Community Engagement

Sunshine Coast Business Women's Network in the Community

The Sunshine Coast Business Women's Network is mindful to create a supportive and inclusive environment that connects women together.  Additionally, there is recognition for the need to show leadership and to engage with the community through a variety of avenues and programs.

The Community Engagement Portfolio Chair seeks to grow and develop opportunities for sponsors, supporting partners and members. This is done by collaborating with network and social connections through using existing and new initiatives which benefit both members and the community.

Through the amazing generosity of our members who donate prizes and purchase raffle tickets at events, a huge amount of funds are raised to support programs and projects that provide education and professional development for women on the Sunshine Coast who may not have access to these services and/or support through their family and school networks. 

We believe our responsibility as a network is to empower women to participate fully in the array of opportunities provided by our business community. To deliver this we have three main streams that have been created within the network or in collaboration with local services.

EMPOWER - Supporting our members build their knowledge and grow

Our newly created bursary has been designed to give back to our membership base to go towards specific business and professional development activities. Applications open each year at our annual Christmas Breakfast, closing on the 31st January 2023 and recipients announced at our International Women's Day breakfast. There are 10 x $250 bursaries available each year.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

ENABLE - UniSC Bursary Program

Delivered in collaboration with our sponsor, University of the Sunshine Coast, this bursary program is designed to support female students continuing in an undergraduate program with potential to make a significant contribution to business in the Sunshine Coast Region. In joint consultation finalists are assessed by representatives from both UniSC and SCBWN. There are four bursaries available annually at $500 each. The chosen recipients are presented with their bursary at the SCBWN Christmas breakfast event each year.

This bursary was founded by the Sunshine Coast Business Women’s Network in 2007 to assist deserving local women to complete their degree at USC. Karen and Keith Neuendorf, who established this bursary on behalf of SCBWN in 2007, generously provided two additional bursaries in 2022 to commemorate the 15^th Anniversary of the Sunshine Coast Business Women’s Network Bursary.

EMBRACE - Annual Giving Tree to women and children across the Sunshine Coast

Christmas is a time for giving so each Christmas we ask our members to bring a pre-selected and pre-wrapped gift for a woman and there children who have had to seek emergency accommodation support during the holiday period for safety. 

Each year at our Christmas Breakfast the Giving Tree is on display and gifts placed under the tree at the event are then donated. These are then distributed to by Laurel House (who are part of the Laurel Place network) to those who may be spending the holiday season in crisis shelters. We know first hand from previous years the positive impact this has on the familiar and we love being able to keep this tradition running.