In the past ten years, Jeff Bezos has spent about 8% of his current net worth on charity. His charity expenditure includes his $10 billion Earth Fund and a $200 million gift to Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
Popular billionaire and (NASDAQ: AMZN) founder Jeff Bezos has declared his plan to give away a larger part of his wealth to charity. According to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Bezos is the fourth wealthiest man in the world, and he is worth approximately $124 billion. During an interview, the businessman said his charity would be devoted to fighting climate change and supporting people. The charity will exclusively support a category of people who can unify humanity irrespective of social and political division.
Jeff Bezos, alongside his partner, Lauren Sanchez, said they are building a capacity to give away the money as charity. Since Bezos started dating the American media personality in 2019, the publicity of the Bezos Courage and Civility Award has increased. So far, three different personalities have become recipients of this award. Recently, Bezos announced Dolly Parton as the winner of the Bezos Courage and Civility Award, of which she was awarded $100M. Jose Andres, a chef who spent money feeding Ukrainians, and Van Jones, a climate advocate and CNN contributor, were also recipients of this award.
Prior to Jeff Bezos’s charity declaration, many critics hurled at Bezos for not signing the Giving Pledge. The Giving Pledge is a promise by the world’s wealthiest individuals and families to commit a larger portion of their wealth to charity. In recent times, the 58-year-old billionaire has focused more on being a philanthropist than being an executive, stepping down as the CEO of Amazon in 2021. Bezos owns Amazon, one of the world’s biggest e-commerce companies, and Blue Origin, a space exploration company.
Previous Charity Donations by Jeff Bezos
In the past ten years, Jeff Bezos has spent about 8% of his current net worth on charity. His charity expenditure includes his $10 billion Earth Fund and a $200 million gift to Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Jeff Bezos’ Earth Fund aims to provide solutions to major environmental issues through carbon reduction and to build plant-based carbon sinks. Other solutions include pushing financial regulators to consider climate-related risks and advancing data and mapping technologies to monitor carbon emissions. Interestingly, Bezos’ estranged wife, MacKenzie Scott, has spent over $12 billion on nonprofits. Her charity scope focuses on the US grassroots, often overlooked by large donors.
Jeff Bezos has yet to figure out a way to distribute his fortune to charity recipients. During the discussion, Jeff Bezos did not mention the exact percentage or amount allocated to charity. Currently, the information regarding his charity is insufficient to determine how the funds will be spent.
Finally, Jeff Bezos is planning to join the leagues of NFL club owners. According to reports, Bezos plans to acquire NFL’s Washington Commanders in collaboration with American music idol Jay-Z. There is no confirmation if the duos have discussed this with the current owners of the American football team.
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