We recently received a donation of $216.35 from five friends in Northbridge Public School Class 2B:  Alice Berkelouw, Tia McIntosh, Beatrice O’Brian, Abbie Harris and Heidi Heap, aged 7 & 8. Tia’s mother told us how it came about.

At school the girls had been learning about fundraising, and also about coral bleaching. The bleaching made them very sad.  After seeing videos, they decided to do something about it.

On their own initiative, they produced a flier, distributed it to neighbours, baked cookies, made lemonade, and set up a Saturday afternoon stall.

They had to find a worthy recipient for the funds they raised. With help from parents, they searched on Google, considered the options and chose LIRRF.

We LIRRF Trustees couldn’t be more delighted. Our approach is different to other Reef foundations we know.  We and our families are all significant donors in our own right, and we operate with very low overhead expenses (no premises, no employees – we all work as volunteers). All donations we receive go to supporting science at the Australian Museum’s Lizard Island Research Station and elsewhere on the Great Barrier Reef.

LIRRF work requires a lot of pro bono time – administering research and Fellowship programs, accounting, auditing, liaising with the Museum and Station staff, and providing Updates to keep our Members & Friends informed on how their funds are being put to good use. We (and our auditors PwC) give this time gladly because science on the Reef is a truly worthwhile cause.  It feels even more worthwhile when we receive donations like this one from the five friends at Northbridge Public.

The image below was part of the flyer they produced. We can’t promise to single-handedly save the environment, but we do promise important science, and we do expect it will lead to better policy and political decisions for future generations.