People with Purpose: Giving is all about the magic, not the money

Can you tell us about yourself and your earliest reflections on giving?

We grew up in a family that didn't have a lot. We grew up with this idea that even though we didn't have a lot, we shouldn't complain and that we could help others who were less well off. I have memories of my parents putting together a hamper at Christmas to give to another Aboriginal family that was worse off than us.

This fundamental principle of reciprocity—that you give what you can to those who need it and then take what you need when you need it—was a very big part of our Aboriginal culture.

I was lucky to grow up with a very strong sense of helping others. It wasn't necessarily financial because we didn't have a lot of money. But the idea of gathering items from family, friends and neighbours to pull together these hampers to give to others was one that has always stayed with me.

What does giving mean to you?

Giving means different things in different areas of my life. My husband and I give to our extended family. For us to help someone do something that is a big thing for them, yet a small thing for us, is very rewarding.

I also give in the education space. Public education gave me the foundation to have a better life and I feel incredibly indebted to that. I give to my old high school through funding two prizes and some Indigenous programming. That giving is a very personal thing for me.

Our contribution to the arts, however, is different. We’ve supported Wesley Enoch and Jake Nash’s programming at Sydney Festival as a way of contributing to cultural regeneration and cultural storytelling. Dance is a passion of mine. We give to the Sydney Dance Company because supporting somebody like Artistic Director Rafael Bonachela—who does things I'd never be able to do—gives me a wonderful sense of being included in something amazing. We also give to the Australian Museum which is doing important cultural repatriation work. Although these institutions are not specifically Indigenous, we see them as culturally important.

Across our portfolio of giving, we have a range of different things that are meaningful to us. Some of our donations are very small and others are quite substantial. We're not wealthy. Both my husband and I come from poor families. We don't have inherited wealth or a family trust but we're mindful of giving back in a way that provides us with an enormous amount of satisfaction. It makes us feel like we're making a broader impact and using our advantages for good. You don't have to be a high-net-wealth individual to get real joy out of giving across a range of causes.

What drives your giving?

I think the Indigenous values I was brought up with are a very big part of what drives my giving and the satisfaction we get from seeing the impact of our contributions. There is an enormous amount of personal reward in that.

We're contributing to things that are bigger than we are. Some issues can feel really overwhelming to address, like climate change. But through our giving we contribute to something bigger and that will probably have more impact than what we could do as individuals.

You are on the board of many of the organisations you give to. Why is giving as a board member important?

I have a very strong view that people on the board of arts organisations should give because philanthropy is a large part of our responsibility, as a board. If we’re asking someone for money, it’s important to say that we give as well. These amounts don't have to be huge.

Obviously, people have different capabilities. But to say that we are an all-giving board makes a really big difference in terms of how you achieve the philanthropic ambitions of the organisation.

When I was Chair of Bangarra Dance Theatre, I would buy every ticket for every performance we went to. It meant that when someone—who I knew had a good income—asked me for free tickets, I could say, ‘Why don't you do what I do and pay for the privilege of seeing the company?’ These things add to the contribution that you are making and show how much you value the company. Of course, there has to be alignment. Every board I've invested my time in is an organisation that I have loved before I decided to join.

What are some key learnings from your giving?

As somebody who loves the arts, there's something magical about watching how that giving helps develop somebody's creativity. [2] And when that starts to give back, you feel like a deeper part of it. One of our Sydney Festival gifts went towards ‘Big Name, No Blankets’, and it was very satisfying for me to be in the audience of that fabulous show celebrating a slice of Indigenous culture and history. I grew up with that music. You can't put a dollar value on that.

Sometimes it's not even about the amount you give. I’ve found this to be very much true in the education space. If you give a little award to an Aboriginal student, it may not be a lot of money, but the big reward is that child seeing someone believe in them. I don't know how you quantify that? That kind of giving is quite addictive! The feeling of contributing to something bigger, and playing a small part in someone’s journey, is really significant.

What are your ambitions for giving into the future, both personally and for Australia in general?

Michael and I want to continue contributing to the cultural life of this country and to the institutions we think are important. We’re both ‘working-class kids done good’ so will always remain deeply committed to education. And we're also reaching that stage where we need to think about what kind of legacy we might leave for the organisations that have given us so much.

In terms of Australia, I think that our arts organisations have really evolved in their thinking around the role of board members and the responsibility we have to give. I would love for people to think more broadly about philanthropy and not as something that’s only for rich white people. It’s about changing the mindset and realising that when we pull together and make little donations, we're investing in things that are meaningful.

For me, there's a piece around public education. There's a piece around cultural institutions. There's a piece around the vibrancy of Aboriginal culture and there's a piece around the environment. I see all of these things as being absolutely essential for a creative, sustainable, engaged Australia that encompasses the things I love the most about our country.

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Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO, a Euahleyai/Gamillaroi woman, is the Laureate Fellow at the Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning at the University of Technology Sydney. Larissa is also an award-winning author, filmmaker and radio host.

This Q&A was first published here as part of the She Gives campaign.