It’s been a remarkable 12 months for the Centre for Policy Development. The impact of our work has been felt across Australia, Indonesia and the wider region—a testament to our team, stakeholders, donors and supporters. Together, we’ve helped put real reform back on the agenda: reform that reimagines how governments and economies can shape a fairer, more sustainable future for people and the environment.
Our impact is evident:
This work is only possible thanks to those who support CPD and our mission to create transformative systems change by developing practical solutions to complex policy challenges. We’re deeply grateful.
Andrew Hudson
CEO, Centre for Policy Development
Learn more about the impact our programs and initiatives had on the policy landscape both at home and abroad.
The culmination of 8 years of polling data, CPD's Purpose of Government Pulse report showed Australians see wellbeing as a top priority for policymakers.
Our work influenced Australia’s targeted sanctions on Myanmar’s junta, which has now ruled for almost four years as the human rights crisis continues to worsen.
Following CPD’s active engagement with NSW Treasury, the NSW Government announced it’s introducing a Performance and Wellbeing Framework as part of its upcoming budget. The Parliamentary inquiry’s December report on building an effective framework adopted many of our recommendations and findings and cited CPD more than 60 times.
CPD's work helped influence the design of the $200 million Australia-Indonesia Climate and Infrastructure Partnership and the announcement of a $2 billion green South East Asia Investment Fund at the ASEAN Summit in Melbourne.
The Commonwealth Government announced it would begin paying super on Commonwealth Parental Leave Pay from 1 July 2025. CPD has long supported this idea as a way not just to support parents, but support children, families and the economy.
Under Sam Mostyn’s leadership CPD became a potent force for bold, practical and collaborative reform throughout Australia and across our region. While we'll miss her guidance, we are extremely proud of Sam, who will be a formidable leader for our nation.
The May Federal Budget carved out allowances for early childhood educators to receive a much-needed pay increase. This is a critical step in addressing workforce shortages and strengthening the foundation for universally accessible early childhood education and care (ECEC) – something CPD has long advocated for.
CPD’s report outlining our $10-a-day flat fee model for early childhood education and care was welcomed by the Prime Minister as an “important contribution to the policy debate,” and he added that universal early education would be a “valued national asset”.
CPD’s Banking the Benefits report calls for innovation in government budgeting to incentivise long-term, holistic policymaking.
From 2025, companies will be required to publicly disclose their carbon footprint – this legislation reflects CPD’s long-standing work on climate disclosures and corporate governance which can be traced back to 2016. Importantly, this includes non-listed companies, mirroring CPD's long-standing recommendations.
Shortly after new Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s inauguration, he announced reform of Indonesia’s costly energy subsidy scheme would be a priority, echoing CPD’s calls for a system better targeted at low-income and vulnerable households.
Future Made in Australia legislation, a watershed moment for Australian industry policy, followed more than a year’s worth of CPD engagement with government. Decisions to strategically back key industries such as green hydrogen, green steel and high purity alumina are recommendations from our Green Gold, Setting Direction, and Capital for Kilowatts reports, and policymakers involved in its architecture said elements drew heavily from CPD’s research.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announces a legislated guarantee for every child in Australia to receive three days a week of quality, affordable early childhood education and care (ECEC), a key element of CPD’s Starting Better guarantee.
This year marked a major step forward in early childhood development. CPD’s research and convening helped shape some of the most significant policy changes in a generation—and put others squarely on the national agenda.
We released Growing Together: A future universal early childhood education and care system for Australia, which sparked a national conversation about affordability, access, and quality in early learning. It drew immediate support from the Prime Minister and Treasurer and has since underpinned a wave of reforms steering Australia toward a truly universal system—something the Prime Minister has repeatedly said is an ambition for his government to deliver.
Our message was clear: building a universal early childhood education and care system requires a strong workforce, more services in underserved areas, fewer barriers for disadvantaged families, and a new funding model that delivers low or no fees for all.
Over the following weeks and months CPD briefed key decision makers including advisers to Peter Dutton, Jason Clare, Anne Aly as well as Steven Kennedy, Jenny Wilkinson, PM&C, and the Department of Education. Additional briefings were held with the Greens and all Teal independent members.
Thanks to this work we’ve seen real progress towards a universal system. The government funded a 15% pay rise for early childhood educators and delivered free TAFE placements to grow and retain the workforce.
The announcement of a $1 billion fund to build or expand 160 centres in regional and outer-suburban areas was a key election commitment from the Albanese government and backed by all major political parties—a huge win for the more than 20% of families living in childcare deserts.
The Three-Day Guarantee became law, scrapping the activity test and giving all families access to subsidised care three days a week, something CPD has long advocated for to help disadvantaged and vulnerable children access the care they need.
And the government committed to developing a national Early Education Service Delivery Price—a key step toward direct public funding and introducing low or no fees for families.
Beyond early childhood, our Putting People First report laid out a bold, practical guide to make all social services—from employment to aged care—more responsive, effective, and community-led. Its influence is already visible in the announcement of the PLACE initiative, a new national organisation to support locally tailored, community-driven solutions.
These reforms reflect what CPD has long championed: systems designed with, and for, the people they serve—building dignity, opportunity, and lasting impact from the ground up.
Our work advocating for a swift, just transition to a low-carbon economy in Australia and Indonesia has made waves this past year.
Australian companies must now publicly disclose their carbon footprint—a major reform reflecting CPD’s long-standing work dating back to 2016. Crucially, thanks to CPD, the law covers both listed and non-listed companies. Consistent, comparable disclosures will reveal our economy’s true emissions and help accelerate the transition to net zero.
The government’s landmark Future Made in Australia agenda supports $26 billion of investment in industries crucial to the energy transition, laying the foundation for Australia to meet its net zero goals while building the jobs and capabilities needed to compete in a shifting global economy.
CPD met with a number of policymakers and government decision-makers including senior officials in federal Treasury, the Department of Industry, Science & Resources, and Prime Minister and Cabinet. Our influence was clear, with key recommendations reflected in the final framework, particularly around ensuring public investment is targeted to the sectors where Australia can benefit most.
Legislation was also passed to establish a Net Zero Economy Authority, reflecting CPD’s call for federal leadership in coordinating regional transformation and supporting all communities affected by the energy transition. CPD Chair Zoe Whitton now helps guide this work as a member of the NZEA board.
The Climate Change Authority’s long awaited review of decarbonisation pathways across the economy drew heavily on CPD’s recommendations—from setting ambitious emission targets to improving transition planning and economic modelling. As CPD highlighted, the Review emphasised the need to diversify regional economies, build resilience, and ensure the transition is fair and equitable for all Australians.
The federal government’s hydrogen strategy backs iron, alumina and ammonia as priority industries for investment—reflecting CPD’s Green Gold report, which identified these sectors as the best bets for more competitive, sustainable exports.
In Indonesia, President Prabowo moved to reform the country’s costly energy subsidy scheme, echoing CPD’s call for a fairer system that supports low-income households. Our analysis showed this could free up US$3 billion in public funds and stop government support disproportionately benefiting the wealthy.
CPD spearheaded the establishment of the Energy Transition Policy Development Forum—a coalition of Indonesian climate policy institutes—and we delivered key recommendations to the incoming government on the social and human dimensions of the energy transition.
In Australia, Indonesia and the region more broadly, CPD will continue to advocate and drive momentum toward a just and sustainable transition to net zero.
The Centre for Policy Development runs on contributions from donors with a vision for a fair, sustainable future.
These donations make up the majority of our revenue, safeguarding the independence of our work. We do not maintain an endowment fund so our rigorous, nonpartisan work relies on donors like you.
Please consider making a fully tax deductible donation to the Centre for Policy Development so the work we do can continue throughout the next year and beyond.
We’re working towards placing the wellbeing of current and future generations at the forefront of government decision-making, and this last year saw significant impact.
CPD’s Banking the Benefits report called for smarter budgeting to incentivise long-term thinking and early intervention, proposing a new approach that lets governments account for future savings generated by policies today. Our idea of ‘banking’ second round fiscal effects garnered interest across the globe, from budget submissions, to the OECD World Forum on Wellbeing in Rome. By considering the longer-term, knock-on effects of their policies, and shifting focus to early intervention and prevention, governments can achieve better outcomes for people, and better value for every public dollar spent.
Following last year’s announcement of NSW’s new Performance and Wellbeing Framework, CPD gave evidence at the parliamentary inquiry, with a focus on how it can be best embedded in everything the government does to deliver real, measurable outcomes. The final inquiry report cited CPD recommendations and research more than 60 times and adopted many of our key findings—including reflecting what really matters to communities and ensuring policy decisions are properly guided by the framework.
Along with partners from the Intergenerational Fairness Coalition, CPD provided input to the drafting of the Wellbeing of Future Generations Bill, which was introduced to Parliament in February by Dr Sophie Scamps MP. The Bill is a visionary proposal that puts forward policy solutions that CPD has long called for—including a Commissioner for Future Generations that would advocate for Australians’ long-term interests, and a ‘national conversation’ on wellbeing, which would engage Australians in a public consultation to shape the nation’s vision for the future—one that reflects what Australians think is most important for their communities and supports the wellbeing of generations to come.
We also released Embedding Progress, a follow up to CPD’s landmark wellbeing report Redefining Progress, to help Australian governments turn wellbeing goals into real-world impact. Drawing on in-depth interviews with public servants from Australia and around the world, the report identifies six core principles and sets out 13 recommendations for embedding a wellbeing approach in government. We briefed key decision makers from Prime Minister and Cabinet, federal Treasury and the Department of Finance on the report, receiving strong praise for the detailed and practical nature of the recommendations. Policymakers are already looking at how they can implement these ideas to make government more effective, more accountable, and more focused on what really matters to the communities they serve.
CPD will remain committed to demonstrating how better approaches to government can have a positive impact on the long-term wellbeing of people, communities and the environment.
In the past year, CPD has made significant progress in shaping regional and national policies to better protect people forced to flee conflict, persecution, and disaster—and to promote a more humane, coordinated approach to displacement across the Asia-Pacific.
Our report From Crisis to Collaboration examined how ASEAN can improve its regional frameworks to better respond to forced migration. Following its release, CPD was invited to brief ASEAN Permanent Representatives in Jakarta—a rare opportunity to present our recommendations directly to key regional decision-makers and make the case for action to better support displaced persons in the region.
We also convened the 13th Asia Dialogue on Forced Migration in Kuala Lumpur, bringing together government officials, civil society, and people with lived experience from nine countries to confront the worsening crisis in Myanmar, amid other topics. Timed ahead of Malaysia taking over as Chair of ASEAN, our work helped sustain momentum for a stronger, more coordinated ASEAN response to forced migration—reinforced by public statements from Malaysia’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister ahead of the country’s 2025 ASEAN chairmanship.
As part of our Alternatives to Detention Peer Learning Platform, CPD brought together over 40 representatives from policy and implementing agencies across five countries to share insights on reforming migration pathways and ending the detention of children. This was the first time the platform had met in Australia since launching in 2019, and the event was officially opened by Assistant Minister for Immigration, Matt Thistlethwaite. By creating a space for frank, cross-border dialogue between senior decision-makers, the platform has helped shift regional practice—contributing to a significant reduction in the number of children held in immigration detention across the region.
CPD’s vision for a more inclusive migration system was reflected in the Joint Standing Committee on Migration’s report Migration, Pathway to Nation-Building, which cited our work 12 times. Our recommendations highlighted the need to foster stronger community connections, develop better pathways to permanency, and build a system that recognises the significant contribution migrants make to Australia.
As global conflict, inequality and climate change fuel a rise in displacement, CPD will keep working to ensure that the region moves beyond crisis response—toward a future where protection, inclusion and dignity are the norm, not the exception.
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