Since the doors opened in 1928, GHD's people have cared about our local communities, supporting many worthwhile causes such as RedR, Habitat for Humanity, UNICEF and many others.
Our people have built strong local relationships over the years.
And we've always favoured causes that deliver tangible results because it’s about getting stuff done.
2020 brought COVID, fires and floods and highlighted the need for greater action to address racial and economic inequality.
These things had a big impact no us and people all over the world were asking ‘how can I help?’ Our local community work didn’t seem enough.
GHD had grown into an 11,000-people-strong, global success. We had the resources to do more.
And our people had already shown how much they cared about giving back.
It got us thinking: if we took the initiative and coordinated things, we could amplify our impact locally and globally.
The GHD Foundation was born and GHD committed to giving at least 1% of profits to the Foundation.
In the first year, the Foundation had a broad focus, and we learned an important lesson - we tried to tackle too many issues and our resources were spread too thin. We were diluting our
impact.
The Foundation continues its aim to build resilient communities globally by tackling water, energy and urbanisation challenges.
To do this, we will focus on the engine room of GHD's expertise - Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics (STEAM).
There are many groups under-represented in STEAM disciplines including women and girls, first nations peoples, ethnics and cultural minorities, regional and remote communities and people who
face financial barriers. By giving more people access to STEAM education and career opportunities, we can make a bigger difference.
The Foundation will have a range of global STEAM initiatives, including building partnerships that can further amplify our impact and our efforts.
The Foundation will work with GHD people, through GHD in the Community, to strengthen the impact of local initiatives and help make a difference in the communities where we live and work.
As we grow, we’ll tackle more ambitious projects, like improving STEAM accessibility and affordability through grants, scholarships, bursaries and research.
It’s not hard to imagine that within a few years, we will have built a global reputation for our commitment to increasing equitable access to STEAM education. This includes partnering with like-minded industries to amplify our impact even more.
It’s not about flag-waving – it’s about leading by example.
By doing these things, we can empower communities to build the skills of the future required to tackle their complex challenges.
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