There are thousands of charities doing valuable work. The challenge is not simply finding organisations that deserve support: it is identifying where additional funding can make the greatest difference.
NextHorizons is 100% student-organised.
Each year, we contact local nonprofits and request information about their funding, operations and recent impact. We then assess organisations against a consistent set of criteria before selecting three charities to support.
NextHorizons focuses on small to medium sized nonprofits that demonstrate adherence to our metrics.
Our approach is inspired in part by GiveWell, an organisation that evaluates charities using evidence and cost effectiveness to identify opportunities where donations can achieve substantial impact.
However, while GiveWell’s metrics often point towards international philanthropy, evaluating and tracking the impact of donations across countries can also involve significant logistical and informational challenges for a small Charity Fund like NextHorizons. Therefore, we begin with a local focus, partnering with nonprofits in NSW, where we can engage more directly with organisations, understand their operations and follow the impact of funding more closely.
Our long term ambition is to expand this model beyond NSW and eventually explore opportunities to support effective organisations internationally.
We examine approximate annual funding and its sources, including community donations, government funding and corporate sponsorship. We place particular emphasis on organisations with limited access to government or institutional funding, where community donations may have a greater marginal impact.
We consider administrative and operational expenditure to understand how effectively an organisation manages its available resources. We prioritise charities that demonstrate responsible financial management and keep unnecessary administrative costs low.
We consider the charity's leadership structure and its connection to the communities it serves. Particular attention is given to organisations working with communities that may be underserved or overlooked by larger institutions.
We examine recent, tangible outcomes, such as the number of people supported, programs delivered or services provided over the preceding six months. Importantly, we consider impact relative to available funding, rather than simply selecting the largest organisations or those with the greatest absolute reach.
We ask: What could this charity do with more funding? We look for organisations where an additional contribution could meaningfully expand their capacity, allowing them to support more people or strengthen services that are already demonstrating results. Where possible, we also consider the approximate cost per person impacted, helping us understand how efficiently additional funding can translate into real-world outcomes.
Help us support three deserving local charities each year and direct funding towards organisations where it can make a genuine, measurable difference.
Donate to NextHorizons and help turn generosity into greater impact.
NextHorizons is a student-led charity fund committed to making every donated dollar count.
Copyright © 2026 NextHorizons. All Rights Reserved.