From time to time, Australian Sailing is approached by organisations to either endorse, support or donate to charitable or other not for profit causes.

Australian Sailing has long been committed to supporting relevant organisations who share a similar commitment to our stated values and align with key strategic initiatives set out in the delivery of Australian Sailing’s 10-year Strategic Plan which are:

1. Environment
2. Diversity and Inclusion
3. Safety

This year we have reviewed the organisations that we support and are proud to announce the following Supported Organisations selected for 2023:

Safety - Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Trust

The Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Trust was established following the 1998 Sydney Hobart Yacht Race and has three clear objectives:

• To assist the immediate needy family of those lost at sea during Australian Sailing sanctioned races;
• To provide assistance to search and rescue organisations;
• Foster research and training to improve procedures and equipment for use at sea.

Since its foundation in 1999, the SOLAS Trust has distributed more than $1.6 million to search and rescue services around Australia.

Environment - Clean up Australia

More than 20 million Aussies have participated in Clean Up Australia activities and events over the past three decades. Over that time Clean Up Australia has evolved to provide practical solutions to help all Australians live more sustainably every day of the year, and emerged as one of the country’s most recognised, credible and trusted environmental charities.

Diversity and Inclusion - Pride in Sport

Pride in Sport is a national not-for-profit sporting inclusion program specifically designed to assist sporting organisations of all levels with the inclusion of employees, athletes, coaches, volunteers and spectators with diverse sexualities and genders. The program has three core pillars in commitment (as Pride in Sport Members), measurement (via the Pride in Sport Index), and recognition (celebrated at the Australian Pride in Sport Awards).

Australian Sailing will be providing marketing support to each of the above Supported Organisations and will work with them on key initiatives over the course of 2023.

Australian Sailing will normally review the organisations it supports every two years. To be considered for AS support, it is recommended that an organisation must meet the following criteria:

• Supports the vision and values; and have objectives consistent with AS strategic priorities.
• Are a Not For Profit or charity organisation registered with the Australian Charities and Not-For Profits Commission (ACNC);
• Have a project registered with the Australian Sports Foundation, or other online mechanism for collecting donations

Excluded organisations include:

• For profit businesses
• Individuals or teams

AS cannot sponsor, collect, distribute or donate to a member organisation (clubs or class associations) or their activities - as this is considered by ASIC as a distribution of funds to a member.

For more information visit Australian Sailing’s Supported Organisations page.