Students immerse themselves in the Bundanon landscape as part of their art-making and multi-disciplinary learning on-site. Photo: Tad Souden
06 MAY 2026. Bundanon sits in the Shoalhaven, yet many local young people have never set foot on it. In This Place, a year-long learning program led by Bundanon’s passionate education team, is changing that.
What is In This Place?
Set against the natural and cultural backdrop of Bundanon, this evidence-informed program invites Shoalhaven high school students to connect with the land, explore creativity and experience learning in new and meaningful ways, right on their doorstep.
“Getting to see the artworks of people who grew up understanding the land and all of the places was really enjoyable. We got to see the beauty of nature and art”
Rather than a one-off excursion, the same group of students returns for four visits across the school year. Each visit explores Bundanon through a different lens, from First Nations knowledges and science to history, creative writing and performing arts, with art-making woven through every day. Developed with Aboriginal Cultural Education providers and a range of specialists, the program links to the NSW secondary curriculum.
Who is it for?
In This Place is designed to be accessible to all learners, including high-potential and at-risk young people. Bundanon’s Learning team works with each school to tailor the program to the students they bring.
All five schools in the 2025 program serve communities experiencing relative disadvantage. On ICSEA, the national scale of school socio-educational advantage, they scored between 862 and 955 compared to the national average of 1000. First Nations students make up as much as 38 per cent of enrolments at these schools, compared with around 3 per cent nationally.
Why we’re backing it
Improving accessibility was central to Bundanon’s vision: to create space for young people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to engage with this place. It’s a goal that sits close to our mission to enable potential and alleviate disadvantage and speaks to our focus area Strengthening Futures for Children and Young People.
Without support, four visits a year would be out of reach for these schools, with excursion fees, transport and teacher relief adding up quickly. In 2025, thanks to our funding, participation was at no cost to students or their families.
“I liked how nothing was right, but nothing was wrong. It let me explore new things”
The impact is showing. In 2025, 135 students answered anonymous surveys:
77.5% felt challenged to think in a different way
94.5% felt comfortable trying new things
94.5% felt connected to nature
Additionally, Teachers rated their overall satisfaction at 4.33 out of 5. All agreed or strongly agreed that the visits delivered quality cross-curriculum programming between visual arts and other disciplines.
Coolaroo Foundation is proud to support programs like this that nurture creativity, personal potential and wellbeing in young people.
“Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.”
We know the difference a scholarship can make to young people in rural and regional areas — especially those whose opportunities are limited by distance. That’s why continuing our support of Rural Scholarships in 2027 was an easy decision.