Point Community Mens Shed Inc | Sustainable, Clean, Green Community Transport Sustain the operation of a community eBus service and facility by supporting an organisation's transition to a renewable energy future through the installation of solar panels and battery storage system. | Sandy Point | $19,050 | |||
| WESTERN AUSTRALIA | ||||||
| Dandaragan Community Centre Management Committee Incorporated | Solar Panels with Back Up Batteries for the Dandaragan Community Centre Support the clean energy transition of a community facility and the active promotion of solar and battery systems to their users. | Dandaragan | $20,000 | |||
| Ngaarda Media Aboriginal Corporation | TV Documentary: "Climate Resilience: Regional Solutions" Drive First Nations education and engagement on climate change and the transition to renewable energy sources in remote Western Australia by developing a documentary with relatable climate solution stories. | Roebourne | $20,000 | |||
| STREAM 2 ($20,001 - $75,000) | ||||||
| NORTHERN TERRITORY | ||||||
| Wilya Ajjul Janta Aboriginal Corporation | Tennant Creek Pilot 'Explain' Homes Harness traditional ecological knowledge, cultural practices, and climate resilience insights from First Nations communities to create sustainable and culturally appropriate housing solutions. | Tennant Creek | $75,000 | |||
| QUEENSLAND | ||||||
| Yuku Baja Muliku Landowner & Reserves Ltd | Monitoring Biocultural Indicators for a Changing Climate Enable Indigenous Rangers to establish baseline biocultural indicators for fauna and flora to support climate adaptation decision making to care for land and sea country. | Cooktown | $75,000 | |||
| VICTORIA | ||||||
| Mycelia Renewables Ltd | Scaling and Replicating the Mycelia Energy Collective Scale a collaborative initiative to enhance household and community preparedness to climate change and switch to renewable energy. | Venus Bay | $60,000 | |||
| Yackatoon Retirement Village Inc | Protecting Energy for our Seniors Scale community resilience for local energy independence and ensuring housing support for the vulnerable and ageing, by equipping local facilities with solar and battery power supply. | Yackandandah | $57,500 | |||
