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Airbnb announces Community Fund grant for the Reef
The Great Barrier Reef Foundation, Take 3 for the Sea, Rotary Adelaide, WISE Employment and Asylum Seeker Resource Centre will all receive grants from the 2023 Airbnb Community Fund. Created in 2020 as part of our commitment to share our success with our stakeholders, the Airbnb Community Fund will distribute $100 million USD by the end of 2030 to strengthen communities around the world.
Celebrating its third year, the Airbnb Community Fund granted $10 million USD to organisations supporting communities around the world in 2023, including more than 120 nonprofits across 44 countries on six continents. Nearly $8 million USD was directed in partnership with our Hosts, who selected the key themes and identified organisations in the communities they call home.
This year’s Community Fund grants support both larger, national and regional organisations that tackle societal-level issues identified by our Host Advisory Board and hyperlocal, community-based organisations chosen by local Host Club members.
2023 Community Fund recipients in Australia
The Airbnb Host Advisory Board, a group of 23 Hosts appointed to represent the global Host community, selected Australian organisations including the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, Take 3 for the Sea, Rotary Adelaide, WISE Employment and Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.
Led by volunteer Hosts, Host Clubs are local communities of Hosts who come together to connect with each other and with Airbnb. Host Club leaders worked with their members to identify, nominate and vote on organisations having deep impact in their local communities.
Great Barrier Reef Foundation Managing Director Anna Marsden said the $225,000 USD donation will support their work on scaling solutions that restore and enhance the resilience of coral reefs and ocean habitats.
“Coral reefs are the beating heart of our oceans. They’re a nursery and safe haven for a quarter of all marine life and support a billion people. But the Great Barrier Reef, and coral reefs around the world, are the most vulnerable ecosystems on the planet and they need our help to safeguard their future from the impacts of climate change.
“The Great Barrier Reef Foundation is very grateful for the generosity of the Airbnb Community Fund, which enables us to continue to protect this irreplaceable ecosystem, which like Airbnb, hosts millions of visitors annually and the incredible diversity of wildlife that call it home.”
Susan Wheeldon, Airbnb Country Manager, Australia and New Zealand said, “We are delighted to be able to provide support for the Great Barrier Reef Foundation through our Airbnb Community Fund grant program. The team works tirelessly to preserve our reef - one of the seven natural wonders of the world here in our own backyard.
“When Hosts on Airbnb open their doors to travellers from around the world, they welcome their guests into their communities, too. In Australia this means sharing the incredible natural beauty that is on offer and we know that this is a major drawcard for many of our visitors and it’s critical that we work together to protect our incredible surroundings.”
The Airbnb Community Fund in action To date, the Airbnb Community Fund has distributed more than $25 million in grants to organisations around the world, with Hosts providing guidance each year. In its inaugural year, grants were directed to organisations that helped meet the unprecedented needs brought about by the pandemic. In 2022, the Community Fund supported organisations working to protect our planet and promote environmental sustainability. Many of these organisations have shared how these donations directly impacted their work and communities. Last year, Airbnb donated to Friends of the Australian Bush Heritage Fund to empower Bush Heritage Australia’s conservation efforts, including supporting Aboriginal partnerships and other critical needs.
Through these initiatives, Airbnb continues to invest in the communities where we operate, empowering our Hosts and supporting causes that matter most to our stakeholders. We look forward to continuing this work in the years to come. To learn more about the Community Fund and the grant recipients, please visit the Airbnb Community Fund website.
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