Skip to content
UNSW Centre for Sustainable Development Reform Research Platform

Board Briefing Q1 2026

CSDR Financial Overview

Board Briefing | Q1 2026


Revenue Overview

Strong revenue growth driven by expanded government funding and new industry partnerships.

SourceQ1 2026Q1 2025Change
Government grants$2.4M$2.1M+14%
Industry partnerships$1.8M$1.5M+20%
Consulting$0.6M$0.4M+50%
Total$4.8M$4.0M+20%

Expenditure Summary

Expenditure remains within budget across all categories.

CategoryBudgetActualVariance
Personnel$2.8M$2.7M-4%
Research operations$0.9M$0.8M-11%
Infrastructure & IT$0.4M$0.4M0%
Travel & engagement$0.2M$0.15M-25%
Total$4.3M$4.05M-6%

Pipeline and Projections

  • FY2026 revenue forecast: $19.2M (revised upward from $17.5M)
  • New contracts in negotiation: 4 government, 2 industry ($3.1M total value)
  • Grant applications pending: ARC Discovery ($1.2M), NHMRC ($0.8M)
  • Cash reserves: $6.4M (14 months operating runway)

Strategic Priorities

Financial priorities for the remainder of FY2026:

  1. Diversify funding base — Reduce government grant dependency below 50% of total revenue
  2. Scale consulting practice — Target $1.0M quarterly consulting revenue by Q4
  3. Infrastructure investment — Allocate $0.5M for research computing and data platform upgrades
  4. Staffing plan — Recruit 3 senior researchers to support expanded climate risk programme