Ethiopia: Mebrit Kesaye and her son stand next to their home with sheep there are raising. Photo: Petterik Wiggers/Oxfam.

70+ years of changing lives

Oxfam Australia’s roots stretch back to 1953, when Australians first rallied to fight global hunger and poverty. Born from grassroots campaigns and a global vision, it has grown into a powerful force for justice both at home and abroad.

1942

Born from crisis: the birth of Oxfam in the UK

The name “Oxfam” comes from the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, founded in Britain in 1942. The group campaigned for food supplies to be sent through an allied naval blockade to starving women and children in enemy-occupied Greece during the Second World War.

1947

Oxfam Shop opens

The first permanent Oxfam gift shop in Broad Street, Oxford, opens. Photograph probably late 1940s.

1953

The making of Oxfam Australia

Oxfam Australia was born out of a merger between two leading Australian international development agencies — Community Aid Abroad and the Australian Freedom from Hunger Campaign.

Community Aid Abroad began in Melbourne’s suburbs in 1953 as a church-affiliated group called the Food for Peace Campaign, founded by Father Gerard Kennedy Tucker. The group sent weekly donations to a small health project in India, and eventually, Food for Peace Campaign groups were established throughout Victoria.

David Scott, a journalist and Father Gerard Tucker's nephew is appointed the first full-time Director of the Food for Peace campaign. Photo: Oxfam Archive.

1961

Freedom from Hunger Campaign

The Australian Freedom from Hunger Campaign was launched in in Victoria in 1961 following the creation of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation’s five-year campaign, Freedom from Hunger. This community-based campaign aimed to raise global awareness about poverty issues and provide opportunities for people to directly support anti-poverty programs around the world.

1964

Freedom from Hunger Campaign becomes national

The campaign grew to become a national organisation in 1964 that conducted appeals for countries including India, Timor-Leste, Cambodia and Ethiopia, and supported Aboriginal issues and programs in Australia.

1965

Community Aid Abroad established Trade Action Pty Ltd in 1965, selling goods that had been handmade by project partners

By the late 1970s, Trade Action had grown to 22 stores nationwide, with profits supporting Community Aid Abroad’s work. After Trade Action was sold in 1979, local groups continued selling handmade goods, eventually forming Community Aid Abroad Trading in 1986 — later known as Oxfam Australia Trading.

In 2019, Oxfam Australia concluded its trading operations, including Oxfam Shops. In its final year, Oxfam Shop customers supported 87 producer partners, enjoyed 13,446kg of Fairtrade chocolate, and helped deliver $3.2 million in payments to producers worldwide.

1992

Becoming one of Australia’s largest international development organisations

The Australian Freedom from Hunger Campaign and Community Aid Abroad merged in 1992 to become one of Australia’s largest international development organisations. As a founding member of Oxfam International, we changed our name to Oxfam Community Aid Abroad in 2001 and then to Oxfam Australia in 2005.

“No worthwhile task is ever begun except by those with a vision. Visionaries, however, must be practical. We try to be practical by giving what we can and inducing others to do likewise.”

Father Gerard Kennedy Tucker — Oxfam Australia founder in 1953

Australia: Oxfam Australia confirmed bequestor Chris O'Donnell pictured during filming for a bequests testimonial film for Oxfam at her house near the regional Victorian town of Clunes. Photo: Keith Parsons/Oxfam

What does it mean to leave a legacy in your Will?

A legacy is a donation to charity in your Will. It’s also known as a bequest or gift. When someone leaves a legacy in their Will, it’s a very special gift for the receiving charity because it can help fund important long-term projects that will make a deep and meaningful impact on many people’s lives.

Gifts in wills