People with Purpose: Andrew’s mission to make us all philanthropists

Posted on 18 Mar 2025

By Greg Thom, Institute of Community Directors Australia

As he approaches the end of his first year in the job, Andrew Binns is loving his time as the chief executive officer at Australian Communities Foundation, where he’s helping more Australians think of themselves as philanthropists.

Tell us about your background in the community sector.

For the past 16 years, I’ve worked at the intersection of community development and philanthropy, primarily in international development with World Vision Australia. My work has focused on supporting communities to create programs that drive social and environmental change while also engaging governments and everyday Australians to champion the causes they care about. As chief of private funding at World Vision, I played a key role in mobilising support to drive meaningful impact and have been privileged to work with some amazing staff and communities across Africa, Asia, Australia and the Pacific.

How did you come to join Australian Communities Foundation?

Most Australians don’t think of themselves as philanthropists, but Australian Communities Foundation (ACF) is changing that. What drew me to ACF is its focus on empowering people from all walks of life to use whatever resources they have to make a difference. It’s incredible to be part of something that turns generosity into real, meaningful change.

Having grown up on a farm in country Victoria, I’ve always known the importance of community, of being part of something bigger than yourself – understanding you can do more together than you can alone. There is a real sense of community that exists within ACF, and whether you have a million dollars or a thousand dollars to donate, you can be part of a community creating positive change – and that’s exciting.

What is Australian Communities Foundation's role?

As Australia’s only national community foundation, Australian Communities Foundation plays a key role in making strategic giving accessible to people across the country. Our core purpose is to activate a nation of givers for a fairer and more sustainable Australia.

From our beginnings in 1997, we have grown into a national philanthropic services provider, supporting our community of over 650 funds and foundations to give effectively to the causes they care about.

We also often talk about our role in terms of being a broker of change, connecting people who can give with the changemakers and organisations leading the way.

Every year, the ACF community gives approximately $30 million to nonprofit organisations working across the country. We also help nonprofits build endowments through our Future Funds offering.

"I’d love to see philanthropy in Australia embraced as part of our culture – something that belongs to everyone, not just those making the headlines."

What is the most important thing you have learned from philanthropy? 

Philanthropy has shown me the power of collaboration – how people coming together with a shared purpose can create lasting change. And it’s not just for the ultra-wealthy.

On a large scale, philanthropy can do things that governments and individuals alone often can’t. It can bring together people with an aligned purpose to provide resources – financial or otherwise – to help solve complex problems.

We’ve all heard stories of amazing generosity – philanthropists funding breakthroughs in cancer research or opening the doors to university for thousands of disadvantaged students.

What often goes unnoticed is the everyday philanthropy happening in communities all around the world. The gifting of a clean cookstove by a fellow community member to a household living below the poverty line in Tanzania, the donation to your local kindergarten to ensure it is able to employ a specialist teacher for a child with a disability, or volunteering at the local op shop so that funds raised can support a child’s education.

These small-scale donations, a few hours of volunteering or offering support to someone in need are often overlooked as acts of philanthropy, but when added together, can create a ripple effect within a community.

More than six million Australians volunteered last year, and small-scale donations and community-led fundraising contribute billions to for-purpose organisations. I’d love to see philanthropy in Australia embraced as part of our culture – something that belongs to everyone, not just those making the headlines. Because when we all take part, the impact is extraordinary.

Who do you admire most in the world and why? 

While my parents are certainly top of the list in terms of who I admire, I think I’m going to nominate a community I visited in rural Ethiopia about 10 years ago. I still think about them today.

By most measures, we would see this community as being part of the lowest quintile from a socio-economic perspective, with little access to nutritious food, low levels of education given the only school was a two-hour walk away, and extremely basic housing given the lack of electricity. Yet I have never felt such a strong sense of purpose, of community, and of hope as I felt from this community. It completely reframed my mindset as to how we find purpose and meaning, and it’s something that has stayed with me ever since. I’m constantly reminding my kids (and myself) of what we have, not what we don’t have.