Melinda French Gates has recently announced that she will begin a new chapter of philanthropy by committing $1 billion of her personal fortune to assist in welfare programs that support women around the country, and the world.
Ms. French Gates, now divorced, who recently announced she was resigning from her executive role in the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, claimed in an op-ed that only 2% of charitable giving in the United States goes to organizations focused on women and girls.
In her op-ed French Gates gives a rough outline of what this small percentage is attempting to combat, which she describes as malnourishment, political violence, conventional medical assistance, maternal mortality, rape as a tool of war, depression, paid family or medical leave, and reproductive medicine options.
In the founding of a new philanthropic fund, Pivotal, French Gates plans to more directly support organizations working to combat these hazards that face women, including the National Women’s Law Center, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, and the Center for Reproductive Rights.
“Melinda has new ideas about the role she wants to play in improving the lives of women and families in the U.S. and around the world,” said Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman. “After a difficult few years watching women’s rights rolled back in the U.S. and around the world, she wants to use this next chapter to focus specifically on altering that trajectory.”
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In much the same way as McKenzie Scott has attempted to dole out her personal fortune to grassroots non-profits, who have a direct connection to the people they’re working on behalf of, French Gates says that she will channel $250 million to an initiative, set to begin this fall, that will include an “open call” to these small organizations.
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NPR reports that another $240 million in partnerships will be offered to 12 global female leaders, including former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern; athlete and maternal health advocate Allyson Felix; and Afghan educator and women’s rights advocate Shabana Basij-Rasikh, with each receiving a $20 million fund to distribute to organizations that improve women’s health both in the U.S. and internationally.
“As a young woman, I could never have imagined that one day I would be part of an effort like this. Because I have been given this extraordinary opportunity, I am determined to do everything I can to seize it and to set an agenda that helps other women and girls set theirs, too,” French Gates wrote.
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