Amy Gillett Foundation names commuter cyclist and award-winning fundraiser, Dan Kneipp, as new chief executive.
The Amy Gillett Foundation (AGF) is excited to announce the appointment of Dan Kneipp (ken-ipe) as the new Chief Executive Officer, commencing 3 February 2020.
Mr Kneipp’s strategic appointment comes at a time when the national cycling safety organisation is looking for greater support from the philanthropic community to ensure the AGF can continue its important work and survive in an increasingly challenging funding environment.
“I’m amazed at the achievements of the Amy Gillett Foundation. The success, reputation and community awareness are incredible. It’s a real honour to be a part of such an amazing team and the work that is being done,” said Mr Kneipp.
Mr Kneipp is an experienced executive and fundraiser with a strong background across the sporting, mental health and education sectors. He brings outstanding experience in connecting major donors and companies with important community development projects, developing strategy and building teams.
Mr Kneipp enjoyed hard-earned success as the Fundraising Manager for Essendon Football Club, starting the role just as news broke of the club’s ASADA Supplements Saga. More recently, in the position of Director of Fundraising at Orygen Youth Mental Health, Mr Kneipp has worked to secure significant support from trusts and foundations, companies and individual philanthropists. He is a well-respected and acknowledged expert in his field and has won three awards from the Fundraising Institute of Australia.
Mr Kneipp has an innovative, entrepreneurial approach to philanthropy and recently graduated from Harvard University’s Kennedy School course in Exponential Fundraising. In addition, Mr Kneipp has a background as a professional squash coach and coached at three Commonwealth Games including the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games Games.
“I love how passionate and committed the cycling community is and I look forward to working with stakeholders. I know a lot of people believe in the AGF’s mission for safe cycling in Australia so I’ll be working quickly to find more patrons and sponsors who can help us expand and increase our work for everyone on a bicycle,” said Mr Kneipp.
AGF Chair, Andy Sheats, said the Board are excited by Mr Kneipp’s extensive fundraising experience warmly welcome him into the staff team.
“Dan really stood out from a very competitive group of candidates. We’re impressed by his track record of producing outstanding results in challenging environments and we’re keen for him to lead the AGF into a new phase of engaging more closely with philanthropic support.”
“As a charity, we receive no ongoing source of government funding. We rely almost exclusively on support from partnerships, donations and fundraising. This is particularly important to be able to allow us to remain non-partisan in our approach to policymaking, and to be able to advocate and make recommendations based on research and evidence,” said Mr Sheats.
Mr Sheats thanked interim CEO, Dr Marilyn Johnson, for her invaluable contribution.
“Dr Johnson stepped in to steer the AGF through a challenging period of transformation. The Board are grateful for Dr Johnson’s leadership and her pragmatic and collaborative approach. We are, of course, delighted that she will continue in her role as the AGF Research and Policy Manager as well as Senior Researcher at Monash University,” said Mr Sheats.
In addition to his great professional successes, Mr Kneipp loves to ride. He cycles daily to work on a cargo bike and on weekends with his young children. Like all riders, Mr Kneipp is passionate about cycling safety.
“Any time I take my kids to school in the car instead of on the bike they complain and remind me that cycling is good for the environment. From my work at Orygen, one of the world’s best mental health organisations, I know there is a lot of research showing the mental health benefits of physical activities like cycling. It’s a good reminder of the importance of making our roads safe for people who want ride. Safety really is a key barrier, so if we want to be serious about cycling, we need to be serious about making it safe,” said Mr Kneipp.
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