MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has donated more than $ 4bn (£ 3bn) to food banks and emergency aid funds over four months.
In a blog post, Ms Scott said she wanted to help Americans who are suffering as a result of the epidemic.
MacKanzie Scott’s Wealth
Ms Scott is the world’s 18th-richest person, having seen her wealth climb $23.6bn this year to $60.7bn.
Her greatest wealth comes from her separation from the world’s richest Mr. Bezos.
What Did She Say?
“This pandemic has been a wrecking ball in the lives of Americans already struggling,” she wrote in a blog post on Tuesday, adding that she had picked more than 380 charities to donate to having considered almost 6,500 organisations.
“Economic losses and health outcomes alike have been devastating for women, white people and poor people. In the meantime, it has greatly boosted the wealth of billionaires.”
Ms Scott donated $ 1.7bn to 116 charities in July saying she wanted to focus on “organizations and leaders who drive change.” This takes his annual contributions to about $ 6bn.
Who Will The Donations Help?
Contributions were mainly focused on those “working in communities experiencing food insecurity, high levels of racial inequality, high levels of local poverty, and low access to capital generosity.”
Last year she signed the Giving Pledge, promising to donate all her wealth. Commitment to Commitment is the commitment of the richest people and families to give most of their wealth in return.
“I have a disproportionate amount of money to share,” she wrote in her pledge.
Operational experts applauded the amount she released and how she did it. Ms Scott has worked with a team of advisers to research thousands of organizations.
“We have used this shared knowledge base which included hundreds of emails and phone conversations, as well as thousands of pages of data analysis on community needs, program outcomes, and each nonprofit’s ability to receive and manage money,” he said. it’s written.
Billions Of Bezos
This year Mr. Bezos, CEO of Amazon, has also been actively involved in donations, donating $ 10bn to climate change issues.
In November, he announced the first of those grants, donating nearly $ 800m to 16 teams. Mr Bezos has seen his gross income increase to $ 70bn this year to $ 185bn, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
During the epidemic there was a huge increase in online shopping that helps online retailers like Amazon. Swiss bank UBS said billions have done “very well” in the Covid crisis.
Other Philanthropies In 2020
This year there has been a very high number of small donations as celebrities, sports celebrities and business leaders respond to the Covid-19 epidemic and other causes.
Among the biggest contributors was Twitter founder Jack Dorsey who announced in April that he was withdrawing $ 1bn of his assets from a fund to fund efforts to end the epidemic and other causes. This represents about a quarter of his $ 3.9bn net income.
Bill Gates and his wife Melinda donated $ 305m for vaccines, treatments and diagnoses on their charity basis, while Harry Potter author JK Rowling donated £ 1m to help the homeless and those affected by domestic violence during the epidemic.
On a separate note, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and his wife Priscilla Chan donated $ 300m “to defend the American election”. Most of the money went to the Center for Tech and Civic Life, a non-profit organization to hire voting staff and provide them with protective equipment, and to establish active voting.
In June, basketball legend Michael Jordan announced he was donating $ 100m to Black Lives Matters and the causes of social injustice over the next decade.
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