The AMP Foundation today revealed the 20 inspiring Australian recipients of the A$1 million AMP Foundation’s Tomorrow Maker program.
In its ninth year, the AMP Foundation’s Tomorrow Maker program invests in remarkable people who have created sustainable and innovative solutions to address a wide range of challenging social problems.
The 2022 Tomorrow Makers have made outstanding contributions in the areas of social enterprise, scientific innovation, disability development and employment, and environmental research.
General Manager of the AMP Foundation Nicola Stokes said:
“Current economic conditions are impacting everyone but are disproportionately impacting our First Nation people and disadvantaged communities across Australia. We know that climate change and environmental issues threaten our very existence; and the global pandemic has highlighted the fault lines in our society – all very big issues.
So, I am pleased to let you know that our 2022 Tomorrow Makers are not afraid of taking up challenges or tackling what are dubbed ‘wicked problems’, those social issues thought too difficult and complex to solve”.
The 2022 Tomorrow Makers are:
Dr Gareth Andrews, Anaesthetist, Arctic explorer. Dr Gareth Andrews will undertake the world’s-first unsupported ski crossing of Antarctica and collect unique climate change data for the Australian Antarctic Program.
Terri Waller, Founder, Indigenous Social Enterprise. Terri is committed to Indigenous communities to realise self-determining futures. Terri has tirelessly worked to purchase the largest Indigenous owned bushtucker orchard in Queensland. Galeru Bushtucker Orchard will see the establishment of new income-generating bushtucker food products and services
Geoffrey Smith, Social Entrepreneur, inclusion advocate. Geoffrey employs young adults with neurodiverse disabilities to become data analysts and conduct professional services for Australian corporations and government departments.
Andrea Comastri Co-founder of Australia’s First Social Enterprise Hotel. Andrea is the Director of Hotel Etico, in the Blue Mountains. It is Australia’s first social enterprise hotel, employing and training young people with disability.
Dr Masoumeh Zargar, Chemical Engineer. Dr Zargar aims to develop ‘smart’ membranes specifically designed to function as a filter and remove microplastics from aquatic and wastewater treatment systems.
Amar Singh, Founder Turbans 4 Australia. Amar founded Turbans 4 Australia to not only lend a hand to his fellow Australians in tough times, but also promote multiculturalism and religious tolerance.
Carla Raynes, Homelessness Advocate Founder of Bridge It. At the Cocoon in St Kilda, Melbourne, Bridge It houses young female identifying people who are exiting out of home care, providing them with a safe home, a community and support to develop the life skills and confidence to transition to long term independent living.
Bianca Stern, Social Impact (Disability) Advocate. Bianca is the general manager of All Things Equal a café in Balaclava, Victoria which provides award-wage employment for people with and without disability in a positive, safe and inclusive workplace
Hannah Andrevski, Charity Founder/ Child poverty advocate. Hannah is the Founder of Roundabout Canberra which takes donations of safe, high-quality baby and children’s items, and passes them on to families in need via a large network of social services and community organisations.
Nick Steiner Founder of The Mini Farm Project. Nick runs a charity that ‘Grows Food for Those in Need’ by converting under-utilised spaces into urban farms. The food grown on the farms is donated to local charities such as Meals on Wheels at no cost, to create meals for those in need.
Renuka Fernando, Charity Co-founder of Re-Love. Re-Love provides household goods to people in vulnerable situations, particularly those fleeing domestic violence, homelessness and people seeking asylum
Mona Mohamed, Charity founder/Community Healer. Community Support Services (CSS) Village in the heart of Sydney’s diverse and multicultural Bankstown was founded four years ago by Mona as a support hub for local women and families in need.
Jen Shaw, Youth worker, Founder of Emerge Café. Jen Shaw’s Emerge café offers training and employment to young people who are ready to get their lives back on track. It’s part of several programs run by Jen to match the immediate needs of high at-risk youth.
Dr Rishi Verma Engineer/Medical doctor. Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness amongst indigenous and rural population in Australia. Dr Verma has created an innovative portal ophthalmoscope to help solve this urgent health issue.
Melissa McGuinness, Road safety Advocate. Melissa’s goal is to reduce road trauma amongst 16–25-year-olds by facilitating The YOU CHOOSE Youth Road Safety program, is a
youth-led mission to change driving culture by an innovative, grassroots, social movement approach.
Dr Lining (Arnold) Ju, Biomedical engineering pioneer. Since joining the University of Sydney, Dr Ju, an emerging leader in biomedical engineering, has been pioneering innovative biomechanical micro-technologies to predict and prevent heart disease and blood clots.
Dr Laura Cook, Pioneering Immunologist. Dr Cook is studying memory T cell functions in the gut, which is a primary exposure site to bacteria and viruses. Dr Cook’s vision is to enhance the immune system's ability to develop memory to help protect against bacterial and viral infection.
Wayne Pascoe, Bereaved parent Advocate. Wayne co-founded the Ladybird Care which supports and empowers grieving families to find hope and purpose once again, via targeted bereavement care strategies
Melissa Redsell, Advocating for Young Mothers Melissa founded A Brave Life to overcome the challenges faced by vulnerable young mothers. A Brave Life empowers young mothers via life skills and mentoring programs
Margaret Yandell, Community Advocate for affordable funerals. Margaret is committed to establishing a not-for-profit funeral service in the Far North Queensland region to offer an affordable and culturally appropriate approach to bereavement.
About the AMP Foundation
The AMP Foundation is the philanthropic arm of AMP and is celebrating 30 years of investing in social impact. The AMP Foundation is one of Australia’s oldest and largest corporate foundations. Since its inception in 1992, it has invested almost $110 million in the Australian community to help individuals and social enterprises create positive impact.
About AMP’s Tomorrow Fund
The AMP Tomorrow Fund has invested in over 330 inspirational Australians creating and implementing important initiatives for the benefit of individuals, families, communities and society. Our Tomorrow Makers create positive impact in diverse fields such as scientific innovation; climate data; education and technology which deliver positive sustainable solutions for challenging social needs.