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Governance & Compliance

Committed to Transparent, Accountable, and Responsible Governance

PBG Foundation Limited is an Australian-registered charity committed to the highest standards of governance, transparency, and public accountability. We believe trust is built through structure, oversight, and clarity; not assumption. Below is an overview of our legal status, governance practices, and how we ensure compliance with all relevant laws and standards.

Our legal status

PBG Foundation Limited is:

  • an Australian Public Benevolent Institution (PBI) ): registered with the ACNC as a charity whose core purpose is the relief of poverty, distress or suffering. All of our activities directly support this benevolent purpose.
  • ACNC Registered Charity: regulated by the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, meaning we meet strict governance standards and reporting obligations.
  • Endorsed DGR: endorsed by the Australian Taxation Office as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR). This means eligible donations to PBG Foundation may be tax-deductible for Australian donors. (Our DGR endorsement took effect on 24 June 2025.)
  • ABN: 42 688 363 993 (Australian Business Number)

In practical terms, these credentials mean we operate under Australian charity law, are subject to regulatory oversight, and are entitled to certain tax concessions that enhance our capacity to direct funds to our mission.

What PBI and DGR status mean

  • Public Benevolent Institution (PBI): As a PBI, our sole purpose is charitable, specifically, the relief of poverty, distress, suffering, or disadvantage in the community. All of our activities must directly support this purpose and provide benevolent relief to people in need. We cannot operate for profit or for any non-charitable goals. This status is a hallmark of charities that work to help the most vulnerable.
  • Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR): DGR endorsement means that donations of $2 or more to PBG Foundation can be claimed as tax deductions by Australian taxpayers. In other words, when you donate to us, you may deduct that amount from your taxable income (if you’re an Australian taxpayer). To maintain DGR status, we must continue to meet the requirements of our charity subtype and use donations exclusively for our charitable purposes with no material benefit given in return. DGR status also allows us to receive funds from certain grant-makers and philanthropic institutions that only fund DGR-endorsed entities.

Together, our PBI and DGR status ensure that we are both focused on helping those in need and empowered to raise funds effectively to support that mission.

Governance structure

PBG Foundation is governed by an independent Board responsible for:

  • setting strategic direction
  • overseeing charitable activities
  • ensuring compliance with Australian law
  • safeguarding public trust and the interests of our beneficiaries 
  • overseeing financial stewardship and accountability

Our Board operates separately from day-to-day project delivery. It provides oversight to ensure that all decisions and activities remain aligned with the Foundation’s charitable purpose and values. This separation of governance and operations is intentional, it creates checks and balances that keep us mission-focused and ethically guided. The Board meets regularly to review progress, evaluate risks, and uphold our commitments to donors, partners, and the public.

Financial stewardship

We are committed to responsible financial management. This includes:

  • Applying funds solely to charitable activities: Donor funds and grants are only used to further our mission.
  • Maintaining appropriate financial controls: We have internal processes to budget, approve, and track expenditures carefully.
  • Ensuring Board oversight of spending:  The Board reviews financial reports and must approve major expenditures or commitments. 
  • Meeting all ACNC financial reporting requirements: Including filing Annual Information Statements and, when required, audited financial reports.

Founder contributions and donor funds are managed with the same discipline and accountability. Every dollar is treated with respect. We understand that these funds are an expression of trust; trust that we will use them to help others; and we honour that trust through prudent, transparent financial practices.

Safeguarding and ethics

We maintain a strong commitment to safeguarding, ethical conduct, and respectful community engagement. We recognize that working with vulnerable populations is a privilege that carries utmost responsibility. Our safeguarding principles include:

  • Protection of children and vulnerable persons: ensuring that children and at-risk adults are kept safe from harm, abuse, or exploitation in all our activities.
  • Zero tolerance for abuse or exploitation: any form of abuse, harassment, or exploitation by our staff, volunteers, or partners is not tolerated.
  • Culturally respectful engagement: we approach communities with respect for local culture, traditions, and perspectives.
  • Ethical storytelling and representation: when sharing photos or stories, we portray individuals with dignity, never exploiting someone’s image or story for shock or pity. Consent is obtained where appropriate.
  • Clear pathways for raising concerns: we have processes so that anyone (internal or external) can report a concern or incident, and have it addressed swiftly and appropriately.

Transparency and reporting

As an ACNC-registered charity, we meet ongoing reporting obligations to the government. We file an Annual Information Statement each year, disclosing our activities, finances, and compliance with governance standards. We also make our annual financial reports available as required. We are committed to transparency, providing donors, partners, and regulators with confidence in how the Foundation operates. Key information about our charity (such as our trustees/directors, financial summaries, and purpose) is publicly available on the ACNC Charity Register. Internally, we promote a culture of openness, where questions are welcomed and information is readily shared with stakeholders. In short, we strive to earn trust through honesty in everything we do.

Gifts and donations

We accept a range of donations to support our work, including:

  • Monetary Donations: Gifts of money (cash, credit, etc.) of $2 or more are tax-deductible for Australian donors under our DGR status.
  • Gifts of Property: We can in some cases receive donated property or goods. These may also be tax-deductible if they meet ATO criteria (such as valued over a certain amount or donated within 12 months of purchase).
  • Bequests: Legacy gifts in wills (bequests) are welcome. While these don’t offer tax deductions, they leave a lasting impact on our future work.

Donations of services, volunteer time, or labor are not tax-deductible under Australian law (since no money or property is transferred). However, we deeply appreciate such contributions as they save costs and increase our impact. All donations are received and applied at the discretion of the Foundation in accordance with our charitable purpose. This means that while you can nominate a project (and we honor donor preferences where possible), ultimately, we must ensure funds are directed to areas that align with our mission and current needs. This policy helps us maintain compliance and use resources where they can do the most good.

Our responsibility

Governance is not an administrative task; it is a duty. PBG Foundation exists to serve communities with care and integrity, and to honor the trust placed in us by donors, partners, and the public. We take that responsibility extremely seriously. We have designed our structures and policies to ensure we uphold our duty over time, even as the organisation grows. From our board oversight, to our financial controls, to our emphasis on ethics, every aspect of our governance is focused on one thing: doing the right thing, the right way, for those who need our help. We know that strong governance isn’t about red tape, it’s about making sure we never lose sight of why we started this work and whom we are accountable to.

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Christopher Penfold

Treasurer & Director

Christopher Penfold serves as Treasurer and Director of PBG Foundation, providing financial oversight and operational discipline to support the Foundation’s charitable work.

Christopher’s professional experience spans more than twenty years across business ownership, management consultancy, and organisational restructuring. He has worked closely with founders and leadership teams in environments requiring clear execution, sound capital allocation, and strong governance under pressure.

His work has involved stabilising organisations during periods of transition, improving operational clarity, and aligning strategy with day-to-day capability. Through this experience, Christopher developed a practical understanding of how decisions flow through people, systems, and incentives; and how small weaknesses, if left unaddressed, can undermine long-term resilience.

As Treasurer, Christopher ensures that PBG Foundation’s resources are managed responsibly and in accordance with Australian charity law. He is focused on transparency, financial integrity, and ensuring that donor funds are applied efficiently and solely toward the Foundation’s charitable purposes.

Christopher also brings a strong interest in education and capability development, having designed and delivered programs aimed at strengthening leadership coherence and execution discipline. His contribution to PBG Foundation reflects a commitment to ensuring that humanitarian intent is matched with operational soundness, so that the Foundation remains stable, credible, and effective over time.

Dr Regina Crameri

Director

Dr Regina Crameri brings decades of experience across science, government, defence, and institutional leadership to her role as Director of PBG Foundation.

With a background in biomedical science and applied research, Regina’s early career involved academic and research appointments in Australia and internationally. This foundation led into senior roles within Australia’s defence, innovation, and research ecosystems; environments characterised by public accountability, complex governance, and long-term national interest.

Over time, Regina’s work expanded from research into the design and stewardship of large, multi-stakeholder programs. She has worked closely with government, industry, universities, and international partners in areas including health, critical technologies, and capability development, where alignment between policy intent, organisational structure, and delivery is essential.

Regina has also held numerous board and advisory positions, contributing to governance, risk management, and institutional resilience across public, not-for-profit, and sector-based organisations. Her leadership style is grounded in realism: an understanding of how institutions function in practice, where misalignment erodes outcomes, and how long-term value is sustained through disciplined oversight.

As Director of PBG Foundation, Regina oversees operational delivery, strategic development, and program integrity. She ensures the Foundation’s humanitarian work is not only compassionate, but effective; guided by evidence, accountability, and a clear understanding of how complex systems behave over time.

Her role is central to translating PBG Foundation’s values into action: ensuring that ambition is matched with capability, and that every initiative is delivered with care, credibility, and respect for the communities it serves.

Aruba de Groot-Cham

Chairwoman & Director

Aruba de Groot-Cham’s work is grounded in the long-term stewardship of institutions operating where law, science, governance, and human consequence converge. Her leadership reflects a commitment to building structures that endure ethically, legally, and culturally, beyond the immediacy of individual projects or personalities.

Her professional background spans advanced legal training, biomedical research, and senior oversight roles across philanthropic, advisory, fiduciary, and civil society contexts. With postgraduate qualifications in law and medical science, Aruba has worked extensively in environments where regulatory integrity, scientific discipline, and human outcomes must be held together under sustained pressure. This multidisciplinary foundation has shaped a leadership style defined by rigour, clarity, and respect for consequence.

Aruba’s early professional formation took place within biomedical research, contributing to internationally peer-reviewed work in oncology, lipid science, and infectious disease treatment. This grounding instilled a deep respect for evidence, systems behaviour, and the risks inherent in poorly designed intervention. Her subsequent legal training, including specialist focus in international war crimes, extended this perspective into questions of governance, accountability, and the protection of rights within complex civil and criminal frameworks.

In her role as Director and Chairwoman of PBG Foundation, Aruba provides strategic oversight and guardianship of institutional integrity, ensuring that the Foundation’s charitable activities are conducted lawfully, transparently, and in alignment with Australian regulatory standards. Her focus is on governance architecture, compliance discipline, and long-term defensibility, ensuring that PBG Foundation remains resilient, credible, and respectful of local sovereignty and dignity in all jurisdictions in which it operates.

Alongside her philanthropic governance work, Aruba holds leadership roles in national sporting institutions in Vanuatu, including serving as President of the Vanuatu Archery Federation. Through these roles, she supports youth development, cultural continuity, gender equity, and international representation, using sport as a vehicle for discipline, confidence, and community cohesion.

Aruba has lived and worked in the Pacific region for over two decades and is a naturalised citizen of Vanuatu. Her leadership is informed by direct engagement in communities where governance decisions carry immediate and tangible consequences. Accustomed to cross-cultural and multi-jurisdictional environments, she operates with composure across legal systems, institutional cultures, and geopolitical boundaries.

Above all professional roles and institutional appointments, Aruba’s greatest responsibility and source of perspective is her role as a mother to five children: Zsa Zsa, Zelda, Zeus, Zahira, and Zlatan. This lived experience grounds her understanding of stewardship not as an abstract principle, but as an obligation to future generations.

As Chairwoman, Aruba’s contribution to PBG Foundation is defined by attentiveness to what institutions often avoid: time, consequence, and responsibility. Her leadership is anchored in the belief that trust is not asserted, but cultivated; through patient governance, disciplined care, and an unwavering commitment to the long horizon.

Peter Bowman

Founder, Ambassador, & Principal Benefactor

Peter Bowman is the Founder and Ambassador of PBG Foundation, established to support long-term, community-led development across the Pacific region through the application of Australian standards of governance, accountability, and practical capability.

The Foundation was born from Peter’s conviction that meaningful and lasting change depends on strong systems, ethical frameworks, and respect for local context. Drawing on decades of professional experience across finance, governance, and complex environments, he envisioned an organisation that would prioritise dignity, safety, and resilience over short-term intervention or symbolic aid.

Peter began his career in financial services in 1998 within funds management and institutional finance, working across private banking and advisory settings during periods of significant economic and structural change. Over time, he developed a deep appreciation for the role that sound governance, transparency, and disciplined decision-making play in achieving sustainable outcomes, particularly where resources are scarce and the consequences of failure are felt most acutely.

These insights shaped the founding ethos of PBG Foundation. As Ambassador, Peter contributes by articulating the Foundation’s mission, championing ethical and well-governed philanthropy, and supporting constructive engagement with partners, communities, and stakeholders. His role is focused on stewardship of values, long-term vision, and the responsible application of expertise in service of the Foundation’s charitable purpose.

Peter is also recognised internationally as a peace envoy and humanitarian diplomat, and is a holder of a laissez-passer issued by the International Commission for the Protection of Civilians (ICPC). These roles reflect a broader commitment to civilian protection, stability, and principled engagement in complex environments, and align closely with the humanitarian objectives of PBG Foundation.

Through his association with PBG Foundation, Peter seeks to contribute to institutions and initiatives that leave communities stronger than they were found. His work reflects a belief that progress; whether social, institutional, or humanitarian, is built through integrity, restraint, and a willingness to invest in outcomes that endure.