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The Index of Philanthropic Freedom 2015 by the Centre for Global Prosperity at the Hudson Institute ranked Australia behind New Zealand, the USA, Canada, Japan and Spain in terms of barriers and incentives for individuals and organisations to donate money and time to social causes. Australia was ranked 13th overall for philanthropic freedom out of 64 countries, with the Netherlands, the USA and Germany taking out the top three places. New Zealand was ranked eighth while the UK was one place behind Australia at 14. Australia’s philanthropic environment is decidedly disjointed. On the one hand, Australia maintains the region’s most favorable environment for the operation and registration of CSOs (Civil Society Organisations), on the other hand, Australia has a variety of policies that are not necessarily designed to deter cross-border flows but do exactly that.

Melbourne has been named as the host of the 2014 ethical bank conference, organised by the Global Alliance of Banking on Values (GABV). The conference will be hosted by Australian owned bankmecu and will be attended by 22 of the world’s leading sustainable banks. bankmecu Managing Director Damien Walsh said that these annual meetings provide an opportunity to discuss the role and responsibilities of banks and how they can contribute to a more sustainable world and a social economy. The carbon neutral event will have the theme of leadership in banking and will be held in March 2014.