McKinnon (formerly Susan McKinnon Foundation)
The Susan McKinnon Foundation, rebranded as McKinnon in 2025, is a private philanthropic foundation focused on strengthening Australian democracy and governance. It funds and supports work on electoral reform, parliamentary integrity, public sector capability, and cross-party collaboration.
Its explicitly non-partisan stance — working with all sides of politics rather than advocating for any particular party or ideology — makes it distinctive in the Australian policy landscape. The foundation tends to focus on institutional reform (how decisions get made) rather than policy outcomes.
History
Founded in 2015 by co-founders Grant Rule and Dr Sophie Oh, the foundation's mission was "inspired by Grant's mother, who instils the values of service and positive contribution in those around her."1 Its two flagship programs both launched as university partnerships: the McKinnon Prize in Political Leadership — which McKinnon's own site describes as "Australia's only independent, non-partisan award for outstanding political leadership"2 — launched with the University of Melbourne in November 20173, and the McKinnon Institute for Political Leadership, established with Monash University in 2019 and, by 2024, credited with delivering leadership programs to more than a quarter of Australia's sitting MPs.4
Rule separately founded the messaging-technology company MessageMedia, sold to Swedish rival Sinch in June 2021 for a total enterprise value of US$1.3 billion.5 The foundation rebranded from "Susan McKinnon Foundation" to "McKinnon" in 2025, a change independently confirmed via the organisation's own site, its LinkedIn page, and its ACNC charity registration.
Links
- Website: susanmckinnon.org.au
See also
- Democracy
- Constitutional Democracy
- Citizens' Assembly
- Australian Democracy Network
- Open Society Foundations
- Luminate
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"About Us", McKinnon. ↩
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"McKinnon Prize", McKinnon — "The prize is Australia's only independent, non-partisan award for outstanding political leadership." The organisation's own claim about itself, not independently verified against competing awards. ↩
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"Susan McKinnon Foundation and University of Melbourne establish prestigious award for political leadership", University of Melbourne Newsroom, November 2017. ↩
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"The Susan McKinnon Foundation and Monash University renew commitment to enhanced political leadership", Philanthropy Australia, 17 May 2024. ↩
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"Sinch to acquire MessageMedia, accelerating growth with small and medium-sized businesses", Sinch AB press release via GlobeNewswire, 9 June 2021. ↩
History
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2015-01-01
Founded (as Susan McKinnon Foundation) by Sophie Oh and Grant Rule
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known as the Susan McKinnon Foundation) was established in 2015 by Sophie Oh and Grant Rule
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2017-11-01
McKinnon Prize in Political Leadership established, in partnership with the University of Melbourne
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Susan McKinnon Foundation Co-Founder Grant Rule said: “Now, more than ever, we need to publicly recognise political leadership that shows vision and courage and has had a constructive impact for our country.”
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2019-01-01
McKinnon Institute for Political Leadership established, in partnership with Monash University
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Since it was established in 2019, the Institute has delivered transformative programs to more than 25% of the current MPs across Australia
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2021-06-09
Co-founder Grant Rule's company MessageMedia sold to Sinch for a total enterprise value of US$1.3 billion
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Sinch will pay a total enterprise value of USD 1.3 billion, with a total cash consideration of USD 1.1 billion and 1,128,487 new shares in Sinch
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2024-05-17
Renews Monash University partnership with a $25M+, five-year commitment to the McKinnon Institute; Prof. Rod Glover named CEO
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an investment of more than $25 million over five years from the Foundation to sustain and advance the McKinnon Institute for Political Leadership
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2025-01-01
Rebranded from Susan McKinnon Foundation to McKinnon
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Introducing McKinnon, formerly the Susan McKinnon Foundation. A new name for a renewed commitment to enabling better governments for a stronger Australia.
Archived homepage banner announcing the rebrand — snapshot dated 31 May 2025, so the change happened in the first half of that year. The live site has since removed the banner, and the foundation's ACNC registration still reads "Susan McKinnon Foundation", so this was a brand rename rather than a legal name change.
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