The Good Update - September newsletter, 20th anniversary edition
20 years ago a new migrant to Australia had a bold vision.
He had seen first hand in Africa how half the population was prevented from getting ahead by systemic barriers. He considered it to be an injustice.He also saw how entrepreneurship could be a vehicle for empowerment, not only economic empowerment but also personal empowerment and freedom - and create a path out of poverty. In fact he had been at the helm of one of the largest microfinance organisations in Africa, and saw great potential for similar models in Asia and the Pacific, his new neighbourhood.
That man was Guy Winship. I met Guy just as he was registering the organisation that would become Good Return, in September 2003. He would become my boss, my mentor, and one of my dearest friends. Guy had the courage to come to a new country and create a community based organisation. He had the audacity to tackle a goal as seemingly intractable as global poverty. And he had the tenacity to see it through.
Today we celebrate twenty years of pursuing Guy’s noble ambition. Sadly we lost Guy five years ago, but as you read the stories of the work we are doing to realise his vision, I’m sure you’ll agree that it is very much alive and well.
Over the past two decades we have supported dozens of local partner organisations across seventeen countries in our region, enabling hundreds of thousands of low income and marginalised people, especially women, to build financial security and contribute to their families and community, creating a positive and compounded impact on the world in which we live.
We are pleased to have seen global poverty rates halve over this period. But despite the successes, much remains to be done. We are still a long way from achieving the first UN Sustainable Development Goal of eradicating poverty by 2030, and the challenges of climate change and rising inequality compound the urgency of this task, requiring us to develop new approaches and collaborations. Our strategic plan lays the foundations for success, and we remain as committed as ever to achieving this goal.
Thank you for journeying with us, past and future, in our quest to break the cycle of poverty and create a more equitable world.
Shane Nichols, CEO
The stars of Good Return
Over our twenty year journey, so many wonderful people have helped build and shape Good Return into the organisation it is today. In our recent social media campaign we highlighted the ‘stars of Good Return’ - former staff, representatives from our partners and supporters and the people who were there right from the beginning. When we interviewed each Good Return star, most highlighted that being part of Good Return was one of their professional or personal highlights. Lots of people shared memories of projects or trips to the field, like Pam Jonas, our founding Chair:
“I have great memories of a Board trip we took to Cambodia and the opportunity to travel with a financial trainer to a village to do a training session with a group of amazing women - his ‘powerpoint’ being a washing line with posters pegged to it! All this and a visit to a cricket farm where our loan recipient was raising crickets for the hospitality market!!”
Scroll through our gallery of stars below - perhaps you’ll spot a familiar face!
The heart of the issue
As we look forward to the next twenty years of Good Return, we know there are three big issues we need to tackle - financial inclusion, gender equality and building resilience to climate change.
At our recent Anniversary Fundraiser event, our Good Return team members made powerful presentations on the urgency of these issues and how we are addressing them in Nepal, Cambodia and Papua New Guinea. On the night, we raised $168,000 from our generous supporters who were moved to act after listening to the pitches.
If you’re passionate about changing the lives of women, building opportunity for people with disabilities or helping farmers prepare for climate change, then donations are still open for our anniversary fundraiser. Listen to the pitches here and go with your heart!
The road very travelled
Imagine.
It’s -2 degrees Celsius. Your breath fogs up the bus window as you rumble and bump along the road. Rising to your left, an imposing mountain range. To your right, a sheer drop. You are in the Solukhumbu district in the Mt Everest region of Nepal and your bus is on a 14-hour off-track trip from Kathmandu. Whilst the bus will take you as far as it can go – a two day, 15,000-step-a-day trek through hilly terrain still awaits you.
This is the very real journey a Good Return team member might take when working to deliver our financial capability training to remote communities in Nepal. The trips made by our teams in Solomon Islands and PNG are equally adventurous! Read more in our travel blog here.
Hit the shops with the Maganda Makers!
Get ready to shop with the newly launched Maganda Makers Virtual Shopping Trail! This online shopping experience is a wonderful way to connect with the women of the Maganda Makers Business Club, a community of Indigenous women building business in the Kimberley region.
The Maganda Makers initiative goes from strength to strength and we were thrilled to recently announce our new funding partner: the Paul Ramsay Foundation. We have also received a grant from Conellan Airways Trust. The program, delivered in partnership with Kimberley Jiyigas, Menzies Foundation and Good Return, is set to grow and connect more women in business across the country.
