Seeding Strength Grants
Seeding Strength Grants distributes funds to young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and organisations fighting injustice and building Blak power.
What are the Seeding Strength Grants?
Seeding Strength Grants provide funding to young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (16-35) and organisations fighting injustice and building Blak power across the country. We are offering two types of grants:
- Rapid response (open all year round, however 2025 funds are currently exhausted – please email firstnations@fya.org.au for more information): First Nations young people (aged 16-35 years) can apply for rapid response grants of $2,000 to $10,000 for urgent campaigns / movements / initiatives relating to social change in response to systematic oppression & specific injustices of First Nations young people.
- Campaign, movement or project based (currently open): First Nations young people (aged 16-35 years) can apply for grants (from $2,000 to $50,000) to support core funding for existing or new campaigns, movements and projects in our five impact areas:
- Truthtelling and storytelling
- Decolonising, dismantling and re-Indigenising
- Building and strengthening movements, campaigns
- Global solidarity
- Blak future planning
Why?
FYA’s Seeding Strength grants program is a unique initiative where young First Nations people determine the impact areas and select the applications through our First Nations Governance Group. We acknowledge that, as a mainstream organisation, it is our responsibility to provide resources and remove barriers for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals accessing funds in their communities.
Young First Nations people decide why, how, and to who these grants are administered to.
When are applications open?
Rapid response: Open all year round, however 2025 funds are currently exhausted – please email firstnations@fya.org.au for more information
Applications for Rapid Response grants are open all year round and the application process is streamlined. Submit an application via the Seeding Strength application form and we’ll make initial contact within a week, but allow a month for the turn around of funds if successful. We will aim to get them to you as soon as possible.
2025 Campaign, movement or project grants: Currently open
| Expressions of interest open | 1 September |
| Expressions of interest close | 21 September |
| Online info session | 15 September 6PM AEST |
| Shortlist notified | 25 September |
| Final recipients notified | 30 October |
| Grantees announced and funds released | Mid-November |
Who can apply?
Seeding Strength Grants are open to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander young people (aged 16-35) fighting injustice and building Blak power.
You can apply for this grant if you are:
- An Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person;
- Aged 16-35 years of age (priority will be given to young mob under 25 years of age);
- An Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander community controlled organisation;
- An Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander run movement or collective.
- You can also apply on someone else’s behalf.
You cannot apply for this grant if you are:
- An Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person who works for a non-Indigenous organisation and is applying for these funds on their behalf.
Priority will be given to grassroots and not-for-profit campaigns, projects, organisations and movements. We will also aim to fund a diverse mix (age, ability, location, gender, mobs) of people and projects, recognising that there are multiple layers of discrimination and injustice for intersectional mob. Please read the grant guidelines for further information on eligibility.
Applications for the campaign, movement or project grants will close on 21 September. Successful shortlist applicants will be notified on 25 September.
Frequently asked questions
Campaign, movement or project grants
- The shortlist: You’ll be notified if you have made it onto the shortlist. If you are on the shortlist, you’ll be invited to meet online with a member of the First Nations team to finalise a more detailed application (including a breakdown of budget & theory of change) with an accompanying video explaining your project/ program.
- Final decision: The panel will consider your application. You’ll be notified of the outcome of your application. If you are unsuccessful, there will be an opportunity for you to meet with the First Nations team to get more feedback
- If you are successful, the funds will be released to you.
- Reporting: There’ll be a reporting process, but we’ll keep it simple. We’ll tailor this to your needs.
Rapid Response
- Applications for Rapid Response grants are open all year round and the application process is streamlined. Submit an application via the Seeding Strength application form and we’ll make initial contact within a week, but allow a month for the turn around of funds if successful. We will aim to get them to you as soon as possible.
Grant recipients will be selected by a panel of three First Nations people from our First Nations Governance Group. These are all young mob aged under 35 years. You can read more about our First Nations Governance Group here.
Priority will be given to grassroots and not-for-profit campaigns, projects, organisations and movements.
We will also aim to fund a diverse mix (age, ability, gender, mobs) of people and projects recognising that there are multiple layers of discrimination and injustice for intersectional mob. We select grant recipients based on the following criteria in our grant guidelines.
Successful recipients will:
- Spend the fund within a 12 month period on the initiative you outline in application.
- Have access to governance and operational infrastructure support
- Have access to training sessions and coaching designed to equip you with essential skills for running blak, youth-led campaigns, movements and projects
- Be supported by the FYA First Nations team to submit a short evaluation report to demonstrate the impact of your work with the aim of securing ongoing sustainable funding for long term change.
If you don’t make the shortlist or your final application to the panel is unsuccessful, you can still get some feedback from our team on these documents for your next funding application.
If you have questions you can contact Jordan Wimbis at jordan.wimbis@fya.org.au or Laura Murphy-Oates at laura.murphyoates@fya.org.au.