MEDIA RELEASE
September 10 2026

Soft Landing was honoured to welcome Her Excellency the Honourable Sam Mostyn AC, Governor-General of Australia, to its Smithfield mattress recycling facility recently, shining a national spotlight on one of Australia’s leading social enterprises and the growing role the sector is playing in delivering meaningful employment, environmental and community outcomes.

Soft Landing is Australia’s largest mattress recycler and a social enterprise of Community Resources, a national Aboriginal-led not-for-profit and registered charity, of which Her Excellency is Patron.

In FY25, Community Resources created employment opportunities for 960 people, 70 per cent of whom experienced barriers to work, diverted 18,625 tonnes of waste from landfill and recycled more than 386,553 mattresses through Soft Landing.

During the visit, Her Excellency met employees, heard first-hand about their employment journeys and toured Soft Landing’s recycling operations, seeing how meaningful work, practical support and environmental innovation come together within the social enterprise model.

Her Excellency said: “This is a story about restoring dignity through work. It is about creating opportunities for people who have been overlooked, underestimated or locked out of employment, while honouring the knowledge, culture and leadership of First Nations peoples and welcoming those who have come to Australia seeking a chance to contribute, belong and thrive.”

“The workers were very kind in sharing their stories; they are part of great modern Australia that I love to celebrate, particularly in an organisation that cares so deeply – an Aboriginal-led organisation doing this extraordinary work.”

Indu Balachandran, Co-Chair of Community Resources, said the visit recognised both the people behind Soft Landing and the growing momentum behind social enterprise across Australia.

“We were honoured to welcome Her Excellency to Soft Landing and, most importantly, introduce her to the people whose hard work, determination and success are at the heart of everything we do.”

“Her Excellency’s patronage of Community Resources and her visit to Soft Landing are an important recognition of what social enterprises can achieve — creating real jobs and pathways for people facing complex barriers to work while delivering strong environmental and economic outcomes.”

“Across Australia, there is growing recognition that social enterprises are a proven part of the employment landscape. The opportunity now is to build on that momentum and work alongside government, business and the social enterprise sector to increase the scale and impact of models that we know can create sustainable employment and stronger communities.”

The visit also showcased Soft Landing’s continued investment in recycling innovation, including innovative new recycling technology being introduced at Smithfield, as the social enterprise continues to increase both its environmental and social impact.