A private foundation is a tax-exempt organization that does not rely on broad public support and generally claims to serve humanitarian purposes.
63-417: The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation is a private foundation formed in 1925 by Olga and Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died on April 26, 1922. The organization awards Guggenheim Fellowships to professionals who have demonstrated exceptional ability by publishing a significant body of work in the fields of natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, and the creative arts, excluding
126-472: A 1,000-stall public parking garage and assist with cleanup of the land, which had been used as a Metro Transit bus base. The two-building headquarters campus opened in June 2011 at a cost of $ 500 million and was designed by NBBJ . The design was awarded LEED Platinum status for its environmentally-friendly features, including a living roof , a rainwater retention pool, and a rooftop solar array . In 2010,
189-433: A back-up plan in the event that its co-chairs could not work together due to their recent divorce. The deal gave Bill and Melinda a two-year trial, after which Melinda could resign from the organization as well as receiving personal resources from her ex-husband for her own charity work. On May 13, 2024, Melinda Gates resigned as co-chair of the foundation, to be effective June 7, 2024. The foundation will then be renamed to
252-509: A day-to-day role with Microsoft , effective July 31, 2008, to allow him to devote more time to working with the foundation. The first CEO of the foundation, until she stepped down in 2008, was Patty Stonesifer . In 2005, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates , along with the Irish rock musician Bono , were named by Time as Persons of the Year 2005 for their outstanding charitable work. In
315-415: A former such entity). It is defined by a negative definition: by what it is not. A private foundation is not a public charity , as described in section 170(b)(1)(A) (i) through (vi). Neither is it a section 509(a)(2) organization, nor a supporting organization . Private foundations are subject to 1.39% excise taxes found in section 4940 through 4945 of the internal revenue code. Once a charity becomes
378-546: A full-fledged program under the Global Development Division in early 2010. The foundation has since 2005 undertaken a wide range of efforts in the WASH sector involving research, experimentation, reflection, advocacy , and field implementation. In 2009, the foundation decided to refocus its WASH effort mainly on sustainable sanitation services for the poor, using non-piped sanitation services (i.e. without
441-508: A human rights organization based in Washington, D.C., US to work in the area of sex trafficking . The official announcement explained that the grant would allow the IJM to "create a replicable model for combating sex trafficking and slavery" that would involve the opening of an office in a region with high rates of sex trafficking, following research. The office was opened for three years for
504-418: A hygienic, stand-alone toilet. This challenge is being complemented by another investment program to develop new technologies for improved pit latrine emptying (called by the foundation the "Omni-Ingestor" ) and fecal sludge processing (called " Omni-Processor "). The aim of the "Omni Processor" is to convert excreta (for example fecal sludge ) into beneficial products such as energy and soil nutrients with
567-488: A private foundation, it retains that status unless it follows the difficult termination rules of section 507. Every organization that qualifies for tax exemption as an organization described in section 501(c)(3) is a private foundation unless it falls into one of the categories specifically excluded from the definition of that term (referred to in section 509(a)). In addition, certain nonexempt charitable trusts are also treated as private foundations. Organizations that fall into
630-489: A specific purpose. A private foundation may have diverse purposes, including collective, familiar, or the purpose of passive administration of funds. Normally, the supervision of a private foundation is done by the county government where the foundation has its domicile, however, large foundations must be registered by the County Administrative Board (CAB), which must also supervise the administration of
693-458: A sustainable, inclusive agricultural transformation—one that creates economic opportunity, respects limits on natural resources, and gives everyone equal access to affordable, nutritious food". The foundation's agricultural investments include: The Water, Sanitation and Hygiene ( WASH ) program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was launched in mid-2005 as a "Learning Initiative", and became
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#1732780024105756-562: Is intended to lower administrative costs over the years of the Foundation Trust's life and ensure that the Foundation Trust does not fall into a situation where the vast majority of its expenditures are on administrative costs, including salaries, with only token amounts contributed to charitable causes. To maintain its status as a charitable foundation , the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation must donate funds equal to at least five percent of its assets each year. As of April 2014,
819-440: Is lowest in those regions. Their grant-making focus has been since 2011 on sanitation science and technology ("transformative technologies"), delivery models at scale, urban sanitation markets, building demand for sanitation, measurement and evaluation as well as policy, advocacy and communications. In mid-2011, the foundation stated that they had committed more than $ 265 million to the water, sanitation, and hygiene sector over
882-442: Is made up of a majority of directors at arm's length. A private foundation is not allowed to engage in any business activity, but it can operate its own charitable program. The Canada Revenue Agency designates the application as a "charitable organization", a "public foundation", or a "private foundation", depending on its structure, its source of funding and its operation. The Income Tax Act requirements are different, depending on
945-580: Is tasked to monitor progress towards the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) relating to drinking water and sanitation. About one billion people have no sanitation facility whatsoever and continue to defecate in gutters, behind bushes or in open water bodies, with no dignity or privacy. This is called open defecation and it poses significant health risks. India is the country with the highest number of people practicing open defecation, with around 157 million people or approximately 11% of
1008-623: Is the largest private foundation in the U.S. with over $ 38 billion in assets. Most private foundations are much smaller. Out of the 84,000 private foundations that filed with the IRS in 2008, approximately 66% have less than $ 1 million in assets, and 93% have less than $ 10 million in assets. In aggregate, private foundations in the U.S. control over $ 628 billion in assets and made more than $ 44 billion in charitable contributions in 2007. The following foundations are set up under civil law legal systems: The Austrian Private Foundation (Privatstiftung)
1071-606: The Canada Revenue Agency is a branch of the Canadian government which regulates all foundations. Under Canadian law, since 1967, a private foundation is controlled by a single donor or family through a board that is made up of a majority (more than 50%) of directors at non-arm's length. It is a legally registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency. A public foundation is governed by a board that
1134-548: The Gates Foundation with Bill Gates as the sole chairman. On June 25, 2006, Warren Buffett pledged to give the foundation approximately 10 million Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares (then valued at $ 3,071 each, before a 50–1 stock split in 2010) spread over multiple years through annual contributions, with the first year's donation of 500,000 shares being worth approximately $ 1.5 billion. Buffett set conditions so that these contributions do not simply increase
1197-577: The International Aid Transparency Initiative . In December 2013 Susan Desmond-Hellmann , president of product development for Genentech before its acquisition by Roche Pharmaceuticals , was announced as BMGF's next CEO. She replaced Jeff Raikes on 1 May 2014. In February 2014 Hillary Clinton launched a partnership between the foundation and the Clinton Foundation to gather and study data on
1260-566: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission , the trust owned the following investments (almost 202 million shares) worth a total of over $ 45 billion: Christopher Elias leads the foundation's efforts to combat extreme poverty through grants as president of the Global Development Program. In March 2006, the foundation announced a $ 5 million grant for the International Justice Mission (IJM),
1323-578: The BMGF was acting as a fund aggregator for wealthy donors: the name recognition associated with BMGF caused more money to be placed than an anonymous control. This was particularly useful during the COVID-19 pandemic because the BMGF already knew which organizations were working in the field and able to receive funds. When former President Trump threatened to defund the WHO in summer 2020 over concerns that it
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#17327800241051386-738: The BMGF's committed funding as recorded in their International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) publications. The BMGF announced in October 2013 that it would join the IATI. The IATI publications only include a subset of BMGF grants (mainly excluding grants to developed countries), and contain few grants before 2009 (which are entirely excluded from the table). The BMGF states on the IATI Registry site that "reporting starts from 2009 and excludes grants related to our US programs and grants that if published could harm our employees, grantees, partners, or
1449-424: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation would not receive any more money after he died. While this does not prevent him from making any further donations while he is still alive, the recipients of his fortune upon his death will be decided unanimously by his three children. In October 2006, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was split into two entities: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, which manages
1512-498: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In the 2006 announcement, it was reiterated that Warren Buffett "... has stipulated that the proceeds from the Berkshire Hathaway shares he still owns at death are to be used for philanthropic purposes within 10 years after his estate has been settled". The plan to close the Foundation Trust is in contrast to most large charitable foundations that have no set closure date. This
1575-535: The Toilet Challenge" is focused on "reinventing the flush toilet ". The aim was to create a toilet that not only removes pathogens from human excreta , but also recovers resources such as energy, clean water, and nutrients (a concept also known as reuse of excreta ). It should operate " off-the-grid " without connections to water, sewer, or electrical networks. Finally, it should cost less than 5 cents per user per day. High-tech toilets for tackling
1638-496: The Toilet Challenge", more than a dozen research teams, mainly at universities in the U.S., Europe, India, China, and South Africa, have received grants to develop innovative on-site and off-site waste treatment solutions for the urban poor. The grants were in the order of $ 400,000 for their first phase, followed by typically $ 1 million – 3 million for their second phase; many of them investigated resource recovery or processing technologies for excreta or fecal sludge . The "Reinvent
1701-659: The WHO. It was revealed after the fact that the BMGF had contributed US$ 1.553 billion to the GAVI over the five years 2016 to 2020. The BMGF was the number two ranked contributor. At the Global Vaccine Summit in June 2020, the BMGF pledged $ 1.6 billion (or just under 20% of the total) for the subsequent five years. In May 2022, the Gates Foundation announced the commitment of $ 125 million to aid in ending
1764-592: The acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and to aid in preparing for future pandemics. In total since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic the Gates Foundation has committed more than $ 2 billion to COVID-19 response efforts. In 2015, it co-funded a community known as Agriculture, Nutrition and Health Academy in partnership with the United Kingdom Aid from the UK government. In July 2021, the foundation agreed on
1827-514: The beneficiaries of our work". The following table lists the top receiving organizations to which the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has committed funding, between 2009 and 2015. The table again only includes grants recorded in the Gates Foundation's IATI publications. According to the OECD , the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided US$ 4.1 billion for development in 2019. The foundation explains on its website that its trustees divided
1890-787: The case of the Gates, the work referenced was that of BMGF. On 12 May 2008 it was announced that Jeff Raikes would replace Stonesifer as the CEO of the BMGF. The foundation announced in January 2005 that it would build its headquarters campus on 12 acres (4.9 ha) adjacent to the Seattle Center in Downtown Seattle . The foundation purchased the property for $ 50.4 million from the Seattle city government, who would help build
1953-527: The characteristics of the legal entities existing under the status of "Foundations" is a wide diversity of structures and purposes. Nevertheless, there are some common structural elements that are the first observed under legal scrutiny or classification. Some of the above must be, in most jurisdictions, expressed in the document of establishment. Others may be provided by the supervising authority at each particular jurisdiction. The following foundations are set up under common law legal systems : In Canada ,
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation - Misplaced Pages Continue
2016-456: The endowment assets and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which "... conducts all operations and grantmaking work, and it is the entity from which all grants are made". Also announced was the decision to spend all of the foundation's resources within 50 years after Bill's and Melinda's deaths. This was later lowered to within 20 years of their death. This would close the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust and effectively end
2079-603: The excluded categories are institutions such as hospitals or universities and those that generally have broad public support or actively function in a supporting relationship to such organizations. In the United States, there are several restrictions and requirements on private foundations, including: Violations of these provisions give rise to taxes and penalties against the private foundation and, in some cases, its managers, its substantial contributors, and certain related persons. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
2142-645: The following purposes: "conducting undercover investigations, training law enforcement, rescuing victims, ensuring appropriate aftercare, and seeking perpetrator accountability". The IJM used the grant money to found "Project Lantern" and established an office in the Philippines city of Cebu . In 2010, the results of the project were published, in which the IJM stated that Project Lantern had led to "an increase in law enforcement activity in sex trafficking cases, an increase in commitment to resolving sex trafficking cases among law enforcement officers trained through
2205-408: The foundation and the way it seeks to apply business techniques to giving makes it one of the leaders in venture philanthropy , though the foundation itself notes that the philanthropic role has limitations. In 2007, its founders were ranked as the second most generous philanthropists in the U.S., behind Warren Buffett. As of 2018, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates had donated around $ 36 billion to
2268-549: The foundation as necessary to achieve the foundation's charitable goals"—it holds the assets of Bill and Melinda Gates, who are the sole trustees, and receives contributions from Buffett. The foundation posts its audited financial statements and 990-PF forms on the "Financials" section of its website as they become available. At the end of 2023, the foundation registered a cash sum of $ 194,354,000, and net assets of $ 71,290,995,000 (of which 99.84% are unrestricted). As of 30 September 2024 , according to documents filed with
2331-410: The foundation is organized into four program areas under chief executive officer Susan Desmond-Hellmann, who "sets strategic priorities, monitors results, and facilitates relationships with key partners": The foundation maintains an online database of grants. In November 2014, the Gates Foundation announced that they were adopting an open access (OA) policy for publications and data , "to enable
2394-482: The foundation two years to abide by the third requirement." The Gates Foundation received 5% (500,000) of the shares in July 2006 and will receive 5% of the remaining earmarked shares in the July of each following year (475,000 in 2007, 451,250 in 2008). In July 2018, Buffet announced another donation of his company's Class B stock, this time worth $ 2 billion, to the Gates Foundation. In June 2024, Buffett clarified
2457-503: The foundation's endowment, but effectively work as a matching contribution, doubling the foundation's annual giving. Bloomberg News noted, "Buffett's gift came with three conditions for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Bill or Melinda Gates must be alive and active in its administration; it must continue to qualify as a charity; and each year it must give away an amount equal to the previous year's Berkshire gift, plus an additional amount equal to 5 percent of net assets . Buffett gave
2520-603: The foundation's founders started the Commission on Education of Health Professionals for the 21st Century, entitled "Transforming education to strengthen health systems in an interdependent world." A 2011 survey of grantees found that many believed the foundation did not make its goals and strategies clear and sometimes did not understand those of the grantees; that the foundation's decision-making and grantmaking procedures were too opaque; and that its communications could be more consistent and responsive. The foundation's response
2583-630: The foundation. Since its founding, the foundation has endowed and supported a broad range of social, health, and education developments, including the establishment of the Gates Cambridge Scholarships at Cambridge University . In 1994, the foundation was formed as the William H. Gates Foundation. In May 2002, the foundation purchased stocks in pharmaceutical companies Johnson & Johnson , Merck , and Pfizer . On June 15, 2006, Gates announced his plans to transition out of
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation - Misplaced Pages Continue
2646-663: The foundation. The main legal instruments governing private foundations in Sweden are those that regulate foundations in general: the Foundation Act (1994:1220) and the Regulation for Foundations (1995:1280). Bill %26 Melinda Gates Foundation The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation ( BMGF ) is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates . Based in Seattle , Washington, it
2709-640: The founder and beneficiaries are non-residents of Mauritius. A foundation in the Netherlands (Stichting) is a legal person created through a legal act. This act is usually either a notarised deed (or a will) that contains the articles of the foundation which must include the first appointed board. Foundation legislation was last reformed in 1998, giving rise to the Netherlands Antilles Private Foundation (Stichting Particulier Fonds). The Nevis Multiform Foundation
2772-399: The growing public health problem of human waste are gaining increasing attention, but this focus on a "technology fix" has also been criticized by many in the sector. However, low-tech solutions may be more practical in poor countries, and research is also funded by the foundation for such toilets. The Reinvent the Toilet Challenge is a long-term research and development effort to develop
2835-412: The mainstream media. It was complemented by a program called "Grand Challenges Explorations" (2011 to 2013 with some follow-up grants reaching until 2015) which involved grants of $ 100,000 each in the first round. Both funding schemes explicitly excluded project ideas that relied on centralized sewerage systems or are not compatible with development country contexts. Since the launch of the "Reinvent
2898-437: The organization into two entities: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust. The foundation section, based in Seattle, US, "focuses on improving health and alleviating extreme poverty", and its trustees are currently Bill and Melinda Gates; Warren Buffett announced his resignation as a trustee on June 23, 2021. The trust section manages "the investment assets and transfer proceeds to
2961-552: The past five years, i.e. since about 2006. For the time period of about 2008 to mid-2015, all grants awarded to water, sanitation, and hygiene projects totaled a value of around $ 650 million, according to the publicly available grant database. Improved sanitation in the developing world is a global need, but a neglected priority, as shown by the data collected by the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP) of UNICEF and WHO. This program
3024-513: The performing arts. This article about a philanthropic or charitable organization is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Private foundation Unlike a charitable foundation , a private foundation does not generally solicit funds from the public or have the legal requirements and reporting responsibilities of a registered non-profit or charitable foundation. Not all foundations engage in philanthropy; some private foundations are used for estate planning purposes. One of
3087-670: The private foundation to beneficiaries. The Liechtenstein Family Foundation (Stiftung) was first introduced in 1926 and updated by the Act Reforming the Persons and Companies Act in 2008 which included a new Act on Foundations. They are allowed to pursue non-commercial and/or private benefit purposes. Private Benefit Family Foundation pays no taxes. The Mauritius Foundation was introduced following 'The Foundations Act' of 2012. Such entities are tax exempt as long as
3150-671: The progress of women and girls around the world since the 1995 United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. This is called "No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project". In October 2019, the BMGF partnered with the World Economic Forum to host the tabletop exercise called Event 201 in New York City . In February 2020, BMGF CEO Desmond-Hellmann was replaced "for health and family reasons" by Mark Suzman. As early as 2012, there were reports that
3213-440: The project, and an increase in services – like shelter, counseling, and career training – provided to trafficking survivors". At the time that the results were released, the IJM was exploring opportunities to replicate the model in other regions. In October 2000, William Gates established the Gates Cambridge Scholarships which allow students and scholars from the U.S. and around the world to study at Cambridge University , one of
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#17327800241053276-538: The same initiative launched in 2016 by Wellcome Trust in their Wellcome Open Research policy launched in partnership with F1000 Research . The Gates Foundation supported Our World in Data , one of the world's largest open-access publications. Bill Gates called the publication his "favorite website". In 2024, the Gates Foundation announced a "preprint-centric" open access policy, and their intention to stop paying article-processing charges. The following table lists
3339-445: The scholarship, making it one of the largest and best-endowed scholarships in the world. The Gates Cambridge Scholarship accepts less than 0.3% of applicants and remains extremely competitive. Each year, approximately 100 new graduate students from around the world receive funding to study at Cambridge. The BMGF's goal for agricultural development is "to support farmers and governments in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia that are seeking
3402-629: The top universities in the world. The Gates Cambridge Scholarship has often been compared to the Rhodes Scholarship , given its similarly international scope and substantial endowment. In 2000, the Gates Foundation endowed the scholarship trust with $ 210 million to help outstanding graduate students outside of the United Kingdom study at the University of Cambridge . The Gates Foundation has continued to contribute funds to expand
3465-557: The total population in 2022, although the situation has improved significantly since then. The foundation has been funding many sanitation research and demonstration projects in India since about 2011. In 2011, the foundation launched a program called "Reinvent the Toilet Challenge" with the aim to promote the development of innovations in toilet design to benefit the 2.5 billion people that do not have access to safe and effective sanitation. This program has generated significant interest of
3528-653: The type of charity ( Income Tax Act , R.S.C. 1985 (5th supp.) c. 1, para. 149.1(4)(a)). Foundations were first introduced in The Bahamas in December 2004 following the Foundations Act. A private foundation, in the United States, is a charitable organization described in the Internal Revenue Code by section 509. A private foundation is necessarily a 501(c)(3) exempt organization (or
3591-400: The unrestricted access and reuse of all peer-reviewed published research funded by the foundation, including any underlying data sets". Its terms have been called the most stringent among similar OA policies. As of January 1, 2015, their Open Access policy is effective for all new agreements. In March 2017, it was confirmed that the open access policy, Gates Open Research , would be based on
3654-526: The use of sewers ), and less on water supply . This was because the sanitation sector was generally receiving less attention from other donors and from governments, and because the foundation believed it had the potential to make a real difference through strategic investments. In mid-2011, the foundation announced in its new "Water, Sanitation, Hygiene Strategy Overview" that its funding now focuses primarily on sanitation, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, because access to improved sanitation
3717-534: Was introduced in 2005. The Panama Private Interest Foundation was introduced following the Law 25, June 12, 1995. The Saint Kitts Foundation was introduced following the Foundation Act of 2003. The Seychelles Foundation was introduced following the Foundation Act of 2009. A private foundation in Sweden (Stiftelse) is formed by a letter of donation from a founder donating funds or assets to be administered for
3780-557: Was last reformed under the Private Foundation Act in September 1993. The Austrian private foundation is considered a legal person having beneficiaries rather than shareholders or proprietors and may be established for any purpose. There are three levels of taxation related to Austrian private foundations: taxation of asset transfers, ongoing taxation of the private foundation's income; and taxation of distributions from
3843-577: Was launched in 2000 and is reported to be the third largest charitable foundation in the world , holding $ 69 billion in assets as of 2020. The primary stated goals of the foundation are to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty across the world, and to expand educational opportunities and access to information technology in the U.S. Key individuals of the foundation include Warren Buffett , chief executive officer Mark Suzman, and Michael Larson . The BMGF had an endowment of approximately $ 75.2 billion as of December 31, 2023 . The scale of
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#17327800241053906-412: Was to improve the clarity of its explanations, make "orientation calls" to grantees upon awarding grants, tell grantees who their foundation contact is, give timely feedback when they receive a grantee report, and establish a way for grantees to provide anonymous or attributed feedback to the foundation. The foundation also launched a podcast series. In October 2013, the BMGF announced that it would join
3969-491: Was too "deferential" to the Chinese Communist Party , because the BMGF constituted at that time the second-ranked contributor to the WHO, concerns were raised in the charity and academic sector that the BMGF might conceivably bias the WHO in the pursuit of its ideology. In the most timely accounting period, the BMGF provided 45% of the WHO's NGO funds, or in other words 12% of the total operating expenditure of
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