The Foundation for Hellenic Studies is founded upon the premise that many aspects of Hellenic culture – including language, religion, the arts, sport, food and politics – are central to the notion of our Australian identity. The irony, that could paradoxically be considered a compliment, is that in contributing to the development of this identity, many unique aspects of Hellenism are no longer distinctly identified as “Greek”.
In acknowledging the significant role that Greeks have played in Australia, the Greek, Cypriot and South Australian Governments and various Australian educational and cultural institutions have provided their support in establishing the Foundation for Hellenic Studies.
The Foundation is a not-for-profit entity managed by a Board; chaired by Honorary Greek, Greg Crafter; and driven by a band of volunteers who actively seek to promote cultural events that celebrate Hellenism.
The Foundation works closely with educational institutions to improve the accessibility and quality of Greek language education to ensure that future generations of Australia can continue to learn the language that is the basis of more than 30 per cent of English words. It will also promote the arts, language, literature and history of Hellenism through its own and partners’ lectures, seminars, conferences, exhibits and workshops.
The Foundation’s success will be measured in years to come as voices are heard to proclaim, “That comes from the Greek for…”. Please join us on this odyssey.
The Foundation for Hellenic Studies is a trust established by Deed that currently holds status with the Australian Taxation Office as a deductible gift recipient. The Trustee for the Foundation is a corporation: The Foundation for Hellenic Studies Pty Ltd. The Board of Directors of the Trustee are Hon. Greg Crafter LL.B, Mr Theo Maras AM, Prof. Michael Tsianikas and Mr Harry Patsouris LL.B. We are honoured to have His Honour Chief Justice Chris Kourakis of the Supreme Court of South Australia as Patron of the Foundation for Hellenic Studies.