What is Oaktree?
The Oaktree Foundation is Australia’s first and largest youth-run development agency.
We’re another garage-startup. We began in 2003 with 30 people, working in living rooms and public halls. Now we’ve grown to become an established NGO, comprising of 300 volunteer staff and seven fully operational state offices.
We’ve recently been recognized by the UN for our innovation and effectiveness in youth-lead poverty action. This year, we were a finalist for the WA Youth Awards. Our campaigns have included Live Below the Line and the 2005 MAKE POVERTY HISTORY concert.
Every year, more and more young volunteers join us for experiences they could have nowhere else. Want to learn more about our history? Read on…
Contact
General enquiries: info@theoaktree.org
Full contact information available (State contact details, etc.) here.
Oaktree Showreel
Get Involved
Hugh Evans lived and worked in the rural valley communities of KwaZulul-Natal, South Africa. Here he came to understand that bringing opportunity and hope to the community could only be achieved through a spirit of partnership.
Oaktree grew from young people sitting in living rooms, cafes, school classrooms and church halls throughout Melbourne who were committed to building on this vision.
Our first partnership was created with an organisation in South Africa called Sethani. Sethani set out to build a community resource centre that would provide educational opportunity for 750 orphans and vulnerable children. The success of this program has continued with many more similar initiatives developed in other countries.
Oaktree today
Since 2003, Oaktree has emerged as one of the most dynamic and groundbreaking development and aid organisations in Australia. Our volunteers are provocative, dedicated and determined.
We now have more than 73,000 members, have spoken directly to well over 500,000 individuals about extreme poverty, and achieved an incredible media reach of over 100 million.
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