JDRF - Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

JDRF is proud to award the 2009 Freedom Award to joint recipients for the first time in the history of this prestigious award. These recipients are Boral Limited and Macquarie Group. The JDRF Freedom Award recognises the highest corporate fundraising organisation over a calendar year and represents a deep and significant partnership between these organisations and JDRF.

Combined staff and corporate donations from these organisations come to a staggering $920,000 – funds that will be invested in the best Australian medical research programs to find a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications.

The 2009 Freedom Award caps a long term relationship with both Boral Limited and Macquarie Group spanning nine and eight years respectively. In this time both organisations’ staff have engaged in numerous fundraising events including the Walk to Cure Diabetes, Spin to Cure Diabetes, Ride to Cure Diabetes and Jelly Baby Month.

Boral Limited CEO Mark Selway said: “Coming into the role as Boral’s new Chief Executive at the start of 2010, I have been particularly impressed by the partnership that Boral has with JDRF. It has clearly delivered huge benefits for JDRF and for Boral’s people over a number of years. Over the past nine years Boral’s employees have raised in excess of $2.5 million for JDRF and Boral’s people have done another outstanding job in 2009 in supporting JDRF. I congratulate all of our employees and their family members and friends as well as our customers and suppliers who have contributed to the cause of finding a cure for type 1 diabetes.”

Macquarie Group Foundation chairman David Clarke said: “This is the second time we have won this award which is a great testament to the commitment of Macquarie staff to the JDRF cause, most particularly through the leadership shown by our Banking and Financial Services division. Inspired by the support shown by our Australian employees, our staff are now contributing across the globe – from Brisbane to Houston and London to New York. We are very proud to help bring JDRF closer to meeting its goal of finding a cure for juvenile diabetes.”

JDRF CEO Mike Wilson said: “We are extremely grateful for the strong support from Boral and Macquarie, who have been instrumental to our ability to support 63 type 1 diabetes research projects around Australia.”

Mike Wilson explained that the partnership with Boral Limited, Macquarie Group and its Foundation has helped JDRF communicate the facts about type 1 diabetes to Australians. “Unlike type 2 diabetes, the causes of type 1 are not related to everyday diet or lifestyle. Factors in our environment that are not well understood are causing the numbers of new cases of type 1 diabetes in Australian children to rise every year by 3%.”

“JDRF is working hard to find a cure so that children and adults with type 1 diabetes no longer have to endure multiple daily injections, life threatening hypoglycemia and the fear of developing serious complications.”

“Scientists are confident that a cure will be found for this disease with continued investment in research.”