The Giving Pledge
The Giving Pledge is a charitable campaign, founded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, to encourage wealthy people to contribute a majority (i.e. more than 50%) of their wealth to philanthropic causes. As of June 2022, the pledge has had 236 signatories from 28 countries.[1] Most of the signatories of the pledge are billionaires, and as of 2023, their pledges are estimated at a total of US$600 billion.[2] However, there is no enforcement mechanism (signing the letter is an intention, not a formal commitment), and no restrictions on the charitable causes that signatories are allowed to support.
Formation
Description[edit]
The organization's stated goal is to inspire the wealthy people of the world to give at least half of their net worth to philanthropy, either during their lifetime or upon their death. The pledge is a public gesture of an intention to give, not a legal contract.[3] On the Giving Pledge's website, each individual or couple writes a letter explaining why they chose to give.[4]
History[edit]
In June 2010, the Giving Pledge campaign was formally announced and Bill Gates and Warren Buffett began recruiting members.[5] As of August 2010, the aggregate wealth of the first 40 pledgers was $125 billion.[6] As of April 2011, 69 billionaires had joined the campaign and given a pledge,[7] and by the following year, The Huffington Post reported that a total of 81 billionaires had pledged.[8] By May 2017, 158 individuals and/or couples were listed as pledgers.[4][9] Not all pledgers are billionaires.
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was removed from the list in December 2022 following his arrest.[10]
Banker T. Denny Sanford had his name removed from the list in May 2023 following the unsealing of court documents about his possible involvement with child pornography.[11]
The Giving Pledge was cited as inspiration for the Jewish Future Pledge, a charitable campaign launched in 2020 to encourage American Jews to give at least half of their charitable giving to Jewish- or Israel-related causes.[12]