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Jackie Coates
Social innovation leader advocating technology for humanity
Jackie Coates is the CEO of the Telstra Foundation and a Board Trustee of the Telstra Foundation Philippines.1 As the head of the Telstra Foundation, she manages a multi-million dollar community partner portfolio focused on improving social inclusion outcomes for young people.2
Professional Background
Jackie has an extensive career in corporate social impact and communications:
- She has been leading the Telstra Foundation since October 2012, a role she has held for over 11 years.1
- Prior to her current position, she worked in various senior communications and community roles at companies like Australia Post, Medibank, NAB, and Fosters Group.1
Education and Expertise
Jackie holds a BA in English Literature from the University of Melbourne.1 Her expertise lies in:
- Social innovation leadership
- Corporate philanthropy
- Youth empowerment through technology
- Digital inclusion initiatives
Telstra Foundation Focus
Under Jackie's leadership, the Telstra Foundation focuses on two key community goals:
- Building digital skills for young people (digital inclusion)
- Supporting community-led climate action enabled by technology2
The foundation partners with various Australian charities and social enterprises to achieve these goals, including Code Club Australia, Alannah & Madeline Foundation, and Orygen Digital, among others.2
Personal Approach
Jackie describes herself as a "feminist, mother, tech optimist, and grant-maker".1 She is passionate about:
- Supporting children and young people to be more included, empowered, and connected
- Advocating for young people to have a say in shaping their digital world
- Encouraging young people to create with, not just consume, technology1
Through her role at the Telstra Foundation, Jackie Coates continues to drive impactful, tech-enabled projects that benefit underserved communities and promote social change through technology.2
Highlights
“We all want children to have fun, productive, safe, and ethical experiences online. But the current design of online experiences that shape how children learn and play are often not well-suited to them.”
To explore this, Telstra Foundation invited QUT research fellow Dr Aleesha Rodriguez from the Digital Child to run two workshops for our non-profit stakeholders and Telstra colleagues. Aleesha stepped us all through their process to codesign digital products with children and young people. My take-away was that children have genuine agency and there are some tried and tested ways to codesign digital things with them. While it is a messy process, it is something to consider when the stakes are so high. Who doesn't want to make digital experiences better for young people? And when children and young people are engaged in digital product codesign, we know the outcomes are better for everyone. If you are interested in learning more, a great place to start is the Digital Child's working paper: https://lnkd.in/gHpS582x
FREE ONLINE WORKSHOP FOR PARENTS: SAFER INTERNET DAY At Telstra Foundation, we work with partners to support children and young people to thrive online. Did you know Tuesday 6 February is Safer Internet Day - a global initiative to raise awareness of online safety issues? Our partner Alannah and Madeline Foundation will be hosting an online live Q&A session, led by experts, for parents/carers to learn new approaches to keeping children safe online: 6 February, 7.30pm (AEDT) here: https://lnkd.in/gMGPNRaJ and read our blog about some of our partnerships https://lnkd.in/gMAfzYCR.
