The Australian Government is supporting 13 DonateLife community partners with $785,000 in grants to raise awareness about organ and tissue donation so more Australians can receive a life-saving transplant.
Funded through the Organ and Tissue Authority’s Community Awareness Grants, community partners will host DonateLife Week events, work with community leaders and deliver culturally appropriate information to help Australians understand how to register to become an organ donor and talk to their families about their decision.
While most Australians support organ donation, many have not yet registered. Research shows that 14 per cent of Australians who support donation don’t know how or why they need to register. Many are young people, members of culturally and linguistically diverse communities (CALD) and First Nations peoples.
These grants will help community partners connect with these audiences and break down barriers to registration in a culturally safe way.
Among the funded projects, the Migrant Centre Organisation will reach nine new and emerging CALD communities in Queensland, providing faith and cultural leader support and translated resources.
Registering to be an organ and tissue donor is easy. It takes just one minute at donatelife.gov.au or through Medicare.
DonateLife Week 2026 will take place from July 26 – 2 August.
Quotes attributable to Assistant Minister White:
“There are currently around 2,000 Australians on the waitlist and a further 14,000 on dialysis for kidney failure, many who may benefit from a life-saving transplant.
“We know that many Australians are open to registering but are unaware of how or why they need to register.
“These grants help us to engage with more communities about the importance of organ and tissue donation, break down key barriers and encourage them to register.
“It takes one minute to register as an organ donor, but it can mean a lifetime for someone else. I urge all Australians to talk to your family and loved ones and register via donatelife.gov.au or through Medicare.”
| Applicant | Grant opportunity | Focus | 2026 Funding |
| Ipswich Jets | DonateLife Week 2026 event or activity | The project is a DonateLife Week 2026 community awareness activation delivered through a high attendance sporting and community event, supported by a coordinated digital engagement campaign. | $8,200 |
| Curated Australia | DonateLife Week 2026 event or activity
| Curated and Blokes Walk and Talk will collaborate on this project to deliver guided community walks in Canberra and Sydney and the Curated Magenta Gala for a Cause, supported by social media activities and promotion. | $8,000 |
| Adelaide University Student Association | DonateLife Week 2026 event or activity
| The project will inform and raise awareness of organ and tissue donation to all students studying at Adelaide University and all Adelaide University staff leading up to the Mid-Year Orientation, Mid-Winter BBQ which coincides with DonateLife Week. | $9,350 |
| The Migrant Centre Organisation Inc | DonateLife Week 2026 event or activity
| The project will target 9 new and emerging CALD communities through morning teas, pop-ups, and translated resources. | $10,000 |
| Focal Leap Ventures | DonateLife Week 2026 event or activity
| Celebrate Diversity Inc. will provide facilitation services to deliver 4 community awareness sessions in Melbourne’s western suburbs, targeting and engaging migrant communities with low donor registration rates. | $5,000 |
| Convenience Advertising | The project will leverage Convenience Advertising’s national in-venue public bathroom network across shopping centres, airports, tertiary institutions and licensed venues to generate awareness of organ and tissue donation and increase registrations. | $119,540 | |
| Nationwide News | National marketing or PR strategies | The project will drive awareness and increase discussions and registrations through targeted and sustained digital and social advertising and editorial activities across Australia. | $120,000 |
| WIN Television Network | National marketing or PR strategies
| The project will target regional Australia using the mass reach of broadcast television and a targeted YouTube campaign, supported by video content production of TVC and digital/social content for use across campaigns. | $120,000 |
| Agenda Media | National marketing or PR strategies
| The project will deliver a 12-month multi-channel campaign to raise awareness of organ and tissue donation amongst millennial women. | $110,000 |
| Loft Social | National marketing or PR strategies
| The project will deliver a national awareness and amplification campaign in partnership with Shameless Media, Australia’s leading women’s media network, to increase understanding of and registration for organ and tissue donation. | $95,000 |
| Make Mate | National marketing or PR strategies
| The project will support an in-game advertising strategy to target mobile gamers from the ‘unawares’ - predominately men. | $75,000 |
| Richmond Football Club | National marketing or PR strategies
| The project will deliver a campaign to engage the ‘unawares’ and First Nations Peoples through a mix of digital storytelling, short form video and marketing collateral. | $65,000 |
| Media Heads | National marketing or PR strategies
| The project will support a national radio-led awareness campaign designed to increase support for organ and tissue donation during DonateLife Week 2026, targeting audiences across metropolitan, regional, rural and remote Australia. This includes the 13 First Nations radio stations. | $39,500 |