We use the resources that are available to us, such as our Information and Communication Technology (ICT) expertise, our dedicated staff and our desire to be positively involved with our community to guide our voluntary activities.
Through our support of community sponsorships, community business partnerships and the Telstra Foundation, we have had a positive and lasting effect on a range of community, health, sporting, artistic and not-for-profit initiatives.
Telstra Foundation
The Telstra Foundation is the cornerstone of our corporate Community Investment strategy. The Telstra Foundation identifies and provides funding to projects that reflect its priorities — backing social innovation, using information and communication technologies, building the capacity of community organisations and their leadership, and having a measurable impact.
The focus is on the future, which is why the Telstra Foundation supports a range of projects that seek to make a positive and lasting difference to the lives of children and young people. The youth of today will become the political, business and community leaders of tomorrow. It is important to our collective future that they have every opportunity to develop their gifts to the fullest.
Since its inception in 2002, the Telstra Foundation has financially supported over 4,000 large and small projects to the value of $24.5 million (as at April 2008).
Operating two grants programs, the Telstra Foundation Community Development Fund and Telstra's Kids Fund, the Telstra Foundation is committed to connecting children and young people to their communities.Visit Telstra Foundation for further details.
Telstra Connected Seniors ™
The Telstra Connected Seniors ™ program gives thousands of older Australians the chance to learn more about today?s technology so they can make the most out of every day. Mastering mobile phones, the internet and email makes it easier than ever to stay in touch with friends and family, and share photos, videos and websites.
By providing grants to eligible groups, like sports, community or social clubs, the program allows organisations to run fun and hands-on education workshops for their members to help them better understand how to use these technologies.
Telstra Connected Seniors ™ is a $3 million program over three years. Already more than 100 community organisations have benefited from the program giving them the opportunity to get better connected with each other and the world around them.
Visit http://www.telstraseniors.com.au/index.aspx for more information.
Community Business Partnerships
We have entered into Community Business Partnerships where we can support charity or not-for-profit organisations through the provision of our products and services.
We have established Community Business Partnerships with a number of organisations and review additional opportunities where we can provide value beyond dollars and cents to organisations within the community.
Community Business Partnerships differ from sponsorships. A Telstra Community Business Partnership looks to apply Telstra's expertise, products and services in innovative ways. This assists community organisations to meet their objectives and removes the barriers of social and geographic isolation. Our partnerships can advance the educational, health and social opportunities of the intended recipients. Sponsorships are often based on a monetary agreement between the corporate organisation (Telstra) and the event or alternate organisation. Both relationships are particularly valuable and we are fortunate to be able to provide both opportunities to the wider community.
We currently has a growing number of Community Business Partnerships within the health and research sectors. While the list is growing, here are two Community Business Partnerships that we are currently engaged in:
Wesnet
We have recently entered into an agreement with Wesnet, a national women's advocacy body which works on behalf of women and children who have experienced domestic violence. We have committed to donating excess pre-paid mobile phones each quarter for Wesnet to distribute to clients of domestic violence agencies across Australia.
In January 2007 we donated over 450 phones with a $25 pre-paid card per handset. We anticipate that this will be an ongoing project, supplying vulnerable people with a private and safe means of communications and contact.
Murdoch Childrens Research Institute
We are working with the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute to assist young people with depression. The Institute has developed a research tool to understand how adolescent depression begins and to identify the early warning signs. They have developed this tool to be used via mobile phones. The Institute will undertake a trial with 40 young people to track their everyday mood, activities, stresses and coping strategies.
The participants will receive an SMS survey four times a day, which provides a list of multiple-choice questions. Once they complete the survey, it is automatically sent back to their physician via the mobile network. The physicians can then collect and use this data to track the mood and coping skills of the young people involved and assess the effectiveness of this as a tool for managing depression.
We have facilitated this Community Business Partnership and, through one of our mobile phone suppliers, we have organised the donation of the 40 phones. We have also introduced another organisation, Legion Interactive, to work with the Institute to develop the technical interface and processes for this to be implemented successfully over the mobile network.
onTrac@PeterMac
We continue to work with the onTrac@PeterMac program assisting them to develop a program to deliver their specialist care for adolescents and young adults with cancer from the core program at Peter MacCallum in Melbourne to regional doctors and patients at home.
Disaster Relief
Each year, Australia is hit by devastating bush fires, floods, cyclones and other natural disasters, destroying the homes and livelihoods of many.
Already in 2007, Telstra has provided relief packages for customers affected by bush fires in Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia. Internationally, in 2005-06, there were many national and civil disasters, including the London and Bali bombings, earthquakes in Pakistan and the conflict in the Middle East.
At Telstra, we have a long history of responding to communities who have been affected by natural disasters such as storms, fires, floods and cyclones in Australia and responding to natural and civil disasters that affect our employees and customers overseas.
Typically our communications technicians are among the first to enter disaster affected areas, and commence restoring telecommunications services to our customers. Our first priority is to assist the emergency and essential service organisations with their telecommunications requirements.
We also offers relief packages, using our products and services, to affected customers.
Across Australia our relief packages are determined by the nature and scale of the specific event, and can include support ranging across a combination of:
- free call diversion from an affected home phone service to a fixed or mobile service of the customer's choice, regardless of the carrier
- translation of call costs from mobile phone rates to fixed phone rates for customers whose fixed home phones are affected
- a dedicated emergency assistance hotline, with specialised trained staff to assist customers who have been affected by the disaster with respect to their telecommunications service needs
- cancellation of a fixed phone and/or BigPond® internet service with a free reconnection within 12 months for customers whose homes have been affected by the disaster
- a one-off $50 credit to eligible Telstra mobile services customers whose homes have been affected by the disaster and do not have a fixed phone.
These offers are usually available for the period of time it takes us to restore services to the affected areas and customers, or for a fixed period of time.
Internationally, our relief packages generally include:
- the offer to rebate calls made to the affected country or area to check on the safety and well being of immediate family members
- the offer to rebate calls made from the affected country using Telstra's International Roaming service to advise immediate family of their circumstances.
