Our town — our Nimbin.
Buy Back Nimbin is a community movement — and a registered Australian charity — working to buy back the old Museum site in the heart of Nimbin village and heal it as a people's park: a gathering and meeting place for everyone.
A people's park for the living heart of town
When the old Museum era ended, its site on Cullen Street was described in the local paper as a scar — an open wound in the centre of the village. The Buy Back Nimbin movement formed so the community itself could buy the site back and heal it "with loving recreation", as the Nimbin GoodTimes put it in September 2021.
The Vision
A people's park in the centre of Nimbin — a gathering and meeting place, held by and for the community.
The Site
51 Cullen Street — the old Museum site, right in the middle of the village on Nimbin's main street.
Membership & Support
A community buy-back is powered by its members and supporters. Find out how it works and how to join.
About Us — Our Story
Buy Back Nimbin is the public name of BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED, an Australian public company and registered charity based at 51 Cullen Street, Nimbin NSW 2480.
Why the community moved
The old Nimbin Museum stood in the centre of the village on Cullen Street. After the museum era ended, the site sat at the heart of town as what the Nimbin GoodTimes described in September 2021 as a scar — an open wound in the centre of the village.
Rather than wait for someone else to decide the future of the town's centre, locals formed a movement to buy the site back into community hands. Community meetings were held on the site itself — Wednesday midday on the old Museum site, as reported in 2021.
A registered charity
To give the movement a proper, accountable structure, BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED was established on 6 July 2021 and registered as a charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) from 22 July 2021. The charity's reporting with the ACNC is up to date — it last reported on 14 November 2025, with its next report due 31 January 2027.
The charity exists for one clear community purpose: the buy-back of the town-centre site, and its future as a people's park for Nimbin. Its work is carried on by its members, supporters and the Responsible People listed on our Governance page.
The Vision — A People's Park
The vision below is the one the Buy Back Nimbin movement put to the community in the Nimbin GoodTimes in September 2021. We present it as the movement's public vision.
A gathering place
A people's park in the centre of the village — a place to meet, sit, talk and be together, in the living heart of town.
A meeting place
Room for the community to come together — as it did for the Wednesday midday meetings held on the old Museum site in 2021.
Loving recreation
Healing the scar in the centre of the village "with loving recreation" — green, open and welcoming to locals and visitors alike.
Healing the centre of the village
The old Museum site was described in 2021 reporting as a scar and an open wound in the centre of Nimbin. The Buy Back Nimbin vision answers that directly: buy the site back, and turn the wound into the village's shared front yard — a park held in community ownership, for the community.
That vision is a work in progress, carried by members and supporters. It is not a completed purchase or a finished park — it is the goal this charity was formed to pursue. To help carry it forward, see Get Involved.
The Site — 51 Cullen Street
The site at the centre of this story is 51 Cullen Street, Nimbin NSW 2480 — the old Museum site, in the heart of the village.
In the middle of town
Cullen Street is Nimbin's main street — its painted facades, verandas, cafés and shops are the village's front door. The charity's registered address, 51 Cullen Street, sits right in that centre: the old Museum site area the community movement formed to buy back.
Nimbin and the Spirit of Aquarius
Nimbin is a village in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. It became known across Australia after the 1973 Aquarius Festival, and has been home to an alternative, creative community ever since. The Buy Back Nimbin movement speaks in that spirit — in the words of the 2021 reporting, "the Spirit of Aquarius is forever strong in the living heart of our town".
How It Works — Membership & Support
A community buy-back works the way it sounds: instead of one buyer, a whole community chips in — through membership and support — so a much-loved place can be owned by the community itself, through its charity.
1. Members
People join the charity as members, giving the buy-back a broad community base and a democratic foundation.
2. Supporters
Supporters contribute funds and energy toward the shared goal of buying back the town-centre site.
3. Community ownership
Funds raised go toward the community purchase, so the site can be held for the village as a people's park.
Membership — what was reported in 2021
When the movement launched publicly, the Nimbin GoodTimes (September 2021) reported that people could join as a lifetime member from $50, or donate to the cause. That figure is historical reporting from 2021 — it is shown here as part of the movement's history, not as a current price or offer.
Join or support today
The current step is simple: email us at info@buybacknimbin.org and ask about joining as a member or supporting the buy-back. We'll reply with the current details directly — this website does not publish bank details or payment links.
Our People — Governance
The Responsible People of BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED, as listed on the ACNC Charity Register. These are the people responsible for the charity's governance.
| Lucia Mauloni | Director |
|---|---|
| Mark Saulwick | Director |
| Wilma Huls | Director |
| Louise Graves | Secretary |
| Michael Balderstone | Public Officer |
Names and roles are shown exactly as listed on the ACNC register (the register lists the Secretary as "Graves Louise"). As a registered charity, Buy Back Nimbin reports to the ACNC each year — its reporting is up to date, last reported 14 November 2025, next report due 31 January 2027. Full details are on the Transparency page.
Transparency & Registration
The official registration details of BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED, from the ACNC Charity Register and ABN Lookup.
| Legal name | BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED |
|---|---|
| Public name | Buy Back Nimbin |
| ABN | 84 651 787 352 |
| ACN | 651 787 352 |
| Entity type | Australian Public Company |
| Charity status | Registered charity with the ACNC — reporting up to date |
| Charity size | Small |
| Date established | 6 July 2021 |
| ABN active / charity registered | From 22 July 2021 |
| Last reported to ACNC | 14 November 2025 |
| Next report due | 31 January 2027 |
| Financial year end | 30 June |
| GST | Not currently registered for GST |
| Tax concessions | GST Concession, Income Tax Exemption, FBT Rebate (from 22 July 2021) |
| Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) | Not a DGR — "Not entitled to receive tax deductible gifts" (ABN Lookup). Gifts are not tax-deductible. |
| Address | 51 Cullen St, Nimbin NSW 2480, Australia |
| Public email | info@buybacknimbin.org |
| Website | buybacknimbin.org |
A note on programs
The ACNC details supplied for this charity listed its registration, people and reporting information, with no charity programs section and no beneficiary groups section. This website therefore describes the charity's work from the community's own public reporting — the Buy Back Nimbin movement covered by the Nimbin GoodTimes in September 2021 — rather than from an ACNC program list.
Sources
ACNC Charity Register profile for BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED (details supplied by the charity's owner); ABN Lookup record for ABN 84 651 787 352 at abr.business.gov.au; Nimbin GoodTimes, September 2021, "Our Town — The Buy Back Nimbin" (Len Martin / Michael Balderstone), for the movement's vision and history.
Verify our registration: ABN Lookup — 84 651 787 352
Get Involved
A buy-back belongs to everyone who joins it. Here's how to be part of bringing the heart of Nimbin back into community hands.
Become a member
Join BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED as a member and stand behind the community ownership of 51 Cullen Street.
Support the buy-back
Ask how you can contribute toward the purchase fund. Please note: contributions are not tax-deductible, as the charity is not a DGR.
Volunteer
Offer your time and skills — events, working bees, admin, storytelling and more — to help the movement along.
Spread the word
Tell your neighbours, share this website, and bring a friend to the conversation. "Our town — our Nimbin" grows one conversation at a time.
Every enquiry starts the same way — a quick email to info@buybacknimbin.org. We read every message.
News & History
The story so far — from the Aquarius Festival that put Nimbin on the map, to a registered charity carrying the buy-back forward.
- 1973 — The Aquarius Festival
The Aquarius Festival brings thousands to Nimbin and reshapes the village, beginning its life as one of Australia's best-known alternative, creative communities.
- The old Museum era — Cullen Street
For years the Nimbin Museum stands on Cullen Street in the centre of the village. After that era ends, the site is left as what local reporting would later call a scar in the centre of town.
- July 2021 — A charity is born
BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED is established on 6 July 2021, and registered as a charity with the ACNC from 22 July 2021 — giving the community buy-back movement an accountable, registered structure.
- September 2021 — The movement goes public
The Nimbin GoodTimes carries "Our Town — The Buy Back Nimbin": a people's park for the old Museum site, community meetings at Wednesday midday on the site, and lifetime membership from $50 (as reported at the time).
- 14 November 2025 — Reporting up to date
The charity's latest ACNC report is lodged, keeping its reporting up to date. The next report is due 31 January 2027.
Contact Us
Visit / Write
BUY BACK NIMBIN LIMITED
51 Cullen St
Nimbin NSW 2480
Australia
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