Our Priorities

Commencing in 2024, the Nelson Meers Foundation has two funding streams – Culture and Civil Society.  

For the past 25 years, the Nelson Meers Foundation's key objective has been to foster innovative artistic and cultural expression, and to encourage greater engagement with the diversity, complexity and richness of our cultural sector. We have done this by supporting organisations and projects that utilise the arts to create positive social change, promote individual wellbeing, community cohesion and cultural tolerance. 

Our experience during this time, through the wisdom of the many project partners we have worked with, and the more recent engagement of the next generation of the Meers family, has led us to expand our funding remit to achieve greater progress in key social justice issues.  Whilst we will continue our legacy of supporting the cultural sector, we will also include in our funding considerations for the 2024-2028 strategic period a small number of projects coalescing around investment in civil society partners working towards the systems change we need to strengthen our democracy and build an inclusive economy.  With the available budget is it anticipated that a maximum of three grants will be awarded, providing multi-year operating support with grant commitments extending over up to three years.