History

Then and Now... 1980 - present

The Alternative Life Styles Organisation (ALSO) was established in December 1980 and is now the largest broadly focused GLBTIQ philanthropic organization in Australia. ALSO was formed by a small group of people following the celebration of the decriminalisation of homosexuality by the (then) Hamer government. The organisation grew slowly in the early eighties with one of the initial aims identified as endeavouring to address the needs of aging gays and lesbians. The AIDS crisis led to a significant refocus and ALSO subsequently assisted in establishing The Victorian AIDS Support Group which eventually separated from The ALSO Foundation and became the Victorian AIDS Council.

Through the eighties many new groups were formed with assistance from ALSO, including such familiar groups as "ALSOUNDS" – now well known as the Gay and Lesbian Chorus. As well as those previously mentioned, some of the groups which ALSO has initiated or assisted include Vintage Men, PFLAG – Minus 18, Melbourne Aids Memorial Candlelight Vigil. Joy FM – initial grants and funding for its current transmitter, Midsumma Festival, Bent TV, Victorian Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby, Outblack Koorie Gay Support Social Group, Melbourne Rainbow Band, Coalition of Lesbian Activists and many more. The primary means of support was in the form of grants – essentially to enable a new group to get started, from here the group was expected to become self-funding.

To support this activity and meet the growing demand for resources, new sources of funds were required in addition to memberships. Dance parties paved the way as a profitable solution giving gay men, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people the opportunity to attend first class events while supporting their own community. Among the early events was the first Fantasy Ball. Dance parties have consistently provided the major source of funding for The ALSO Foundation. Since 1983 Red Raw, Resurrection, Winterdaze and New Years Eve parties - have essentially enabled ALSO to distribute over 1.2 Million dollars to the community. In addition, over the years the ALSO Care & Benevolent Society has received several major bequests.

Coordinating dance parties and keeping the organisation running has required an enormous effort from volunteers and a small but dedicated team of staff. Volunteers remain the backbone of The ALSO Foundation – the Board of Management is entirely voluntary and many of the projects run from the ALSO office are volunteer based.

During the eighties, ALSO established an office in Ross House, Flinders Lane, Melbourne. It then moved to Cato Street Prahran for 8 and in February of 2002 ALSO relocated to , the Victorian Aids Council (VAC)/Gay Men's Health Centre Building, Level 1, 6 Claremont Street, South Yarra. Along with ALSO came Melbourne Queer Film Festival, Gay and Lesbian Switchboard, Minus 18 and PFLAG.

The latest move for ALSO has been to City Village, Level 8, 225 Bourke st Melbourne.

In 1989, the first ALSO Community Directory was published. Over the years the directory has continued to be published annually and has gone from strength to strength; serving as a quick and easy guide for the GLBT community to access both community and commercial listings. The popularity of the directory continues to grow, as it provides quality information on businesses and community groups that provide support services and programs within the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community.

ALSO has conducted many research projects into areas relevant to the needs of the GLBT community. Community support and development is a prime focus for The ALSO Foundation. The Rural Outreach project has investigated issues faced by gay men, lesbians, bisexual and transgender people living in rural areas. This Project has resulted in the establishment of the Victorian Rural GLBTIQ Network. This important initiative enables sharing of resources, information exchange and an opportunity to come together for social activities, fun and mutual support.

The ALSO Foundation is currently revisiting one of its initial aims – the care of the older GLBT people. During 2000 - 2001 an Older Person’s Needs Assessment Project was instigated to investigate the needs of GLBT seniors in Victoria. This research consisted of confidential interviews with members of the older GLBT community - assessing needs, issues and concerns. Positive image posters of older GLBT people were also produced to increase community awareness as part of this project. In 2003 the information collected from these interviews led to the production of The Needs of Older Gay, Lesbian and Transgender People Report. The report was followed up in mid 2003 with three community forums targeting Victorian GLBT seniors. Based on feedback from these forums a Strategic Action Plan titled "About Time! GLBTI Seniors ALSO Matter" was produced and includes community-identified themes for GLBTI seniors. This is used as a lobbying and advocacy tool to government and service providers to ensure relevant services are established. Following on from that ALSO established the ALSO Seniors Project Advisory Committee (ASPAC) in July of 2004.

Other initiatives include a Coming Out Kit, a Community Outreach Project, and creating links with Universities and tertiary institutions to encourage interested students to complete their placements with The ALSO Foundation. Political involvement for 2000 included representation on the Ministerial Advisory Committee on Gay and Lesbian Health, and also on the Attorney General Advisory Committee on Same-Sex Attracted Relationships. In 2004 ALSO facilitated “Making It Equal– Achieving Federal Gay and Lesbian Law Reform". The aims of this project was to discuss and document an agreed national law reform agenda relating to gay and lesbian rights, to be used as the foundation to 2004 federal election campaign strategies.

In January 2005 ALSO convened a Concept Panel to discuss the issue of SSAT housing and crisis support. This Panel of informed people working in the youth service sector strongly recommended that ALSO respond to the need to provide more appropriate care and support to young people that find themselves homeless or in need of more stable and supported accommodation. In May 2005 ALSO committed itself to open a transitional youth housing service. This service will be based in metropolitan Melbourne and will provide medium to long-term accommodation for same sex attracted and transgender (SSAT) youth. Recently named ALSORTS Youth Housing Service, the service was officially launched on Monday 19th June 2006 and will have it's first tenants by mid August 2006.

The ALSO Foundation leads the way into the 21st century fostering and advancing the status of the GLBT community as worthwhile and contributing members of the broader community and assisting to create a vibrant and strong community.