Stories of Giving and Receiving

Bevis Masson-Leach: Empowering Youth Through Music 🎶

In this episode, we chat with Bevis Masson-Leach, a music producer and youth workshop facilitator who used a Backing the Future [https://vfff.org.au/backing-the-future/] grant to run transformative music workshops for young people in regional New South Wales. Bevis’s mission wasn’t to just create music, but to use song writing as a vehicle for the participants to express themselves in a safe space. Collaborating with local artists in Armidale, Moree, Nambucca Valley, and Newcastle, Bevis ran four three-day workshops where young people not only explored their creativity through music but in many instances built confidence and friendships that they wouldn’t otherwise have found.  As he says, “a little bit of positive reinforcement can go a long way”, especially when working with young people from challenging backgrounds. He also shares some excellent tips for anyone applying for further funding, and how creating content during workshops can be used for future applications to showcase what impact has been made and help you stand out from the crowd. At the end of this conversation, you’ll hear a little of one of the songs created during the Armidale workshop - In the Streets, with vocals from young musician YK.  Learn more about Bevis’ work at papertoymusic.com [https://www.papertoymusic.com/] 🎧 Listen in and discover how music can spark positive change and empower young people. If you loved this episode, we’d love it if you shared it with a friend so they can hear the insights too!  For more about the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, head to vfff.org.au [https://vfff.org.au/].

Callum Champagne: Cultivating Change🌱

In this episode, we chat with Cal Champagne, founder of Grow the Future [https://growthefuture.com.au/] Bega, a social enterprise on a mission to create meaningful opportunities for young people through regenerative farming. Cal received his Backing the Future [https://vfff.org.au/backing-the-future/] grant in November 2022 after moving back home to the Bega Valley, and chats with Emilia about his early beginnings in the Illawarra and how the BTF grant was a seed starter for more funding which has enabled the enterprise to work with 176 young people over the past 12 months, employed 34 people, and put 26 through their vocational training program.  He also shares insights around challenges with disengagement, working on the land (that flooded twice in seven months!) and how sometimes you don’t need to “scale up” to keep having impact in a community.   Learn more about Callum’s work: growthefuture.com.au [https://growthefuture.com.au/] 🎧 Ready for some inspiration? Tune in to explore the power of social innovation, youth empowerment, and sustainable farming. Don’t miss this thought-provoking conversation! If you loved this episode, we’d love it if you shared it with a friend so they can hear the insights too!  For more about the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, head to vfff.org.au [https://vfff.org.au/].

Rizina Yadav: Amplifying Young Women's Voices Through Research and Advocacy 📢

In this episode, we chat with Rizina Yadav, founder of Young Women’s Alliance [https://www.youngwomensallianceaus.com/] about her experience receiving a Backing the Future [https://vfff.org.au/backing-the-future/] grant.  Rizina shares her remarkable journey from growing up in regional Australia to studying at Stanford University, and her deep passion for creating social impact.  With the grant, Rizina created a nationally representative research study on young women aged 18-28 through 300 long-form interviews, a national gender survey with 3000 respondents, 77 expert consultations, and a literature review of 800 academic articles, all the while engaging 17 young women from across Australia to assist with the research. This work resulted in two reports - 'Young Minds, Old Biases: The Gender-Based Violence Crisis' and the 'Young Women's Policy Submission' which were submitted to state and federal parliament. Rizina reflects on her initial youthful naivety and idealism, to the importance of careful planning for success, as well as why sometimes you need a plan B, C, D, and even E. She shares insights on what it was like to work influencing and informing government policy, and interacting with senior politicians and government departments.  Rizina also offers valuable advice for grant applicants and explores the critical role philanthropy plays in the research and policy space in a non-partisan manner.  Learn more about Rizina’s work: rizinayadav.com [https://rizinayadav.com/] and youngwomensallianceaus.com [http://youngwomensallianceaus.com] 🎧 Join us for an insightful discussion about the intersection of youth advocacy, social change, and the transformative power of philanthropy! If you loved this episode, we’d love it if you shared it with a friend so they can hear the insights too!  For more about the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, head to vfff.org.au [https://vfff.org.au/].

Jameson Harvey: Inspiring the Next Generation of STEM Innovators 🤖

In this episode we chat with Jameson Harvey, who founded Red Dirt Robotics [https://reddirtrobotics.com.au/] after graduating high school in 2021. Jameson is on a mission to inspire young people across Australia with STEM. With the help of a Backing the Future [https://vfff.org.au/backing-the-future/] grant, Jameson ran robotics workshops across 35 schools, working with 910 kids and 100 staff all across Queensland, starting in the Darling Downs and zig-zagging up to Cape York touching as many regional schools as he could. Jameson shares his journey through the challenges of reaching remote communities to his joy in seeing students’ enthusiasm for technology as he “disguises the learning as fun”.  He also discusses the crucial role of teacher training in STEM, how teaching robotics and technology is not that tricky (as long as the kids are confident enough to give it a crack), and the importance of making tech education accessible to all, no matter where they live. Learn more about Jameson’s work: reddirtrobotics.com.au [https://reddirtrobotics.com.au/] 🎧 Don’t miss this inspiring chat on how robotics is opening doors to STEM education in regional Australia! If you loved this episode, we’d love it if you shared it with a friend so they can hear the insights too!  For more about the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, head to vfff.org.au [https://vfff.org.au/].

Sarah Chapman: Paving the Way for Girls in STEM💡

In this episode, we chat with Sarah Chapman [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-chapman-fraci-4bb69697/?originalSubdomain=au], founder of STEM Changemakers [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htXlfHfG2ys], who dedicated a year to creating life-changing STEM programs for disadvantaged girls in regional North Queensland with her Backing the Future [https://vfff.org.au/backing-the-future/] grant. Passionate about increasing access to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, Sarah explains how the grant enabled her to create a program that not only empowered girls to pursue STEM careers but also intercepted with community and industry involvement where the girls could pitch industry solutions - some of the girls providing ideas in just 30 minutes that industry hadn’t come up with in two years. Sarah achieved 581 engagements with family supporters, teachers, girls, industry, and community.  She says her greatest measure of success was hearing from teachers about how the program positively impacted the girls' attitudes to education in the classroom overall.  Learn more about Sarah’s work: @STEMChangemakers [https://www.youtube.com/@STEMChangemakers]  🎧 Tune in to hear how STEM Changemakers is breaking down barriers for girls and young women in rural and regional Queensland to pursue careers in STEM.  If you loved this episode, we’d love it if you shared it with a friend so they can hear the insights too!  For more about the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation, head to vfff.org.au [https://vfff.org.au/].