Australian Radio Network (ARN) has announced the launch of The Goodness Project and a new partnership with social purpose organisation UnLtd, which helps improve the lives of disadvantaged young people.

The Goodness Project is a new internal initiative as part of ARN’s corporate social responsibility program, and will see employees from across the company team up to use their expertise and creativity to help charities make a difference in the community.

The first major activity of The Goodness Project is a new partnership with UnLtd, which brings the Australian media, marketing and advertising industry together to tackle the issue of youth disadvantage.

ARN will be working across specific projects with charities batyr and Musicians Making a Difference (MMAD).

The first project kicked off this month with batyr, an organisation that focuses on delivering education and programs that educate, engage and empower young people to have positive conversations about mental health and seek out help when needed.

ARN teams will work closely with batyr on its ‘Being Herd’ program, with creative collaborations and idea execution to help build awareness and provide a platform to raise funds in support of batyr’s goals to smash the stigma around mental ill health.

Later this year, ARN will be teaming up on a project with MMAD, an organisation which helps disadvantaged young people by using the power of music, dance and mentoring to inspire them to make their lives remarkable.

As part of the launch, ARN also announced each staff member will receive a day to devote their time to a charitable cause they are passionate about.

ARN chief executive Rob Atkinson said: “I am proud to be announcing the launch of The Goodness Project as part of ARN’s commitment to corporate social responsibility and our company-wide passion for supporting organisations that deliver great outcomes for those in need.

“At ARN, we know our real strength lies in our collective knowledge, creativity and ability to work together to execute great ideas for the benefit of our audiences, clients and charity partners.

“The Goodness Project gives all our staff the opportunity to drive, collaborate and contribute to the hard work charities like batyr and MMAD deliver to those that need a helping hand. We excited to be working with UnLtd and batyr at launch to help smash the stigma of mental health.

UnLtd CEO Paul Fisher said: “Partnering with organisations like ARN that are full of motivated and passionate people who want to make a difference and help support thousands of young people in need is what UnLtd is all about.

“We want to give everybody in the media, marketing and advertising industry the opportunity to do what they can to help improve the lives of disadvantaged young people, and I am looking forward to seeing the great work ARN’s The Goodness Project team will be able to do with batyr and MMAD.”