By Abbie Mitchell, General Manager Youth Programs, Jane Goodall Australia (JGIA)
Thanks so much to everyone that submitted an application to receive a Roots & Shoots 2020 Mini Grant.
The opportunity to provide Mini Grants is an integral part of Jane Goodall Australia’s Roots & Shoots program: every year we offer funds of $500 and $250 to help young people bring their ideas that benefit animals, people and environment to life. Fundamentally it allows us to acknowledge, encourage and support important environmental activity by our members, demonstrating that by leading by example, and tackling environmental issues at a local scale, together we can drive global change.
This year we are very excited to support an amazing array of projects which absolutely embody the proactive spirit of Roots & Shoots. For 2020 there is definitely an emphasis, even repetition, on the theme of habitat improvements for pollinators. As a keystone ecosystem service, and basis for all food webs, Roots & Shoots very much welcomes as much activity in this area as possible!
There are a number of standout projects that impressed the judges and certainly brought a smile to our faces. Congratulations to Diamond Creek Public School for coming up with a creative solution to welcome wombats in their school. And to Riverside Kensington Community Group, who are set to grow a rooftop feast for the occupants of their apartment block in urban Melbourne. Awarding the Mini Grants is an absolute joy for JGIA as we witness that the seed funding we provide ($500 or $250) blossoms into amazing benefits for animals, people and our shared environment.
Thanks to the generous support of the Une Parkinson Foundation, this year we were able to provide a record number of 27 mini grants! The successful applicants were selected by a panel of JGIA staff according to the strength of the idea and potential impact of the project. We admit that we are a bit sneaky with the application process, because we intended for applicants to think carefully about how they will do their activity, including all the steps and costs involved. As planning is such a huge part of every successful project, so in providing us with this detail, entrants are already well on the way to getting started!
We were conscious of selecting a suite of projects that together provide inspiration and diversity in representing a variety of approaches to benefit animals, people and the environment. From the range of outstanding applications we received, we awarded Mini Grants to entries representing activity in almost all states.
Once again, congratulations to all of our winning applicants. We are busting to see the outcomes from all of these wonderful activities and sharing your stories with our Roots & Shoots community.
To see our full list of winners, and more on their awesome projects, head to rootsandshoots.org.au/minigrants
