Celebrating the end of a fire making challenge at the Changemakers annual camp.
2 JULY 2026. We're delighted to welcome Sonder Youth as our newest grantee. The Coolaroo Foundation board has awarded a grant to bring the Changemakers Program to a local Shoalhaven high school.
Who is Sonder Youth?
Sonder Youth is a Shoalhaven-based charity founded in 2017 by Avalon Bourne, a 2024 Churchill Fellow with a background in positive psychology. Its mission is simple: to improve youth mental health through positive action.
What is the Changemake Program?
“I struggled with my mental health throughout school. Then I found Sonder. The program gave me confidence. It helped me realise I could make a difference.”
Changemakers is Sonder's flagship program for students in years 8 to 10. Over two terms, a small group of 10 to 15 young people meets weekly for two hours per session, in school or after school. Together, they build safe, honest connections, then develop a "Change Project" that tackles an issue that matters to them. Sonder provides the framework, and the young people choose the cause. Many of the resulting projects focus on mental health, and some are passed on to the next cohort to carry forward.
What sets Sonder Youth apart is that it's local young people supporting local young people. The Changemakers Program is delivered by trained facilitators, all of whom are program alumni, so participants can go on to build leadership and facilitation skills and find paid work right here in the Shoalhaven.
Why we chose to back it
Part of our mission is to enable potential, and Sonder does exactly that.
Over eight years, the program has reached more than 500 young people across regional NSW. Using a validated wellbeing survey at the start and end of each program, Sonder has found that 80% of participants report improved wellbeing and resilience, and 89% report improved connectedness and self-efficacy.
Sonder's work sits squarely within our new pillar of care, Strengthening Futures for Children and Young People. Sonder's work has been recognised with the 2024 NSW Youth Action Awards and a 2025 ABC Heywire Trailblazer award.
We can't wait to see what these young changemakers do next. Welcome, Sonder Youth!
Learn more about Sonder Youth at sonderyouth.com.
