Creating a better future for Melbourne women and families in need, together.

Play a vital leadership role as our next Treasurer We are seeking a Treasurer and Chair of the Finance and Risk Committee to join our Board on a voluntary basis. This is an opportunity to contribute your financial leadership, governance experience and care for community to a women-led giving circle helping women and their families thrive across Greater Melbourne. The role provides leadership across financial governance, risk management and compliance, while helping the Board make informed, strategic decisions.

When Merril attended her first MWF event, she was struck not only by the warmth of the welcome, but by the tone: there was no pressure, just a thoughtful introduction to our giving circle model. What resonated most was the idea of amplifying impact and supporting women, together. Over time, she has seen that idea come to life in practical, tangible ways. Merril's advice? "Come along and experience MWF for yourself—you might just find your people..."

Together, we support women in practical and lasting ways, backing organisations that respond to complex challenges with insight, care and determination. Whilst our major 2025 Enabling Grant and Capacity Building Grant recipients are just beginning to deploy their MWF funding, the immediate and longer term impacts of our collective giving are unfolding for our major 2024 grantees, PartnerSPEAK and WomenCAN.  

We are bringing together two important parts of MWF’s work,  how we communicate and how we gather, into a single, connected committee. Our new Marketing and Events Committee reflects a simple idea. When our messaging and our events are aligned, we can create a stronger and more engaging experiences for members, and a consistently clear and empowering voice for MWF.

If you are an MWF member this sounds like something you would enjoy being part of, we would love to hear from you!

With work and family commitments easing, Sue began exploring how to contribute to her community in a more meaningful way. A chance meeting at the Philanthropy Australia conference led me to Melbourne Women's Foundation and opened the door to a new kind of giving... "If you’ve ever wondered what volunteering at MWF might be like, I encourage you to dip a toe in the water in 2026. You’ll find purpose, connection and a community of remarkable women who make this work deeply rewarding."  

Our heartfelt sympathy and our deepest compassion to our Jewish members and volunteers and all Jewish women and their families, during this difficult time. Please know that we stand beside you in solidarity as women committed to safety, dignity, and belonging for all women, and that our thoughts are with the victims, their loved ones and the Jewish community of Sydney.    

Throughout 2025, we focused on understanding the key issues that shape women’s safety, health and economic security, drawing on the knowledge of experts, practitioners and community leaders. These learning opportunities strengthen our giving circle: they ensure members are informed, our granting decisions are grounded in evidence and lived experience, and our advocacy remains connected to the realities women face every day.  

More than an awards night - and what a night it was!  On Thursday 23 October, our 2025 Changemaker Awards event featured two major grant categories, six nonprofit Finalists, and inspired proposals for empowering Melbourne women and families need. Thank you to all our financial year 2024/2025 members who collectively built this year's $169,000 grants funding pool and voted to award their grants to...

We are thrilled to share the six outstanding nonprofit Finalists for this year’s Melbourne Women’s Foundation Changemaker grants. Each are proposing or already delivering innovative, grass-roots responses to empower Melbourne women and families need. We invite you join us to hear from each Finalist directly as they take centre stage at our 2025 Changemaker Awards this Thursday, 23 October. Who will MWF members vote to receive the two major grants? This is much more than an awards night - it's the power of collective giving in action. 

Giving Power to Possibility  Thank you for your membership of our giving circle! With donors and friends, we gathered to hear directly the powerful stories of the impact of our grants awarded last year.  Heather Saunders, CEO of WomenCAN Australia, and PartnerSpeak’s, Karen Lancaster, Director of Services, with Anastasia Sabatino, gave us an update on progress, and the value each grant is delivering to their organisation and mission. Their stories were powerful reminders of what happens when we back women: caring support protects, and secure futures are shaped.  We thank everyone for their powerful presentations, the impact they have achieved so far, and the opportunity to meet them personally and ask further questions. These connections remain at the core of MWF's mission.

We are delighted to announce the appointment of Sharon McGowan AM and Jody Evans to the Board of Melbourne Women’s Foundation. Both women bring deep experience in for-purpose strategy, leadership and governance as well as a passion to progress our mission. Jody is a senior academic at Melbourne Business School with over 25 years of experience in marketing, leadership development, and the social purpose sector and Sharon is a dedicated MWF member since 2016 and an experienced nonprofit Chief Executive Officer and Non-Executive Board Director. As we welcome Jody and Sharon, we also celebrate the legacy of Christine Darcas and Amanda Thornton, who have vacated their Board member roles.  Read more about the unique contributions of Christine and Amanda and find out what inspires Sharon and Jody! 

We are proud to celebrate our history of inclusive leadership at MWF. Pat Burke, co-founder with Gillian Hund, has resigned her role as Chair. Pat will remain on the Board providing continuity and depth of experience.  Pat has offered leadership at every step of MWF’s development and growth as a giving circle and charity. A generous mentor and visionary, Pat is especially pleased to be creating space for those who will lead MWF into the future.   It is a great pleasure to offer warm congratulations to Leonie Boxtel, who succeeds Pat as our new MWF Chair!  Leonie joined the Board in September 2024, immediately offering her warmth, strategic mindset and depth of leadership within the philanthropic sector. 

At the heart of our healthcare system lies a persistent, hidden issue: gender bias. Women’s Health Victoria (WHV) is driving systemic change to ensure women, particularly those disadvantaged by poverty, cultural background and rural status, receive equitable healthcare. At MWF's June 5th event, WHV CEO Sally Hasler highlighted the challenges, opportunities and ways in which we may all contribute to change. Sally’s eye-opening presentation was almost eclipsed by the opening remarks of Emma Woolley, Partner at event host, Hall and Wilcox. How did she make the subject of Estate Planning intriguing, compelling and funny all at once...?

In early March, Next Gen members Meggan Boag, Linh Do and MWF NextGen Chair Hannah Doherty-McMillan had the pleasure of attending an engaging roundtable dinner co-hosted by the Melbourne Women’s Foundation, Philanthropy Australia, and She Gives (Noble Ambition). The event, which immediately followed the 2025 Nexus Australia Summit, was part of the Growing Women’s Giving initiative, a collaboration designed to explore what motivates women to give, and how we can build and sustain a stronger culture of generosity among women in Australia, especially as the Next Generation takes on more philanthropic involvement.

On Thursday 27 February, expert panellists Hana Assafiri, Adele Murdolo, Julie Kun and Sue-Ann Hunter joined moderator Tania Farha to discuss Gender-Based Violence and Community Action.