Listening to a Donor: Bill Gates (part 2 of a series)
By Tom Wilson Major Gifts Guru
Here ares some other interesting tidbits from Mr. Gates first annual letter as posted on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation website.
"The common sense of the business world, with its urgency and focus, has strong application in the philanthropic world. I am sure I will make mistakes in over-applying some elements from my previous experience and will need to adjust. For instance, the countries where Microsoft does business are far more stable and have a lot more infrastructure than most of the places where the foundation does its work. . . ."
"When Melinda and I first started our giving, in the late 1990s, our focus was on reproductive health rather than childhood deaths. . . .We were surprised when we saw a newspaper article in 1998 showing that only a few diseases cause most childhood deaths and showing how little money was being invested in creating and providing vaccines for these diseases. . . .improved health is critical to getting a country into the positive cycle of increasing education, stability, and wealth. When health improves, people have smaller families and the government has more resources per person, so improving nutrition and education becomes much easier. These investments also improve health, and a virtuous cycle begins that takes a country out of poverty. This was a huge revelation for Melinda and me. It is why we expanded our focus from reproductive health to all of the major infectious diseases."
Reading these quotes and far more on the Foundation website begins to provide insights into the weatlhiest donors on the planet. They want to make a difference and they have studied the issues. Never forget that one reason most wealthy people have the money is they are extremely bright and curious.
By Tom Wilson Major Gifts Guru
Here ares some other interesting tidbits from Mr. Gates first annual letter as posted on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation website.
"The common sense of the business world, with its urgency and focus, has strong application in the philanthropic world. I am sure I will make mistakes in over-applying some elements from my previous experience and will need to adjust. For instance, the countries where Microsoft does business are far more stable and have a lot more infrastructure than most of the places where the foundation does its work. . . ."
"When Melinda and I first started our giving, in the late 1990s, our focus was on reproductive health rather than childhood deaths. . . .We were surprised when we saw a newspaper article in 1998 showing that only a few diseases cause most childhood deaths and showing how little money was being invested in creating and providing vaccines for these diseases. . . .improved health is critical to getting a country into the positive cycle of increasing education, stability, and wealth. When health improves, people have smaller families and the government has more resources per person, so improving nutrition and education becomes much easier. These investments also improve health, and a virtuous cycle begins that takes a country out of poverty. This was a huge revelation for Melinda and me. It is why we expanded our focus from reproductive health to all of the major infectious diseases."
Reading these quotes and far more on the Foundation website begins to provide insights into the weatlhiest donors on the planet. They want to make a difference and they have studied the issues. Never forget that one reason most wealthy people have the money is they are extremely bright and curious.
Click here for the first article in the series: Listening to a Donor: Bill Gates
Permanent Link: Listening to a Donor: Bill Gates (part 2 of a series)
http://majorgiftsguru.com/2009/03/listening-to-donor-bill-gates-part-2-of.html
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