Macquarie Group Foundation
Each of our four regions face distinct challenges and priorities, which is why each region concentrates on issues with local relevance and aims to create the greatest social impact.
At the Macquarie Group Foundation, we want to achieve the most significant social impact possible, using not only our financial resources but also the skills and networks of Macquarie employees. Through both the giving of grants and by creating opportunities for staff engagement, including mentoring, training, knowledge sharing and employability programs, we are helping to support people through education and employment.
Our grant making focuses on:
Find out more about the Australian focus area by reading our grantmaking framework and the evidence compiled by Social Ventures Australia (2021).
In the Americas, we support organisations promoting college access, success and career attainment for underrepresented youth.
You can find out more about our annual Mentoring Week and our Leadership, Education, Advancement, Development and Support (LEADS) internship program.
Read more about our grant partner Heights Philadelphia and hear more about our strategic grant partnership with Instituto Four in our video.
In Asia we support organisations enabling access to decent work opportunities for migrant workers, so they can achieve better migration outcomes.
Since late 2014, we have been directing efforts towards preventing and responding to modern slavery, with a focus on issues affecting migrant domestic workers. You can find out how we are helping migrants build a better future in our recent International Migrants Day article, in our regional research report or by reading our grantmaking framework.
Read about other grant partners including Aidha and Agrasar, Fair Employment Foundation and Voice of the Free, and hear more about our regional focus in our video.
In Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), we support people (16-80yrs+) to achieve their social mobility aspirations through employment, with an emphasis on enduring jobs and meaningful work.
In 2020, we launched our inaugural Social Mobility Week, celebrating our grant partners and recognising our organisation as a Top 75 employer in the UK Social Mobility Index. You can read about our grant partner, the Social Mobility Foundation.
As a founding funder and member of the BIG Alliance (Businesses for Islington Giving), we have sought to play an integral role in our local community supporting Islington Giving and the BIG Alliance team to run initiatives such as Mentoring Works and the CoRe (Community Resourcing) programme.
| Generation Generation is a non-profit with a mission to transform education-to-employment systems to support adults achieve economic opportunity and mobility through a career. Our funding will support over 2,000 people into jobs in the green, technology and health sectors that would otherwise be inaccessible to them. It will also support Generation develop a digital mentorship platform to improve learner outcomes across their programs. |
| Aurora Education Foundation Aurora supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' academic aspirations. Our grant is supporting Aurora's high school outreach program which aims to inspire young people to achieve their educational goals by hearing from Indigenous role models. |
| Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) The Brotherhood of St Laurence is a social justice organisation working to prevent and alleviate poverty across Australia. Our funding will help drive more effective and community-led solutions to youth unemployment by expanding the Compass tool developed by BSL, that puts place-specific data into the hands of local stakeholders and decision-makers. |
| Campbell Page Limited Campbell Page supports people on the journey to employment. Our grant supports work with sole parent women to gain sustainable employment and help their children achieve their educational potential. |
| CareerSeekers CareerSeekers connects newly settled humanitarian entrants (refugees) with corporate Australia to increase workforce participation. Our grant enables CareerSeekers to recruit, support and place 50 students into workplace internships. |
| Clontarf Foundation Clontarf Foundation aims to improve the education, discipline, self-esteem, life skills and employment prospects of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men. Our grant supports the Clontarf program at Chifley College’s Bidwell Campus in western Sydney. |
| Creating Chances Creating Chances uses sport as a delivery mechanism and incentive for learning. Our grant supports its work with year 10,11 and 12 students to help them explore further education and employment opportunities. |
| Foundation for Young Australians The Foundation for Young Australians’ mission is to back young people aged 12-30 years to transform the future. FYA invests money and time into young people's ideas, skills gaps and networks, reflecting its belief that young people should be the central agents of change. Our funding will enable YLab (a social enterprise arm of FYA) to directly employ young people to co-design improved services and systems in the areas of health, education and employment. |
| Generation: You, Employed, Inc Generation is a global organisation which recruits, trains and places young people into career-launching jobs. Our grant is contributing funding towards the two year pilot launch of Generation in Australia. |
| Melbourne Indigenous Transition School (MITS) MITS provides educational choice to Indigenous students from remote and regional communities across Australia. Our grant supports the employment of a program manager who works with MITS students in a range of ways to enable their success. |
| Making Waves Foundation Inc Making Waves Foundation auspices the Shoreline program (formerly Junior Indigenous Marine and Environmental Cadet program). Our grant is directed towards senior secondary college Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, helping them to undertake traineeships and providing a pathway to employment. |
| PCYC NSW PCYC NSW works with young people to help them reach their potential through police and community partnerships. Our grant funds Fit For Work programs in western Sydney, helping young people transition from vocational training into work experience and then full-time employment or apprenticeships. |
| Raise Foundation Raise Foundation aims to improve the wellbeing of young people in Australia at risk of disengaging, by delivering best-practice mentoring programs. Our grant supports Raise in its goal of making its mentoring program available in every public high school by improving its technology offering. |
| Social Ventures Australia SVA works to improve the lives of people in need by offering funding, investment, and advice to support organisations to increase their social impact. Our grant supports the Pathways to Skilled Employment Program, which seeks to gather evidence to help government, employers and young people design and deliver programs to address employment issues. |
| Together 4 Youth Together 4 Youth is a collaboration of 11 non-profit organisations, which have united to amplify the voice of young people and effectively support them through their education to improve life-long outcomes. Our funding is part of a funders collaboration which has supported Together 4 Youth to undertake research and development work and will now support the implementation of a pilot program. |
| White Box Enterprises White Box Enterprises builds, supports, and advocates for jobs-focused social enterprises. Our funding will build on the implementation of the Federal Government’s Payment by Outcomes trial led by White Box Enterprises, with the aim of supporting up to 750 participants to access entry level jobs and transition pathways by 2025. |
| Financial Markets Foundation for Children FMFC works to improve the health, welfare and well-being of Australian children. Our grant is used to fund research programs and other projects to support this work. |
| SEFA Partnerships SEFA Partnerships works with social purpose organisations to improve their capacity. Our funding supports Kick Starter, a business planning mentoring and small grants program for early stage social ventures. |
| America Needs You (ANY) America Needs You supports economic mobility for ambitious, low-income college students by providing intensive career development, mentorship, networking and holistic support. Our funding supports and sustains the Chicago Fellows program, support the launch of a Los Angeles based Fellows Program, and a new digital curriculum that will support ANY students nationally. |
| Breakthrough NY BTNY is a tuition-free, ten-year college success program committed to getting high-potential, low-income middle school students to and through four-year colleges. Our grant supports the college and career coaching and program support for students |
| College Advising Corps College Advising Corps works to increase the number of low-income, first-generation college, and underrepresented high school students who enter and complete higher education. Our funding will support a new pilot program focused on professional development opportunities for College Advising Corps advisers – recent college graduates with lived experiences similar to the high school students they support. |
| Double Discovery Center at Columbia University (DDC) The Double Discovery Center at Columbia College works with low-income and first-generation college-bound Manhattan area youth to ensure high school graduation, college enrolment and completion and responsible adulthood. Our funds support new financial literacy and career readiness programs to help students map their college to career success. |
| Girls Inc New York City (GINYC) Girls Inc NYC delivers vital educational programs that inspire girls to be strong, smart, and bold. Our grant supports Project Reach, which seeks to expand existing program offerings to gain a better understand the factors involved college attrition, and to address them with the ultimate goal of increasing graduation rates. |
| Graduate NYC Graduate NYC (GNYC) is dedicated to increasing college readiness and completion rates throughout New York City for low-income and first generation college students. Our grant contributes to the College Completion Innovation Fund which supports innovative projects that impact college access and completion for underrepresented youth. |
| Heights Philadelphia The mission of Philadelphia Futures (PF) is to provide Philadelphia's low-income, first-generation-to-college students with the tools, resources and opportunities necessary for admission to and success in college. Our grant helps PF run programs aimed at reducing the institutional, academic, social and financial barriers to college and career success. |
| Instituto Four Instituto Four seeks to select, train, and develop young people who think about ways to solve Brazil's biggest problems and aim to be in the main decision-making spaces in the country. Our funding will create scholarships for two students to complete the ProLider program, fund an award (in honour of the late Mr. Hitoshi Castro) and contribute to Instituto Four’s seed funding deposit for an endowment. |
| OneGoal Houston OneGoal’s mission is to close the degree divide in America. Its vision is that every young person will have an equitable opportunity to achieve their greatest postsecondary aspirations. Our funding supports a college persistence program pilot that involves peer mentoring and online support. |
| Take Stock in Children Take Stock in Children is a non-profit in Jacksonville supporting underrepresented youth to achieve college completion. Our funds will establish a college division and support college persistence programming for low income students. |
| The Opportunity Network The Opportunity Network works to equal the playing field for highly motivated students from low-income and historically underrepresented backgrounds by facilitating access to colleges, career opportunities, and professional networks. Our grant supports a fellowship program that supports students from grade 10 through to college graduation and into a career. |
| The HOPE Program HOPE works with New Yorkers to lift themselves out of poverty through training, jobs and career advancement. Our capacity building grant supports HOPE to assist more job seeksers into employment. |
| Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) LISC invests in people and places to address longstanding deficits and disparities in housing, employment, education, safety and justice, and health. Our funding will support neighbourhoods in Philadelphia and Jacksonville to implement community-centered strategies to advance racial equity by reducing crime, improving neighbourhood safety, and increasing opportunity. |
| Robin Hood Foundation The Robin Hood Foundation is NYC’s largest poverty-fighting organization, with a 30-year record of improving the living standards of low-income New Yorkers and dismantling barriers to opportunity. Our funding supports Robin Hood’s POWER FUND, a new initiative to fund and elevate non-profit leaders of colour who share the organisation’s mission of increasing mobility from poverty, while addressing the interplay of racial and economic injustice through their work. |
| YWCA USA YWCA USA works to eliminate racism, empower women, stand up for social justice, help families, and strengthen communities. Our funding will support the WE 360° Program which provides women of color entrepreneurs in Houston with access to key tools to start their own businesses and create jobs in their communities. |
| Agrasar Agrasar implements high-impact skill programs that help disadvantaged, migrant youth lead more meaningful and dignified lives. Our grant supports one centre in Kapersera, Gurgaon, as well as a community radio program that connects to youth in hamlets within 10 kms around Gurgaon City. |
| Aidha Aidha helps migrant domestic workers and low-income women achieve economic independence through financial education. Our funding will support Aidha to significantly scale, from directly benefiting 850 beneficiaries in FY2022 to close to 10,500 beneficiaries annually by the end of the grant period in FY2026. |
| Asha India Foundation ASHA is dedicated to improving the lives of Delhi’s urban poor through programs covering health, education, empowerment, financial inclusion and environmental improvements. Our grant is supporting a program to increase the number of young people attending college, by assisting young people in slums to reach higher education and in turn break out of the intergenerational cycle of poverty. |
| Asia Pacific Mission for Migrants (APMM) APMM is committed to supporting the migrant movement through advocacy, organising and building linkages for the advancement of migrants’ rights. Our grant supports the Women’s Encounters program, which aims to build and enhance the grassroots community movement of women migrants across Asia, to advance rights, promote collective wellbeing and enable mutual support and learning. |
| Bright Future Bright Future works with youth in urban slums of Mumbai to provide life skills and improve employability through their livelihood training centres. Our grant funds two livelihood centres in Mumbai and supports capacity-building within the organisation. |
| Bosconet Bosconet works to improve lives of marginalised and migrant youth. Our grant is helping build a unique platform which integrates various support services available to migrants. |
| Dasra Dasra supports non-profits in their growth and scale of impact on the vulnerable lives they serve. Dasra aims to bridge the gap by educating funders to be more strategic in their giving, and helping non-profits use funds in the most optimal way. Our grant will help create a report on sector-based research and landscape mapping of critical issue areas, resulting in actionable insights which will shape strategic philanthropy and sustainable development outcomes across India. |
| EmpowerU (Migrasia) EmpowerU provide high-quality education to those on the margins, so they can use their voice to create a better future. Our grant will support the development and execution of the upgraded Migrant Domestic Worker Curriculum in collaboration with The University of Hong Kong. |
| Enrich Enrich empowers migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong to transform their lives through financial education and personal development programmes. Our grant supports the growth of Enrich’s core financial education program, as well as working to identify and explore ways to better reach and retain the migrant domestic worker community. |
| Fair Employment Foundation Fair Employment Foundation believe forced labour is a solvable world problem and develops business solutions to make the market work better for workers and employers alike. Our funding supports Fair to significantly scale its impact to help build and grow ethical employment agencies across Asia. |
| Hagar Singapore Hagar works with women and children who have suffered severe human rights abuses. Our grant supports the transition and reintegration of its clients back into family and community life, through the creation of lifeskills courses for trafficked migrants in Singapore. |
| Jan Sahas Jan Sahas has been working with migrant workers and vulnerable communities in India for the past two decades. Our funding will support district migration resource centres in Gurugram. |
| Lend A Hand India LAHI's program complements existing secondary school curricula with employment-related skills. Our grant is supporting a three-year pilot to enhance its program for students across 20 schools in Mumbai and Pune. |
| Magic Bus MB builds life-skills in adolescents both in and outside of the education system to assist with educational attainment and employment. Our grant supports one community centre and 20 schools in Bhiwandi, a semi-rural area near Mumbai. |
| NavGurukul NavGurukul offers free higher education and software programming training for girls from diverse, marginalised and low-income backgrounds. Our funding is preparing students with education, job-ready skills and building the capability of the NavGurukul team. |
| Naz Foundation The vision of Naz is to create a just and equitable society by transforming individuals from socially and economically excluded communities into agents of change. Our grant supports Naz's One Nation Netball Cup, which brings together 13-16 year olds from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, and provides opportunities to develop skills and build a sense of social inclusion and community. |
| Oasis Oasis India work to improve the lives of victims of human trafficking as well as children and youth in disadvantaged circumstances. Our grant is supporting skills training of trafficked women in four locations across India. |
| Samhita - Collective Good Foundation Collective Good Foundation is implementing a project to improve the lives of sanitation workers in Maharastra through training, awareness and protective gear distribution and usage. |
| Seefar Seefar has a mission to find a way towards a world in which vulnerable people have more opportunities to advance themselves. Our grant supports the expansion of the Safer Migration Project, which equips returned Filipino migrant domestic workers with knowledge and skills to increase access to decent work in their home country. |
| Special Olympics Special Olympics is a global movement driving inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities through the transformative power of sports. Through Special Olympics Asia Pacific, our funding supports country programs in the Philippines and Singapore by increasing quality sports training opportunities, unified sport competitions, and the development and training of coaches. In India, our funding towards the Inclusive Youth Leadership Project, will train youth in leadership and soft skills, and contribute to their personal development and employability. |
| Splash Foundation Limited Splash Foundation promotes safety, empowerment and connection for under-resourced communities in Hong Kong through swimming. Our funding supports Splash’s Development Program, extending the reach of the program, while creating a group of community organisers to deliver programs, support events and share knowledge. |
| Voice of the Free Voice of the Free works to address human trafficking, including the exploitation of domestic workers. Our grant supports community education, training and alternative business programs to help mitigate the risk of this form of modern slavery.. |
| Uplifters Uplifters’ mission is to uplift migrant domestic workers (MDWs) lives, by providing them with access to digital education and community support. Our grant will support Uplifters’ work in enabling MDWs to access education at scale and achieve behavioural change in money management. |
| A Better Chance Foundation ABC provides financial assistance to economically challenged but motivated children to receive schooling. Our grant covers ongoing college education for 45 students in Manila. |
| Mother's Choice Mother’s Choice serves children without families and pregnant teenagers in Hong Kong. Our grant is funding the creation of a holistic L&D Framework, incorporating both core and job competencies, skills and attributes required for both staff and volunteers, so they can provide best in class care. |
| Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ) OGQ supports the training and preparation of India's top athletes. Our grant supports 24 athletes in their journey to win an Olympic medal. |
| OM Foundation Om Foundation envisions bringing a change in the lives of the underprivileged children by ensuring all-round development and providing them with quality education, healthcare, and balanced nutrition. Our grant supports the primary section of the school |
| SHEOWS Sheows is a facility offering residential care services to homeless senior citizens in Delhi NCR. Our grant funds the running costs as well as the setting up of a special care unit for senior citizens |
| United Way Mumbai UWM endeavours to address problems that are too large or complex for any one agency to solve. It plays the role of a catalyst in the development sector, to drive social change. Our grant is helping the local hospital for police personel with a Dialysis unit. |
| Voluntary Organization in Community Enterprises (VOICE) - by Sanjeevani VOICE works with neglected, vulnerable and deprived children of Mumbai. Our grant helps with nutrition, skills training and income generation. |
| Dallaglio RugbyWorks Dallaglio RugbyWorks is a long-term skills development programme based on rugby, which aims to help teenagers outside of mainstream education into sustained education, employment or training. Our grant supports the RugbyWorks programme in London-based schools. |
| Duke of Edinburgh International Award (Germany) The Award aims to inspire, guide and support young people through self-development, recognise their achievements, and increase social and economic mobility. Our funding will support a project to bring the Award to schools with high percentages of at-risk students in the eastern part of Germany. |
| Fundacion Tomillo Fundacion Tomillo generates opportunities for young people (aged 12-35 years) in vulnerable situations to develop their full personal and professional potential. Our funding will support an enhanced job placement pilot programme which is aimed at supporting up to 600 young people in Madrid, with 350 people gaining employment. |
| Islington Giving Islington Giving is an independent group of funders, businesses, residents and voluntary organisations working together to tackle poverty and inequality in Islington. Macquarie is the founding funder of the BIG Alliance (Businesses for Islington Giving). |
| LTSB LTSB is a social mobility charity that prepares and supports bright young people from under-represented communities into meaningful roles with major firms. Our funding will support 120 young people aged 16-24 years to achieve their social mobility aspirations, with a target of over 75 gaining employment. |
| ReachOut ReachOut helps change the lives of young people from disadvantaged communities in London and Manchester through one-to-one mentoring. Our grant supports ReachOut's academy and mentoring programme. |
| Socialbee Socialbee was founded in 2016 with a mission of facilitating sustainable integration for refugees, migrants, and their families building a life in Germany. Socialbee connects people to enduring jobs and provide the hard and soft skills training to prepare them for work. Our grant supports the expansion of Socialbee’s existing program to Frankfurt and the surrounding the Rhein-Main Metropolitan area. |
| Social Mobility Foundation (SMF) Social Mobility Foundations supports high-achieving young people from disadvantaged backgrounds into top universities and professions. Our grant is funding the Aspiring Professionals Programme to provide students with an insight into banking and finance (Birmingham Cohort) |
| Street League Street League uses the power of sport to tackle poverty and give young people the opportunities they need to succeed in life and the workplace. Our grant funds organisation and program support in Scotland. |
| Telemaque Telemaque aims to support social mobility in France by supporting underprivileged motivated and involved young people to reveal their full potential. Our funding will support the Telemaque Pro programme, providing mentoring, collective workshops, and financial support to over 500 young people. It will also fund the employment of a full-time mentoring officer. |
| Universify Universify is addressing educational inequality in the UK by supporting young people experiencing disadvantage to study at university. Our funds are building the capacity of Universify to continue expanding its programs. |
| Baobab Foundation The Baobab Foundation supports, grows and strengthens Black and Ethnic Minority communities in the UK. Our grant directly contributes to building solidarity, sustainability, and impact by creating an unprecedented ‘by and for’ led funding organisation with communities at the heart of decision making. |
The Foundation currently has a strong pipeline of potential grants in place and as such we are not accepting unsolicited proposals.
At a minimum, our requirements are:
Our social impact investments are focused on breaking down barriers to employment. If your organisation is seeking an impact investment visit our dedicated page to find out more.
