How philanthropy can invest in alternative housing to solve the housing crisis
This session will show how philanthropy can best use its resources to create more affordable housing. Come hear Erin Dolan, Chair of the Affordable Housing Funders Network, talk about her experience travelling overseas on her Churchill Fellowship. Erin will detail her journey through Europe and North America to investigate international housing funds to make housing cheaper to develop. She will talk about which housing markets overseas offer the best examples of affordability and how philanthropy from abroad uses innovative models of affordable housing.
Erin will talk about what sparked her initial idea, why philanthropy should focus on housing and how best to affect change. She will also detail how philanthropy can structure their giving to create housing funds. This session will squarely focus on what philanthropy can do to solve the housing crisis. This is the first presentation on Erin’s work – get a sneak peak before her Churchill Fellowship report is published. And consider whether your idea would suit a Churchill Fellowship too.
Please note: The session will be recorded.
When
Tuesday 18 November 2025
11:30am - 12:30pm AEDT (ACT, NSW, TAS, VIC)
11:00am - 12:00pm ACDT (SA)
10:30am - 11:30am AEST (QLD)
10:00am - 11:00am ACST (NT)
8:30am - 9:30am AWST (WA)
Online event
A Zoom link will be provided after registration.
Audience
This event is for Philanthropy Australia Affordable Housing Funders Network members only. We welcome other funder members at the New Gen, Active/Engage (individual/ organisation) or Impact membership tiers who are interested funding or interested in funding affordable housing.
Not a member at this level? Please contact membership@philanthropy.org.au to discuss upgrading your membership.
If you are not yet a member of Philanthropy Australia or want to find out more about the philanthropic work in this area, please reach out to membership@philanthropy.org.au. Learn more about Philanthropy Australia membership.
Speaker and Peer Network Chair
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Erin Dolan – Senior Program Manager - Homelessness and Affordable Housing, Greater Melbourne Foundation
Erin works to make systemic change to Australia’s enduring problems. She aims to help disadvantaged or marginalised group thrive. Erin believes that secure and safe housing provides the basis of a good life.
Erin is Senior Program Manager – Homelessness and Affordable Housing at the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation, the community foundation for Melbourne. She has over twenty years’ experience as a grants program manager and has worked in a variety of impact areas, notably homelessness, housing, family violence and access to the law. She is experienced at developing and managing granting programs that benefit charities and wants to grow impact investing in Australia.
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Erin created and chairs the Affordable Housing Funders Network through Philanthropy Australia, where she advocates for the use of philanthropy to help house Australians. She manages the Foundation’s Affordable Housing Challenge, a program focused on the development of underutilised land, buildings and strata to create more affordable housing. The Affordable Housing Challenge won Philanthropy Australia’s 2020 Better Philanthropy Award.
Erin has a Master of Arts (History) from the University of Melbourne, a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Melbourne, and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from Southern Cross University.
The Lord Mayor's Charitable Foundation is an independent community foundation that has supported Melbourne’s charities and the critical issues facing Melbourne since 1923. The Foundation has worked on addressing homelessness as a priority for over a decade and recognises that the supply of affordable housing is one of the primary causes of homelessness.
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