FSHD Global Research Foundation

FSHD Global Research Foundation has been recognised for Outstanding Achievement in The Australian Charity Awards 2016. The Australian Charity Award for Outstanding Achievement [OAA] recognises charitable organisations that have achieved outstanding results through initiatives that have significantly benefited charitable causes.

The FSHD Global Research Foundation (FSHD Global) focuses on finding treatments and a cure for the debilitating muscle wasting disease Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD) by funding medical research, awareness and education.

Established in 2007, FSHD Global place a heavy emphasis on entrepreneurial philanthropy and innovation in their operations. This led FSHD Global’s Chairman to last year co-found a socially responsible Biotech called ‘FacioTherapies’ focused on finding a cure for FSHD. This biotech has aided the foundation to not only bridge the gap between research and the pharmaceutical industry, but has also helped modernize philanthropy, offering donors a new method of giving to the cause.

These methods include tax deductible donations, investment in FacioTherapies shares, as well as the ability to donate those shares back to the foundation, thus giving the foundation the ability to grow without any self-investment. In addition, FHSD Global launched a mobile app called ‘FSHD – Find a Cure’ that enables users to track exactly how and where their donations are allocated. After seeing this application in action one donor contributed $1 million dollars to the charity, which was then followed up by an additional donation of $1 million dollars.

FHSD Global were able to successfully run a donation matching campaign against the second donation, doubling that contribution by relying on their entrepreneurial focus. These contributions have helped to fund 34 ongoing medical research grants around the world, leading to multiple research breakthroughs that are leading to clinical trials in 2016.

The Australian Business Awards are the regional chapter of an integrated, hierarchical leadership program conducted on a national and international level. Eligible organisations from each region are invited to participate in the international chapter of the program at The World Business Awards. Conducted annually and currently in the second year of its international launch, The World Business Awards seeks to engage with the world’s business, innovation and technology leaders through a global recognition and knowledge building initiative that is underpinned by the program’s established framework. The program engages with organisations worldwide to benchmark the full spectrum of their products, services and initiatives and to review their business performance. The cycle culminates in the recognition and celebration of organisations that implement world-class business initiatives and industry leading products and services on a prominent and far-reaching scale. All entries must be entered in the regional chapter where the organisation is based.

Entry is open to all registered charities throughout Australia. The program is open to charitable organisations including charitable funds and charitable institutions located in Australia. Charitable institutions include Public Benevolent Institutions and Health Promotion Charities.

Initiatives can include but are not limited to projects, programs, processes, systems, technologies, developments, ventures and undertakings.

Entries are assessed utilising a robust and dynamic framework to ensure that the assessment process is pertinent and objective. The World Business Awards Framework (WBA Framework) is utilised as a structured model of assessment that enables the participating organisations to be benchmarked against world class performance standards. The Framework consists of specialised assessment modules pertaining to the evaluation criteria for each of the award categories. The criteria and sub-criteria provide a robust set of requirements that are used as the methodology for benchmarking and learning among the participating organisations.

The Australian Charity Awards have been established to identify, recognise and reward organisations for the exceptional work undertaken through their charitable activities. The Australian Charity Awards are a method assessed program providing organisations with the opportunity to have their projects, initiatives, contributions and achievements recognised on a prominent and far-reaching scale. The Awards provide the ultimate platform for charitable organisations to build knowledge and raise awareness of their causes through increased exposure, recognition and acknowledgement.