Help power high-impact, independent journalism into a new year

Guardian Australia pursues stories that investigate the powerful and create change. As we look toward 2026, we hope youll consider supporting us with a year-end contribution Independent journalism has never been more under threat: the increasing dominance of big tech platforms, steadily increasing threats to press freedom from populist governments around the world, the rise of AI often trained on journalists work without payment or permission - and shrinking advertising revenues. The forces against truth-telling are growing stronger. Yet Guardian Australia remains undeterred. In 2025, our journalism uncovered systemic government failings, brought hidden stories to light, drove accountability and amplified voices too often silenced. We arent bankrolled by a billionaire, nor do we exist to enrich shareholders. We depend on the support of our readers. This support protects our independence and ensures we are able to ask difficult questions and pursue stories others cant or wont. You can explore a selection of this work below. To safeguard fearless reporting and power our work into 2026, we are running our annual end-of-year supporter appeal. Every contribution, no matter the size, helps us continue to expose injustice, hold the powerful to account and tell stories that matter. If you value journalism that makes a difference, now is the time to support it Contribute now . Led by Queensland correspondent Ben Smee and edited by Marni Cordell , Guardian Australias Broken Trust investigation examined how systemic shortcomings within Queenslands police and other agencies continue to place victim-survivors at potential risk. Drawing on months of interviews with families, lawyers, frontline workers and whistleblowers, as well as coronial material and internal documents, the series identified failures across multiple cases including those of Hannah Clarke, Gail Karran and Kardell Lomas. In each, clear warning signs were raised, yet critical opportunities for intervention were missed, and in some instances preventable deaths were not subject to adequate review. The findings resonated nationally, prompting widespread concern and strong reader reaction about the need for deeper accountability. The reporting has added momentum to calls for independent police oversight and reform of Queenslands domestic violence response systems. Read more In 2025, Guardian Australias Indigenous affairs team Lorena Allam, Sarah Collard and Ella Archibald-Binge delivered The Descendants, a groundbreaking series about descendants from both sides of Australias frontier massacres and how they are reckoning with the countrys violent past. They unearthed a 19th-century settlers diary written partly in code, which once deciphered, revealed the killings of at least 19 Yamatji people. The series also explored Queenslands Cullin-la-ringo massacre, linking it to the founding of Australian rules football and one of Australias oldest companies, AACo. Combining archival sleuthing, interactive design by data editor Nick Evershed and editorial developer Andy Ball , illustration and photography, The Descendants was praised as vital truth-telling. It prompted other Australians with massacres in their family histories to come forward, beginning long-suppressed conversations. The series won the 2025 Walkley Award for coverage of Indigenous affairs Read more In one of the years most ambitious projects, Guardian Australia examined the life and influence of Gina Rinehart, the countrys richest person. Sarah Martin and Joe Koning pieced together her rise from the Pilbara to the pinnacle of Australian business and politics, revealing the extent of her sway over leaders and public debate. Using newly uncovered archival documents, the series shed light on Lang Hancocks legacy, including correspondence suggesting he may have fathered Aboriginal children a stark contrast to his public calls for the sterilisation of Indigenous Australians. The series charted Rineharts close relationships with political figures, her role in shaping climate and energy policy, and her impact on media and sport. The podcast, Gina, was a sweeping portrait of power and a forensic investigation into how wealth translates into influence. It sparked fierce discussion, drew international attention, and stood as an example of Guardian Australias ability to tackle the countrys most powerful interests head-on Read more This groundbreaking investigation revealed how governments had failed to remove known hanging points from Australian prisons despite coroners repeated warnings leading to at least 57 preventable deaths. Many of those who died were Indigenous. Christopher Knaus and Ariel Bogle spent months combing through coronial records, building an unprecedented database of cases, and then travelling across the country to speak with grieving families. Their meticulous reporting proved what no agency had ever attempted to measure: a direct death toll caused by government inaction. The series triggered a wave of political response. The federal attorney general called the findings unacceptable, the Indigenous Australians minister raised concerns with state governments, and prominent figures like Pat Dodson and David Pocock demanded reform. The series was not just data-driven but deeply human weaving in the voices of families who had lost loved ones, handled with care and trauma-informed reporting. Read more Amid a noisy and often cynical debate, Adam Mortons climate commentary stood out for its depth and clarity. He exposed the contradictions in Labors decision to extend the life of a major fossil fuel plant to 2070, interrogated the Coalitions promises on nuclear power, and highlighted the success of Australias rooftop solar boom as a model for rapid emissions cuts. His analysis combined decades of expertise with an unwavering focus on public interest. Readers praised his work as a rare voice cutting through political spin to explain what climate decisions really mean for Australias future. Read more The 2025 federal election was a blur of press conferences, promises and political theatre easy to lose track of and hard to make sense of. Guardian Australia cut through the noise with ambitious reporting and formats that engaged, analysed and challenged assumptions, and met voters where they were. Our coverage ranged from Anywhere but Canberra , in which we met everyday voters from across the country and asked what issues were driving their choices, to deep dives like the Poll tracker , Reality check and The shadow campaign . We focused on the issues weighing on young Australians and launched the popular Back to Back Barries podcast, starring Barrie Cassidy and Tony Barry. Across formats Tell me more livestreams, Surviving the election , TL;DR , and Voting 101 we reached hundreds of thousands across TikTok, YouTube and the Guardian app, empowering Australians with the facts ahead of polling day. Lisa Coxs investigation revealed how a little-known consultancy, run by a former Northern Land Council official, was brokering questionable deals with traditional owners to benefit fracking giant Empire Energy. Through months of FoI requests, leaked documents and dozens of sensitive interviews, Lisa uncovered allegations of private deals, misrepresentation of consultations and pressure tactics. Her work triggered urgent calls for investigation, referrals to the National Anti-Corruption Commission, and fierce debate about land rights and corporate influence. It demonstrated the persistence and courage required to report on powerful industries and the difference it can make when those stories come to light. Read more Through her 2025 reporting, Cait Kelly revealed how government policy and neglect are deepening inequality in one of the worlds richest nations. In a powerful feature on a Melbourne family living off-grid in a crumbling home without water or power, she exposed the hidden poverty behind the housing crisis and sparked debate about a Hecs for households scheme to fund essential repairs. Readers didnt just empathise one bought the family a toilet, another crowdfunded a battery for electricity. In another investigation, Cait showed how Australias jobseeker compliance system punishes people through bureaucratic cruelty. Her story of a woman who lost her payments while hospitalised for psychosis prompted departmental intervention and contributed to an Ombudsman investigation. Together, these pieces revealed how policy can entrench disadvantage and how journalism can drive accountability and change. Read more Ariel Bogle revealed how workers in Woolworths warehouses were being tracked and timed under a punishing new productivity system. Every minute of their day was monitored, with efficiency scores projected onto screens as they clocked off. Workers described unsafe conditions, relentless pressure and the feeling of being treated like robots. Ariel spent months cultivating sources inside warehouses and verifying internal documents to uncover how the system worked. The impact was profound: the story was picked up across national media, provoked a political response, and was followed by one of the most significant industrial strikes in recent years. Woolworths ultimately agreed to review its performance framework. Read more Sarah Martins investigation revealed how Australians are paying the highest fees in the world to sell their homes a result of realestate.com.aus dominance. She uncovered how the companys monopoly and tactics led to fees skyrocketing more than 5,000% in 15 years, costs passed directly to households. Dozens of complaints had been made to the competition regulator, but no action had been taken. After Sarahs reporting, prominent economists and former ACCC leaders called for an inquiry. In May, the government announced it would examine whether REA Group had abused its market power. It was a classic Guardian investigation: rigorous, fearless and in the public interest. Read more In 2025, Guardian Australias Broken justice series led by Lucy Clark, Benita Kolovos, Celina Ribeiro and others laid bare the brutal reality of how Australias justice system treats victim-survivors of sexual assault. It began with a simple, devastating question: Would you advise someone you love to report a rape? Some people who work in the system said no. The series exposed a system so broken that experts say rape has been effectively decriminalised , told the stories of women traumatised again by the courtroom itself and explored what justice could look like through restorative approaches . It was fearless, compassionate journalism that forced the country to confront an uncomfortable truth: the system meant to deliver justice is too often another source of harm. Read more Guardian Australias photojournalism in 2025 captured the richness and the reality of life across the country. Carly Earls striking series on a new generation of drovers took readers deep into outback Queensland, where six young stockmen and women spent months on horseback moving thousands of cattle. Her images conveyed both the beauty of the vast landscape and the harshness of the work long days under a relentless sun, isolation, and exhaustion. In her portrait Riley on the Southern Roma Road , Carly gave us an intimate glimpse of a teenager living this tough existence, far removed from the lives of most Australian youth. These photographs did more than illustrate a story: they stood alone as storytelling in their own right, reminding readers why visual journalism remains essential. When Lebanese Australian artist Khaled Sabsabi was selected to represent Australia at the 2026 Venice Biennale, he invited Guardian Australias Nour Haydar into his western Sydney studio for the only in-depth broadcast interview before controversy erupted. Days later, political pressure saw Creative Australia abruptly strip him of the honour, sparking outcry, resignations and accusations of censorship. Nours reporting in conjunction with Kelly Burke , and accompanied by Bec Lorrimers evocative photography captured the story as it unfolded, giving readers insight into the politics of art, identity and representation in Australia. By amplifying Sabsabis voice at a moment of national reckoning, the Guardian shone a light on how cultural institutions grapple with diversity, dissent and power. Under immense public pressure, Sabsabi was later reinstated as Australias representative at the 2026 Biennale. Read more Guardian Australias technology reporter Josh Taylor has been at the forefront of covering how artificial intelligence is reshaping society and the risks that come with it. He revealed how major tech companies like Meta allegedly used pirated datasets of Australian authors books to train AI models, sparking outrage in the literary community. He reported on Australian lawyers caught submitting court documents laced with fake AI-generated case citations, exposing the dangers of relying on untested tools in the justice system. His coverage of e xplicit AI deepfakes showed how women and girls are disproportionately targeted and explored concerns from mental health professionals about chatbots being used as substitute for proper psychiatric help. Through clear, incisive reporting, Josh has helped Australians understand both the promise and peril of this fast-moving technology. Our coverage of New Zealands exodus struck a chord with audiences around the world. Record numbers of people have been leaving the country, mostly fleeing a weak economy and in search of a better life. Michelle Duff reported from Wellington on the hollowing out of New Zealand where the surge of departures has fuelled concern over the long-term impact on the country. Our reporters across New Zealand have examined this significant moment of change, telling the stories of those leaving, the huge resettlement in Australia, as well as the flow of new arrivals into the country Read more Every two years Guardian Australia partners with BirdLife Australia to run Bird of the Year, a national poll that is equal parts light-hearted competition and urgent environmental campaign. Australia is home to more than 830 species of birds, many of them unique to this continent yet habitat destruction, climate change and bushfires mean that one in six is now at risk of extinction. By inviting readers to vote for their favourites from this years winner the beloved tawny frogmouth, to the critically endangered Baudins black cockatoo the poll sparks widespread public attention to the pressures facing our birdlife. Past winners have gone on to become ambassadors for conservation, shifting the national conversation about the importance of protecting biodiversity. Read more