Andrew W. Mellon Foundation – No.13 December 18, 2014 USA – £149m Andrew Mellon was part of the same generation as well known figures John Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie and Henry Ford. But Princeton University professor David Cannadine says even among such notable contemporaries, Mellon was unique. “He excelled in four fields of endeavor: as a businessman and banker; as a politician and statesman; as [...]
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation – No. 14 December 18, 2014 USA – £146m The MacArthur Foundation is probably best known for its so-called “genius grants” – more formally known as the MacArthur Fellowships. These are grants of £399,000, spread out over a five-year period, given to individuals “who show exceptional creativity in their work and the prospect for still more in the future”. Since [...]
Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation – No.15 December 18, 2014 Sweden – £137.4m ‘It may be egotistical to make donations while one is still alive, but it certainly is fun,” said Knut Wallenberg. The banker and politician started the foundation when he was 65 after being bedridden with illness for almost a month. With no children, he thought it was time to start thinking about [...]
The Atlantic Philanthropies – No. 16 December 18, 2014 UK – £136.7m ‘I believe that people of substantial wealth potentially create problems for future generations unless they themselves accept responsibility to use their wealth during their lifetime to help worthwhile causes,” said Chuck Feeney, who set up The Atlantic Philanthropies in 1982. Feeney made his fortune by starting the DFS duty free shopping [...]
Volkswagen Foundation – No. 17 December 18, 2014 Germany – £136.2m With overall funding of around £118m a year the Volkswagen Foundation (Volkswagen Stiftung), based in Hanover, is Germany’s largest private science research funding foundation. Since it was founded more than 50 years ago, the foundation has given more than £3.3bn to support over 30,000 projects. While the foundation shares a [...]
Wells Fargo Foundation – No.18 December 18, 2014 USA – £119.6m ‘Our company’s vision and values have always included a focus on promoting long-term economic prosperity and quality of life for everyone in our communities,” says Jon Campbell, head of Wells Fargo’s Government and Community Relations team. The American financial services firm traces its roots back to 1852 when the first Wells [...]
Bank of America Charitable Foundation – No.19 December 18, 2014 USA – £114.5m Like Wells Fargo, Bank of America’s charitable focus is on helping out local communities. For 2014 it concentrated on three main issues: housing, education and basic human services such as hunger. Last year, the foundation contributed over £114m to address various issues within communities. One of the charities it has [...]
W.K. Kellogg Foundation – No. 20 December 18, 2014 USA – £110m “If I am successful in getting out of debt, and become prosperous, I expect to make good use of any wealth that may come to me,” wrote Will Keith Kellogg in 1909 – and he was as good as his word. The breakfast cereal pioneer went on to become one of [...]
Philanthropy is like sex – every generation thinks they discovered it December 18, 2014 Two comments overheard in the last month or so indicate that in its own eyes, the City is becoming more philanthropic. Both came from 40 somethings, involved in the many giving networks for young professionals that are springing up around the Square Mile. In quiet conversation at after-event networking sessions they both commented, almost [...]
People’s Postcode Lottery: A gamble where everybody wins December 18, 2014 Players of People’s Postcode Lottery have raised over £56m for charity and they aim to raise even more next year. Fancy your luck this Christmas? Well, deciding to play People’s Postcode Lottery (PPL) isn’t a gamble at all when you know that the money you pay is being used to support some of the UK’s [...]