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MRI Software Foundation gifts 500 books from Indigenous authors to ILF through grants
Freya Lucas
Apr 20, 2022
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The newly formed MRI Software Foundation has begun its philanthropic work by actively supporting UNESCO’s Decade of Indigenous Languages by awarding $5,000 to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) to deliver 500 new, culturally relevant books to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children living in remote communities across Australia.
“It is profoundly deliberate that the first grant recipient for our newly registered charitable giving initiative in Australia benefits First Nations communities. We look forward to an ongoing partnership with the ILF as they advance their important community building initiatives,” David Bowie, Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Asia Pacific at MRI Software said.
Over a ten year period the ILF has supplied over 400 remote communities with almost 540,000 books, many featuring Indigenous authors and illustrators.
“We are grateful to the MRI Software Foundation for choosing the ILF as its first grant recipient in Australia,” ILF Relationships Manager David Stewart said, highlighting that the donation will be used to provide access to quality books where reading material is often extremely limited.
“Literacy is a navigation skill. It gives kids the ability to navigate the world around them. ILF is Community led. We listen and respond to the needs of each Community and provide the literacy resources requested. These include early learning board books and resources, audios and animations, books for kids and families and programs to support Communities to tell and publish their own stories, in languages they choose.”
In addition to its support for the ILF the MRI Software Foundation announced support for two other grant recipients, with $10,000 going to Raise youth mentoring service, which actively supports high-school aged people across Australia struggling with challenges like depression, anxiety, bullying, fear of the future and staying engaged with school; and $5,000 to Dignity, a not for profit organisation committed to empowering people experiencing homelessness in Australia.
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