About Us
How we do fundraising differently
At Cornucopia, cause-driven fundraising forms the very foundation of our work. We’re not just fundraisers – we’re advocates. That’s our point of difference.
Our genuine approach to face to face, telefundraising and social media fundraising puts our charities’ missions at the forefront.
We’re present on the street, at shopping centres, in workplaces and in homes, igniting and inspiring the passion of the public through meaningful conversations around charitable giving.
And what we’re doing works. Our inspirational and committed fundraisers recruit long-term regular givers for a range of charities and organisations.
All of this is achieved through our unique “Ben Don” chain of fundraising.
The Ben Don Chain
Cause-driven fundraising works through a particular chain of relationships.
This chain links each donor (“Don”) to the beneficiary (“Ben”) of their donation, and includes the campaigner who talks to the donor, Cornucopia, our client, not-for-profit organisations, and the beneficiary.
We believe every person in this chain is important. As soon as someone in the chain ceases to benefit, the chain breaks, the donation stops, and the beneficiary suffers.
When everyone wins, we help create a better world, with many happy Dons and Bens.
Our Ben Don theory is at the heart of everything we do at Cornucopia.
Our History
Cornucopia was born out of a charity, so doing good has been part of our DNA since the beginning.
In 2000, founder Gregor Drugowitsch, an experienced fundraiser for the German and Austrian Red Cross, introduced the face to face fundraising method here in Australia, to recruit new monthly donors for Amnesty International Australia.
After much success, Gregor outsourced this program to found Cornucopia – now one of the largest fundraising agencies across multiple countries.
In recent years, we’ve worked with more than 100 charity partners to secure over 700,000 regular givers to date.
Our Leadership
Ross Howe
Managing Director
Ross is all about helping charities do their best work, from small ones down the road in Brisbane to some of the world’s biggest non-profits.
In over 20 years at Cornucopia Ross has helped many charities supercharge their support base. He’s driven business and strategic initiatives from the top, and got his hands dirty in the field with fundraising teams in Australia, New Zealand and USA.
Starting his fundraising career in face to face fundraising in Sydney in 2002, Ross has been the Managing Director at Cornucopia since 2008. Between 2019 – 2025, he sat on the PFRA Australia board as the Deputy Chairperson and Chair of the Governance & Finance Committee.
Away from Cornucopia, Ross and his wife Karen are Co-Founders of Oasis Africa Australia – supporting slum-based children in Kenya into high school and tertiary education. Ross is also Chairman at ChaplainWatch, which supports Queenslanders during times of crisis at various entertainment precincts across the state.
Mathew Hunt
Head of Face to Face, Australia & New Zealand
Mathew is driven by problem solving and creating solutions for charity clients and campaign partners to get the best possible outcomes with face to face fundraising.
Since 2013 he has been at the forefront of training new staff on systems and processes to aid the growth of Cornucopia across Australia and New Zealand.
His fundraising career began with Cornucopia as a Location Assistant and has moved through the ranks to become an Operations Manager in 2019, and Head of Face to Face in 2023.
Mathew strives to build Cornucopia into the leading fundraising agency in Australia, New Zealand and the world!
Clara Beger
Face to Face Acquisition & Quality Manager
Clara brings over seven years of experience in face-to-face (F2F) fundraising in Perth, during which she developed a diverse skill set in problem-solving, team building, and establishing meaningful connections with individuals from all walks of life. Her dedication to donor quality and long-term retention has earned her the role of Acquisition and Quality Manager at Cornucopia, where she is committed to helping fundraising organizations achieve their donation goals with exceptional quality.
With a strong focus on cultivating lasting relationships, Clara’s expertise extends to acquiring and building high-performing teams through her resourcefulness and extensive network.
Outside of her professional work in fundraising, Clara enjoys volunteering at a local dog shelter, taking her own dog on beach walks, and exploring international cuisines in her free time.
Rosa Kates
Operations Team Leader
Since joining our company in 2022, Rosa has brought a wealth of experience in logistics and administration. Her extensive background has been instrumental in seamlessly integrating into our dynamic environment, ensuring smooth and efficient operations.
Rosa’s passion for helping people makes her a perfect fit for Cornucopia, where her leadership and expertise continue to drive our team towards excellence.
Lisa Cory
Managing Director’s Assistant
Lisa is the compliance queen and wearer of many hats – from HR to fundraising legislation and compliance and everything in between. If in doubt, ask Lisa!
Lisa started at Cornucopia in July 2002 when the company was very young, doing pledge form (back in the olden days of paper) data entry and locations booking for the face to face fundraisers (including a certain young Ross Howe). She is now Ross’ assistant and has a very, very varied role.
Outside of work Lisa enjoys travelling – anywhere, anytime – as well as hanging out with family and friends, eating good food, and drinking good whiskey.