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Billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos recently said he plans to give away the “majority” of his fortune.
Bezos’ comments were made in an interview with CNN on Saturday, when he said he plans to use his wealth to fight climate change and to support societal “unifiers.” Bezos is worth about $124 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
In a conversation with CNN, Bezos offered few specifics of his plans, instead focusing on a vision to give generously to individuals who work to fight “division” in American politics and public life. No timeline or specific dollar amount was given.
“The hard part is figuring out how to do it in a levered way,” Bezos told CNN.
Bezos and his partner Lauren Sanchez also awarded a $100 million grant to pop icon Dolly Parton to be disbursed to charities of Parton’s choice. Bezos made a similar donation in 2021 to CNN contributor Van Jones and chef Jose Andres.
Unlike some of his billionaire peers, including his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott, Bezos has not signed the Giving Pledge, a promise by some of the wealthiest people in the world to donate most of their fortunes to charity. The Giving Pledge was started by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. The Washington City Times reached out to Bezos Expeditions for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Bezos committed $10 billion dollars to the Bezos Earth Fund in 2020, and by October 2021 had given away $947 million through the same.