Ellen Koshland established the Koshland Innovation Fund to stimulate new thinking about education in Australia.

Her commitment to education in Victoria represents one of the most remarkable and relentless campaigns to address the serious inequities facing many young people and their families.

In 1989, she established the Small Change Foundation to improve learning and life outcomes for young people in the public education system. Renamed the Education Foundation, it raised more than $10 million to fund over 500 innovative programs in Victoria and nationally, supporting many students in government schools to develop their talents and foster a love of learning. In 2008, the Education Foundation became a permanent division of The Foundation for Young Australians.

She is a founding partner of the Global Education Leaders Partnership, a powerful alliance of global education leaders who seek to transform education to meet the needs of the future through new methods, curriculum and assessment.