Perth billionaire Alexandra Burt and her husband Julian have donated $120 million to 10 environment foundations, one of the largest philanthropic gifts to nature in Australian history, with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy saying the donation may make it possible to pursue its ambition to manage 5 per cent of Australia's landmass.
The Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) has received $25 million of the fund, its biggest-ever grant. Rebecca Diete, AWC regional ecologist for northern Australia, said the donation was “well beyond the scope of the budgets that I normally work with.” The organisation currently manages about 1.7 per cent of the Australian continent and aims to increase that to 5 per cent, an area the size of Germany. “We may not have known exactly how we were going to meet that ambition, so a donation like this makes us sit back and go, 'We might actually be able to do this,'” she said.
Bush Heritage Australia also received $25 million, which science and conservation boss Bruce Webber described as “completely transformative.” He said the money will go towards the purchase of the 20,000-hectare Wooroora cattle station near Cairns, which Bush Heritage calls its “most ambitious single acquisition ever.” Webber added that the next 10 to 15 years will “make a significant difference to how much biodiversity we're able to keep on into the future.”
AWC bat specialist Oli Aylen said the donation would allow for research into bats, which make up over 20 per cent of all mammals but are generally not included in conservation management. “Now we'll be able to go around all the sanctuaries that we have across Australia and really just understand where these bats are, which of them are threatened and probably find new records of things,” he said.
Ms Burt is the granddaughter of Peter Wright, business partner of Gina Rinehart's father Lang Hancock. Forbes estimates Ms Burt and her sister Leonie Baldock have a combined net worth of $4.2 billion. Ms Burt has been involved in long-running legal disputes with Mrs Rinehart over the spoils of the Hancock-Wright mining empire. The couple owns the Top End cattle property Bullo River Station, co-managed by AWC. Neither Ms Burt nor Mr Burt were available for an interview, but Ms Burt said in a statement the donation “felt like the right thing to do.” “We see nothing but rapid decline in our natural environment and that needs rapid assistance,” she said.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Sets a record for private conservation funding in Australia, potentially accelerating land acquisition for biodiversity protection.
- Signals a shift in wealth allocation from mining to environmental philanthropy among prominent families.
- May inspire other high-net-worth individuals to commit large sums to conservation.
Background
Alexandra Burt is the granddaughter of Peter Wright, who partnered with Lang Hancock in the mining empire that became Hancock Prospecting. Forbes estimates Ms Burt and her sister Leonie Baldock have a combined net worth of $4.2 billion. Ms Burt has been involved in long-running legal disputes with Gina Rinehart over the spoils of that empire. The Burts own Bullo River Station in the Top End, co-managed by AWC, which delivers land management programs there.
Key Perspectives
Alexandra Burt: said in a statement the donation “felt like the right thing to do” and that “we see nothing but rapid decline in our natural environment and that needs rapid assistance.”
Rebecca Diete (AWC): said the donation was “well beyond the scope” of normal budgets and makes the goal of managing 5 per cent of the continent seem attainable.
Bruce Webber (Bush Heritage): called the grant “completely transformative” and said it will fund the purchase of Wooroora cattle station.
What to Watch
- Whether other conservation groups announce acquisitions using their portions of the fund.
- The outcome of Ms Burt's legal disputes with Gina Rinehart, which could affect future philanthropic capacity.
- Whether the donation spurs similar large gifts from other wealthy Australians.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedThe Burt couple donated $120 million to conservation groups.Darwin articles feed: “Billionaire couple donates $120 million to conservation groups.”
- SupportedThe donation is distributed among 10 environment foundations.Darwin articles feed: “The Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) is one of 10 environment foundations to receive a portion of the fund”
- SupportedThe donation is one of the largest philanthropic gifts to nature in Australian history.Darwin articles feed: “It is one of the biggest philanthropic contributions to nature in Australian history.”
- SupportedAWC says the donation may make its ambition to manage 5 per cent of Australia’s landmass possible.Darwin articles feed: “A conservation group says its "incredible ambition" to manage 5 per cent of Australia's landmass may now be possible thanks to a $120 million donation.”
- SupportedAWC received $25 million, its biggest-ever grant.Darwin articles feed: “the organisation's biggest-ever grant of $25 million.”
- SupportedRebecca Diete said the grant was “well beyond the scope of the budgets that I normally work with.”Darwin articles feed: “"It's obviously well beyond the scope of the budgets that I normally work with," she said.”
- SupportedDiete said AWC might be able to achieve its ambition to manage 5 per cent of the continent.Darwin articles feed: “"We may not have known exactly how we were going to meet that ambition, so a donation like this makes us sit back and go, 'We might actually be able to do this.'"”
- SupportedAWC manages about 1.7 per cent of the continent and aims to increase that to 5 per cent, an area the size of Germany.Darwin articles feed: “"At the moment we're managing about 1.7 per cent of the Australian continent, and our strategy is to increase that to 5 per cent — that's an area the size of Germany."”
- SupportedBush Heritage Australia received $25 million, which Bruce Webber called “completely transformative.”Darwin articles feed: “Bush Heritage Australia also received $25 million, with the organisation's science and conservation boss Bruce Webber describing the money as "completely transformative".”
- SupportedWebber said the money would go towards purchasing Wooroora cattle station, a 20,000-hectare property near Cairns.Darwin articles feed: “"It will go towards the purchase of a property almost immediately," he said. The property Dr Webber is referring to is the 20,000-hectare Wooroora cattle station near Cairns”
- SupportedWebber said the next 10 to 15 years would make a significant difference to how much biodiversity could be kept into the future.Darwin articles feed: “"The next 10 to 15 years are going to make a significant difference to how much biodiversity we're able to keep on into the future," he said.”
- SupportedAlexandra Burt said the donation “felt like the right thing to do.”Darwin articles feed: “Ms Burt said in a statement the donation "felt like the right thing to do".”