Our
Team
Michelle Lin
Michelle is the CEO of Vermilion Foundation. She is very passionate about New Gen philanthropy and shifting capital towards purpose, and sits on Philanthropy Australia's New Gen committee.
Michelle's experiences as a cancer survivor and as a Chinese Australian woman has shaped her work at Vermilion. A champion for diversity from a gender, minority and disability lens, she has many passions including multicultural youth empowerment, increasing representation of women of colour in leadership roles and youth mental health.
Michelle hopes Vermilion will serve as a bridge between those who have the resources to make a difference and those who need it most and to be a platform that will inspire and gather others to create positive change.
Sonia Lin
Sonia Lin is a Director at Vermilion Foundation. She is passionate about empowering young people and believes that everyone has the potential to make a difference in the world.
As a vehicle for formalised giving, Vermilion aims to lead the way in New Gen giving and being an advocate for diversity and inclusion in the philanthropic space in Australia.
Growing up Chinese Australian, Sonia's experiences have given her the ability to empathise with and understand the challenges faced by those from minority groups. Wanting to stay true to her cultural heritage while navigating what it means to be Australian, Sonia has learned the importance of building bridges between cultures.
What do you want to see Vermilion achieve?
First and foremost, I'd like Vermilion to make an impact that matters starting with local communities and eventually reaching developing markets too. Inevitably, our areas of focus will evolve over time as what the world needs changes alongside what we are passionate about. From an investment perspective, I would like Vermilion to gradually progress from a do no harm strategy to achieving 100% impact.
Secondly, I would love for Vermilion to lead the way in New Generational giving, especially in the Chinese community. I hope that Vermilion can lead by example and convince more families to set up their vehicles for formalised giving or collaborate with other families to maximise impact.
We are young and starting now so I’m very excited by the prospect of the potential impact we can have as a family over our lifetimes and our children’s and so on. We hope that Vermilion can be a lasting intergenerational asset that our future children will be able to use to enable the social change they want to see.
How does your personal story as an Asian Australian influence your philanthropic decision-making?
Philanthropy is deeply personal, and all of the causes I care about are born from my personal experiences, which is by extension my family's experience too.
Reflecting on my childhood as a Chinese Australian, I experienced a lot of cultural tension between how my Caucasian friends were brought up compared to my own upbringing. I observed the differences in values such as respect, authority and diligence which are deeply rooted in traditional Chinese culture. I didn't realise it then, but having gone to a predominantly Caucasian school I was often singled out as the token Asian in my friendship circles. At the time, the nicknames I was called didn't seem problematic yet in retrospect I can see the issues with the language used and how I was often called out for being different. It resulted in growing up with a lot of shame around cultural identity and only now as an adult have I wholeheartedly embraced and appreciated my cultural heritage.
This is why diversity and inclusion is so important to my sister and me. Whenever I walk into a room, one of the first things I notice is the diversity of people in terms of age, gender and culture. Sometimes it surprises how often it goes unnoticed. So of course, being a young Chinese Australian woman has shaped the areas of focus for the foundation. For example, increasing the representation of CALD (culturally and linguistically diverse) women in leadership roles.
What do you do to unwind?
To fully unwind, I like to change my context by taking small trips away e.g. to the beach. I find physical activity also helps me unwind as well. I enjoy going to the gym or meeting up with a friend to go for a walk or to hit the driving range.
What does your perfect morning routine look like?
The first thing I do when I wake up is head to the coffee machine. Once armed with an oat milk latte, I go out to the garden for some guided meditation. I love listening to the birds chirping, the trickle of my neighbours pond and feeling the cold morning breeze on my face. Then I'll head out to walk my golden retriever Biscuit and listen to a podcast while I walk.
Get to know Michelle
What do you want to see Vermilion achieve?
I hope for Vermilion Foundation to become a mechanism for generational giving. The four pillars we have chosen are relevant and important to my family and me. We intend that these focus areas can evolve with time and circumstance and what future generations deem important.
What is one experience that has shaped who you are today and what you are passionate about?
Growing up in a predominantly Caucasian school, I felt deeply ashamed of being Asian. The last thing any child wants is to feel like they don't belong. So I did anything I could to separate my identity from my culture. I would go to lengths to hide any ornaments that could be associated with being "oriental" in my family home before my Caucasian friends would come over. I beg my parents not to cook any traditional dishes before or during my friends' stay (definitely no fried oyster pancake or dried meat floss!). I was embarrassed that I went to a Chinese school on Saturdays, and I would worry about the language barrier in my parent-teacher interviews. To that end, I would always underestimate my parents' ability to understand the English language. I would often brush them off impatiently if they asked me to repeat and explain a phrase.
Only in recent years have I developed the maturity to come to appreciate my cultural heritage and the perspective it's given me. It's granted me the ability to empathise with those on the outskirts of a local community, battling the internal turmoil of feeling obliged to assimilate yet not wanting to lose the customs and traditions of their culture.
The diversity and inclusion pillar is important to my family and me because the immigrant experience is one of the world's most ubiquitous and shared experiences. Yet, the systems and practices in place are so underdeveloped. I fundamentally believe everyone wants to feel as if they belong to a community. So one of the main areas of focus for Vermilion is to support minorities by creating opportunities to share their experiences and perspectives with the world.
What do you do to unwind?
My idea of unwinding is going for a run! It's my safe space where I can zone out and think about everything and nothing at all, and it's therapeutic to me.
What does your perfect morning routine look like?
My perfect morning routine is waking up at the crack of dawn and doing some form of movement to wake up my mind and body. Ideally, I'll be doing something outdoors to watch the sunrise.