The ARA Group continues to believe that it has a responsibility to assist the communities where we operate. Since 2001, the ARA Group has contributed significantly to the community relative to the profits of the Group.
Disaster relief
In 2021 and 2022, the ARA Group has donated $100,000 per year to Givit, a national charity helping Australians in need. These funds have contributed to the desperate need among many Australians created by the floods and other natural disasters. Givit has little administrative overhead, so more than 90 per cent of our donations reach the people in need.
Literature
In 2020, the ARA Group established the ARA Historical Novel Prize in partnership with the Historical Novel Society Australasia. This literary prize recognises historical fiction and ARA provides $100,000 of prize monies making this literary prize the richest genre prize in Australia and New Zealand. The ARA Historical Novel Prize comprises both an Adult category and a Children and Young Adult (CYA) category with $50,000 to the Adult category winner and $30,000 to the CYA category winner. For both categories, an additional $5,000 is awarded to each of the remaining two shortlisted authors. The ARA Group also supports the Historical Novel Society’s biennial conference.
In addition, the ARA Group is the Principal Partner of the Sydney Writers’ Festival. ARA has supported the Sydney Writers’ Festival since 2016 and is committed to continue as the Principal Partner. The Sydney Writers’ Festival brings hundreds of authors together with more than 80,000 attendees each year. The ARA Group has also been the Principal Partner of the Melbourne Writers’ Festival since 2020. The Melbourne Writers’ Festival has more than 150 events with hundreds of authors and brings together tens of thousands people who have a love of literature.
Arts and Higher Education
The ARA Group is the Principal Partner for Property Services for the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) and we have made a multi-year commitment to NIDA. As a part of the ARA Principal Partner sponsorship, three $10,000 scholarships are given each year to three Indigenous students studying at NIDA.
Arts and Literature for Children
The Sydney Writers’ Festival’s (SWF) Russ the Bus initiative brings books to children in disadvantaged areas of New South Wales. In addition to being the Principal Partner of the SWF, the ARA Group contributes significantly to Russ the Bus to promote and boost literacy in children. Our hope is that the children receiving books and meeting the authors of many of those books develop a lifelong love of reading.
The ARA Group is a key partner of the Story Factory, a not-for-profit creative writing centre for young people in under-resourced communities across New South Wales. The goal of the Story Factory is to build writing skills, confidence and creativity. Founded in 2012 by Dr Catherine Keenan, the Story Factory has taken more than 30,000 student enrolments. Today, the Story Factory works with as many as 1,000 students a week. The impact on the students participating in the Story Factory program is considerable in terms of increased confidence, improved literacy and enjoyment of writing.
Conservation
ARA’s longest partner in the community is the Taronga Zoo. ARA began supporting the Taronga Zoo in 2009and our annual contribution has grown consistently during the period of our support. We have just committed to being a Crown Sponsor, the second highest category of support, for the next three years. During the bush fires of 2019-2020, the ARA Group donated an additional $50,000 to help save the koalas affected by the fires.
The ARA Group acknowledges the connection of people, land and communities within the areas that we work. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
We seek to maintain meaningful partnerships by undertaking the appropriate engagement practices within our business and for our communities. We know the importance of respecting, understanding and sharing the oldest living cultures in the world.
