Jeff Bezos, the fourth richest man in the world and co-founder of Amazon, with a net worth of $115 billion, has given $123 million to organisations that help the homeless find long-term housing.
The most recent and largest donations from Jeff Bezos’ Day One Fund, which was established in 2018, went to 40 organizations in 26 US states and Puerto Rico and ranged in size from $600,000 to $5 million.
The Day One Fund states that the contributions are effective right away and are a part of a $2 billion overall commitment to combating homelessness.
The foundation pledged $2 billion to concentrate on having a real and long-lasting impact in two areas: financing already-existing nonprofits that assist homeless families and establishing a network of brand-new, nonprofit tier-one preschools in low-income neighborhoods.
He has pledged to tackle homelessness and has donated to another charitable cause this month. Bezos previously stated that he intends to donate the majority of his wealth over his lifetime, with the majority of his charity centered on combating climate change and assisting those who work to bring people together. As the most recent recipient of his Courage and Civility award, he handed Dolly Parton $100 million to donate to any charities of her choosing.
Why Bezos is giving his money to charity
In a CNN interview, the fourth richest man on earth made the first public declaration that he intends to donate his money to individuals and organizations that are bringing the world together and bridging significant social and political gaps. He received criticism for years since he didn’t sign the Giving Pledge, which was made by many of the richest people in the world to devote the bulk of their fortune to charitable causes and other philanthropic gestures.
According to Forbes, Bezos has given more than $2.4 billion to charity throughout the course of his life.
In 2020, he promised to donate a total of $10 billion to his own environmental foundation, the Bezos Earth Fund. The fund had distributed over $1 billion of that sum as of November 2021.
He started an annual Courage and Civility Award last year, giving a winner a $100 million prize to donate to the charity of their choice. He most recently gave Dolly Parton, a great singer, that honor.
Similar sums were previously given to CNN commentator Van Jones and chef Jose Andres, whose World Central Kitchen feeds people in disaster zones.
