Unlock funding for social impact projects

Associate Professor Maxine Evers

The Social Impact Grants program was established to support UTS’s contribution to the public good, increase social mobility and equity, create enabling environments for communities to thrive, and ultimately contribute to a healthy, sustainable, and socially just society. 

For many awardees, the grants have provided important funding to kickstart or prioritise social justice focused projects alongside other work. 

Projects that make UTS a safer and more inclusive place or those that partner with community organisations to address challenges in the wider community are eligible for funding. 

Previous awardees have noted that the grant provided “crucial resources for hiring a team and undertaking primary research in the field. Also, much needed moral support from the university for (at times) difficult and thankless work that we have been striving towards for the last 5 years!” 

What kind of projects are eligible? 

Social Impact Grant awardees have had genuine, impactful outcomes in the social justice space. Their projects have often led to further awareness, discussions, and ongoing community relationships. 

In 2023, Associate Professor Maxine Evers was awarded a Social Impact Grant to co-lead a project aimed at better understanding cultural diversity within the legal profession and the specific experiences and perceptions of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) law students at UTS. 

As Maxine notes, “...while teaching has become much more inclusive, there’s still more work to be done…we’ve moved away from every problem scenario we give to students being about John and Mary and we have incorporated diversity in our teaching, but have we really done as much as we can?” 

At a local level, her work has helped UTS Law provide better, more responsive teaching that meets the needs of students from a range of life intersections. And beyond UTS, findings have been shared with the Asian Australian Lawyers Association (AALA) and will inform strategies to better support lawyers from diverse backgrounds.   

Read about the important work of other SIG awardees here.

2025 themes 

Applicants for 2025 projects must align to one of the following themes:  

Safe and Inclusive UTS  

Projects aligning to this theme will aim to support UTS students and staff from various equity groups and focus on creating a more welcoming campus. Such equity groups might include:  

• students from low-SES backgrounds   

• students from rural, regional, and remote areas   

• First Nations students & staff  

• culturally and racially marginalised (CARM) communities   

• people with disability   

• LGBTIQA+ communities   

• women.    

Thriving Communities   

Projects aligning to this theme will aim to address social, health, or environmental challenges in the wider community, and must involve a partnership between the university and external community.  

Community partners may include:   

• an NGO or charity   

• peak body organisation or activist/advocacy group   

• individual community members 

• grassroots community organisations   

• traditional owners or Elders   

• a local health district. 

Ready to make a difference? 

For more information and eligibility criteria, register for the Information Session or visit the Social Impact Grants page. Don’t miss this opportunity to make a lasting impact!