Tech mogul Elon Musk described the philanthropic efforts of MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, as “regarding.” His remark got here in response to a social media submit scrutinising Scott’s intensive donations, alleging that her initiatives primarily fund non-profits selling divisive ideologies relatively than addressing urgent world points. The submit highlighted Scott’s “trust-based philanthropy,” which includes offering no-strings-attached grants to over 2,500 non-profits. It alleged that her deal with causes comparable to racial fairness, immigrant rights, and LGBTQ justice feeds what the submit described as an “NGO/non-profit advanced,” creating jobs for people in search of to validate their costly levels. The submit additional detailed Scott’s $16 billion in donations over 5 years, noting her wealth stays substantial at $36 billion, boosted by Amazon’s rising inventory worth.Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has turn out to be one of the vital prolific philanthropists lately. By her “Yield Giving” initiative, she has pledged greater than $19 billion since 2019 to causes starting from women’ schooling in Africa to inexpensive housing in america. Scott has championed a transformative method to philanthropy, offering giant, unrestricted grants that enable organisations to allocate funds as wanted. In 2024 alone, Scott made repeat donations to a number of organisations, a uncommon transfer given her typical “one-time grant” method. For instance, CAMFED, which helps women’ schooling in Africa, obtained its third donation this yr. One other notable beneficiary, Enterprise Neighborhood Companions, was unexpectedly awarded a further $65 million after initially receiving $50 million in 2020. This yr additionally marked a major shift in Scott’s giving technique, along with her introducing an open-call software course of for the primary time. Over 6,000 non-profits utilized, and Scott dedicated $640 million to greater than 360 organisations, far exceeding her preliminary promise. Grantees praised the unrestricted nature of her grants, describing them as transformative not just for particular person organisations but additionally for total sectors like inexpensive housing.
