AMBER EARLES, PHD
Social Impact Advocate | Supporting For-Purpose Organisations to Thrive
Helping organisations bring about positive change for people and the planet
ABOUT AMBER
Passionate about driving positive change and empowering for-purpose organisations to achieve their missions. Amber is a strategic leader and advocate for social impact, with extensive experience in governance, board service and project leadership across the for-purpose sector. Known for leading high-performing teams and fostering a culture of collaboration and accountability, Amber supports organisational growth through informed decision-making, strong stakeholder engagement and a commitment to excellence. Her expertise spans social enterprise, international and community development and advancing inclusive, sustainable practices.
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Outside work, Amber loves spending her days at one of the Mornington Peninsula's many beaches (especially with an ice-cream in hand!).
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Amber’s career has been shaped by early, hands-on experience working in remote and under-resourced communities in Australia and internationally. From rebuilding education systems in post-tsunami Aceh to establishing secondary schooling in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory, Amber developed a profound understanding of the structural barriers to opportunity - and the power of place-based, for-purpose solutions. This early work inspired a long-standing dedication to social impact and systems change. Amber has since become a leader in the social enterprise sector, securing millions in philanthropic investment, authoring the Report on Identified Social Enterprises and building high-impact teams and programs that strengthen social enterprise sustainability and scale impact across Australia.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Amber is recognised for her thought leadership which has shaped insights for practice. Her contributions enable actors to navigate complex challenges, driving positive social change across Australia.
BRIDGING THE DIVIDE TO CLOSE THE GAP
This dissertation seeks to extract learning from theory and practice around why partnerships have
only recently emerged in relation to Indigenous education, what they are including their strengths
and limitations and the factors that enhance their effectiveness in improving attendance and outcomes for Indigenous young people.
Pioneering research into the governance of ‘profit redistribution’ social enterprises (donates at least 50% of profits or revenue to charity), delivering critical insights to inform practice in the sector.
This report highlights that social enterprises are a resilient mechanism for generating social and environmental impact. Key insights include that they derive 86% of their revenue from trade and 27% of revenue is spent on impact costs.
TESTIMONIALS
"Amber consistently demonstrates her leadership skills and deep knowledge of social entrepreneurship. An ability to take strategic action and bring the right people together at the right time to get outcomes is a feature of her leadership.Amber consistently demonstrates her leadership skills and deep knowledge of social entrepreneurship. An ability to take strategic action and bring the right people together at the right time to get outcomes is a feature of her leadership.​​"
Xanthe Rivett, Executive Director, Frankston Social Enterprise and Innovation Hub
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"I have worked with Amber for over 5 years, and can say I have been consistently impressed by her professionalism, ability to capture original insight, attention to detail, and dedication.
An extremely hard worker, Amber has delivered top quality work, on time, and very often exceeding expectations. In particular, her work in the corporate and not for profit governance space is excellent and original, and she has presented very well to a diversity of audiences, creating impacts from her work.
Amber is a delight to work with, heartily recommending her to you!"​
Dr Chris Mason, Board Advisor
"Amber is an outstanding educator and a terrific leader of people. I was fortunate to work with Amber as she implemented and game-changing Moodle platform to enable on-line training platform that enabled literally hundreds of volunteers prepare for their assignments in developing communities overseas. Amber's highly self-motivated, thrives on new challenges and never shirks difficult challenges. Amber would be an a tremendous addition to any organisation fortunate enough to have her on their team."
Dave Jones, Executive Manager Strategy, Anglicare NT
CONTACT AMBER
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