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The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (B&MGF) is the largest in the world, founded by Bill and Melinda Gates in 2000 and doubled in size by Warren Buffett in 2006 . The primary aims of the foundation are, globally, to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty, and, in the United States, to expand educational opportunities and access to information technology. The foundation, based in and Chief Executive Officer Patty Stonesifer . It has an Endowment of approximately US$ 33 Billion .http://www.gatesfoundation.org/MediaCenter/FactSheet/ HISTORY The foundation was initially funded by Bill Gates with US$106 million in 2000. During the foundation's first two years, funding grew to US$2 billion. The B&MGF was endowed by , 2006 , Gates announced his plans to transition out of a day-to-day role with Microsoft , effective July 31 2008 ,1 to allow him to devote more time to working with the foundation. Bill and Melinda Gates, along with the singer Bono , were named by TIME as Persons Of The Year 2005 for their charitable work. In the case of Bill and Melinda Gates, the work referenced was that of the B&MGF. On May 4 , 2006 , the foundation received the Prince Of Asturias Award for International Cooperation.http://www.gatesfoundation.org/AboutUs/Announcements/Announce-060504.htm THE WARREN BUFFETT DONATION On s. Buffett gave the foundation two years to abide by the third requirement." [http://www.bayoubuzz.com/articles.aspx?aid=7451 [http://www.forbes.com/home/facesinthenews/2006/06/26/buffett-gates-philanthropy-cx_cn_0626autofacescan03.html] The Gates Foundation received 5% (500,000) of the shares in July 2006 and will receive 5% of the ''remaining'' earmarked shares in the July of each following year (475,000 in 2007, 451,250 in 2008, and so on).http://money.cnn.com/2006/06/25/magazines/fortune/charity3.fortune/index.htmhttp://berkshirehathaway.com/donate/bmgfltr.pdf ACTIVITIES As Of 2006 , the foundation has an Endowment of approximately US$33.7 billion. To maintain its status as a charitable foundation, it must donate at least 5% of its assets each year. SaveWealth.com Private Family Foundations Thus the donations from the foundation each year would amount to over US$1.5 billion at a minimum. The Foundation has been organized, as of April 2006, into four divisions, including core operations (public relations, finance and administration, human resources, etc.), under Chief Operating Officer Cheryl Scott , and three grant-making programs:
GLOBAL HEALTH PROGRAM The President of the Global Health Program is , 8 December 2003 The Foundation currently provides 17% (US$86 million in 2006) of the world budget for the attempted Eradication Of Polio myelitis ( Polio ).http://www.polioeradication.org/content/general/HistContributionWebMay06.pdf The Global Health Program's other significant grants include ;The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization:The foundation gave The Global Alliance For Vaccines And Immunization a donation of US$750 Million on 25 January , 2005 . :Official site: VaccineAlliance.org , Donation press release :Related links: News item at vnunet.com ;The Institute for OneWorld Health:The foundation gave The Institute For OneWorld Health a donation of nearly US$10 million to support the organization's work on a drug for Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL). ;Children's Vaccine Program:The Children's Vaccine Program, run by the Program For Appropriate Technology In Health (PATH) , received a donation of US$27 million to help vaccinate against Japanese Encephalitis on 9 December , 2003 . :Official site: ChildrensVaccine.org , Donation press release ;University of Washington Department of Global Health:The foundation provided approximately US$30 million for the foundation of the new Department Of Global Health at the University Of Washington in Seattle . The donation promoted ''three'' of the Foundation's target areas: education, Pacific Northwest and global health. ;HIV Research:The foundation has donated a grand total of US$287 million to various HIV/AIDS researchers. The money was split between sixteen different research teams across the world, on the condition that they share their findings with one another. :Related Links: News Item at BBC News UNITED STATES PROGRAM Under President Allan Golston , the United States Program has made grants such as the following: U.S. Libraries In 1997, the foundation introduced a U.S. Libraries initiative with a goal of “ensuring that if you can get to a public library, you can reach the Internet.” The foundation has given grants, installed computers and software, and provided training and technical support in partnership with public libraries nationwide. Most recently, the foundation gave a $12.2-million grant to the Southeastern Library Network (SOLINET) to assist libraries on the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and Mississippi, many of which were damaged or destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Education ; NewSchools Venture Fund : The Foundation contributed US$30 million to help NewSchools to manage more charter schools, which aim to prepare students in historically underserved areas for college and careers. ;Gates Millennium Scholars:Administered by the United Negro College Fund the foundation donated US$1 billion for scholarships to high achieving minority students. :Official site: www.gmsp.org ; study at the University Of Cambridge . Approximately 100 new students every year are funded. :Official site: www.gates.scholarships.cam.ac.uk ;University Scholars Program:Donated US$20 million in 1998 to endow a scholarship program at Melinda Gates' alma mater, Duke University . The program provides full scholarships to about 10 members of each undergraduate class and one member in each class in each of the professional schools (Schools of Medicine, Business, Law, Divinity, Environment, and Nursing). The program also pays for a full-time administrator who organizes seminars to bring these scholars together for interdisciplinary discussions as well as the selection process in the Spring. ;D.C. Achievers Scholarships: The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced March 22, 2007 a $122 million initiative to send hundreds of the District of Columbia's poorest students to college. Bill Gates Gives $122M for D.C. Scholarships. . March 23 , 2007 . Washington State Achievers Scholarship The Washington State Achievers program encourages schools to create cultures of high academic achievement while providing scholarship support to select college-bound students. Texas High School Project :Official site: {Link without Title} ; pledging a joint $60 million to create Strong American Schools , a nonprofit project responsible for running ED In 08 , an initiative and information campaign aimed at encouraging 2008 presidential contenders to include education in their campaign policies. Billionaires Start $60 Million Schools Effort Pacific Northwest ;Discovery Institute: Donated US$1 million in 2000 to the Discovery Institute and pledged US$9.35 million over 10 years in 2003, including US$50,000 of Bruce Chapman 's US$141,000 annual salary. According to a Gates Foundation grant maker, this grant is "exclusive to the Cascadia Project " on regional transportation, and it may not be used for the Institute's other activities, including promotion of Intelligent Design . ; Computer History Museum : Donated US$15 million to the museum in October, 2005. :Related link: BBC.co.uk GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM President Sylvia Mathews leads the Global Development Program, which combats extreme poverty through grants such as the following: Financial Services for the Poor Financial Access Initiative : A $5 million grant allows FAI to do field research and answer important questions about microfinance and financial access in impoverished countries around the world. ; Grameen Foundation :A $1.5 million grant allows Grameen Foundation to make more microloans, with the goal of helping five million additional families and successfully freeing 50 percent of those families from poverty within five years. Agricultural Development ;Rice Research:Donated US$800,000 to the Philippine Rice Research Institute to develop rice with higher amounts of micronutrients. :Official site: PhilRice.gov.ph ; AGRA ( Alliance For A Green Revolution In Africa ) The Gates Foundation has partnered with the Rockefeller Foundation to enhance agricultural science and small-farm productivity in Africa , building on the Green Revolution which the Rockefeller Foundation spurred in the 1940s and 1960s. The Gates Foundation has made an initial $100 million investment in this effort, to which the Rockefeller foundation has contributed $50 million. Global Libraries ;Access to Learning Award:Each year an award of up to US$1 million is given to a public library or similar organization outside the United States that has an innovative program offering the public free access to information technology. :Official site: Part of CLIR.org Global Special Initiatives The Foundation's Special Initiatives include responses to catastrophes as well as learning grants, which are used to experiment with new areas of giving. Currently, the Foundation is exploring water, hygiene and sanitation as a new focus within Global Development. ;Indian Ocean Earthquake: :The foundation made total grant donations of US$3 million to various charities to help with the aid effort for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake . These charities include: ;Pakistan Earthquake:The foundation made a donation of US$500,000 for the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake . {Link without Title} ; Water, Hygiene and Sanitation
The Foundation is giving the International Bank US$1,200,000 over 3 years to find new, sustainable ways to make water, sanitation and hygiene services safer and more affordable. PLANS FOR THE CLOSURE OF THE GATES FOUNDATION TRUST AND GATES FOUNDATION In October 2006 the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was split into two entities: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, which manages the endowment assets and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which "... conducts all operations and grantmaking work, and it is the entity from which all grants are made." Gates Foundation Announces That It Doesn't Plan to Operate Forever About the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust Also announced was the decision to "... spend all of Trust's resources within 50 years after Bill's and Melinda's deaths." Gates foundation to spend all assets within 50 years of trustees' deaths Gates Foundation Sets Its Lifespan This would close the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust and effectively end the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In the same announcement it was reiterated that Warren Buffett "... has stipulated that the proceeds from the Berkshire Hathaway shares he still owns at death are to be used for philanthropic purposes within 10 years after his estate has been settled."[http://www.gatesfoundation.org/AboutUs/Announcements/Announce-061129.htm] The plan to close the Foundation Trust is in contrast to most large charitable foundations that have no set closure date. This should lead to lower administrative costs over the years of the Foundation Trust's life and ensure that the Foundation Trust not fall into a situation where the vast majority of it's expenditures are on administrative costs, including salaries, with only token amounts contributed to charitable causes. {Link without Title} CRITICISMS Diversity The Gates Millennium Scholars fund, according to its official website's frequently asked questions section, only provides scholarships to African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Pacific Islander American or Hispanic American applicants. {Link without Title} Because the program focuses on racial and ethnic minorities, it has been criticized for excluding Caucasians. However, such grant programs are argued to be necessary to counteract more broadly occurring trends of Systemic Racism . An op-ed by Ernest W. Lefever, published in the '': Bill Gates' 'Diversity' Subverts Merit Promotion of abortion rights and contraception Some social conservatives also criticize the foundation for its support of organizations that promote 2005 Investment in oil companies and drug companies According to a and drug companies who withhold medications from the developing world. According to the article, many other foundations behave similarly. In response, the foundation first announced a systematic review of all of its investments to determine whether it should consider divestment from some companies. Gates Foundation to review investments , The Seattle Times, 10 January 2007 Later, it revoked this pledge Gates Foundation Revokes Pledge to Review Investments , Slashdot, 12 January 2007 and said it would continue its current practices. Gates Foundation to maintain its investment plan , The Austin Statesman, 14 January 2007 In a May 4 story, the Los Angeles Times again reported a conflict between the foundation investment policies and charitable goals. {Link without Title} In this case the issue was Darfur and PetroChina , an oil company in which Gates trustee Warren Buffett owns a large stake via his Berkshire Hathaway company. PetroChina's parent companies is heavily invested in oil extraction in the Sudan . Diversion of health care resources In a January/February 2007 Foreign Affairs article, Laurie Garrett claims that many charitable organizations, among whom the Gates Foundation is prominent, harm global health by diverting resources from other important local health care services. The Challenge of Global Health Foreign Affairs, January/February 2007 For example, by paying relatively high salaries at AIDS clinics, the foundation diverts medical professionals from other parts of developing nations' health care systems; the health care systems' ability to provide care diminishes (except in the area the foundation funds) and the charities may do more harm than good. SEE ALSO
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