John has much experience working in the philanthropic world, and takes great interest in charitable goings on today.

60 Minutes Interview with Paul Tudor Jones II

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , , ,

Hedge fund mogul Paul Tudor Jones II recently appeared on 60 Minutes to discuss the Robin Hood Foundation. The charitable organization works to eliminate poverty in NYC by supporting charter schools, job training, food programs and other organizations. Jones explained that he was initially inspired by another philanthropist on 60 Minutes, choosing to support NYC schoolchildren after watching a segment of the show. After five years, he realized his efforts had failed.

“I felt like I had failed a great deal of those kids, but failure is a lot of times the fire that forges the steel for success, right? There are going to be stops, there are going to be failures, there are going to be setbacks but you grow from those and you get better and it becomes transformative.”

Here is the full interview from CBS News:

Gates Foundation Helps Eradicate TB

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , , ,

Tuberculosis, or TB, infects an estimated 8.7 million people a year according to the World Health Organization’s statistics from the year 2011. Almost all TB cases occur in low and middle income countries and those who have HIV or most vulnerable because of their already weakened immune systems.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has made the eradication of TB as one of its goals. Dr. Peter Small, of the Foundation, is impressed by recent research developments. As he said, “There were probably forty years in which there was very little, arguably no, progress because there was no effort. What we’ve seen in the last decade is an acceleration. And it’s really changed what was a vicious cycle of neglect and despondency into one in which we’re starting to see exciting new products. We have now, for the first time, the capacity for untrained healthcare workers to definitively diagnose TB within two hours and know if it’s drug resistant. More than two and a half million of those tests run in the world.”

Dr. Small is the senior program officer for TB for the Foundation. He has researched the genetic variability of the disease and has seen the effects that TB can cause while he lived in India. As he said about treatment plans, “I think the Holy Grail remains a vaccine. We do need a vaccine to finish the job. The great thing is that we’ve completed a phase three trial. We’ve shown that we can get definitive answers and unfortunately that trial was ineffective. But I think that the vaccine pipeline is now something which we know we can test. The good news is, in the last fifteen years there have been massive improvements in understanding immunology.”

Bill Gates Will Be Featured Speaker

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , ,

It was just announced by the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) that Bill Gates will be the featured speaker for the 44th Annual ACCT Leadership Congress. This congress will take place at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle on October 2, 2013.

As the co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Gates has helped to increase opportunities for the world’s most disadvantages populations while also focusing on educational opportunities for students in the United States.

The ACCT Leadership Congress brings together community college trustees, presidents and administrators and is the largest national gathering of its kind. More than 1500 people are expected to take part in the congress. This year’s theme is  “Society Demands, Community Colleges Deliver: Moving the Needle.”

Warren E. Buffet Offers Amazing Donation

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , ,

There are charitable donations – and then there is Warren E. Buffett’s charitable donation. Recently, Mr. Buffett distributed 17.5 million Class B shares of Berkshire Hathaway to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. This is a gift valued at $2 billion based on the closing price recently.  The gift was part of Buffett’s annual charitable giving that included gifts to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation. Buffett’s total donations this year were 22.9 million Class B shares.

Mr. Buffett committed, seven years ago, that he would give a total of $31 billion over time to the Gates Foundation. He planned to give the bulk of his massive fortune to the Gates Foundation and to four other philanthropies.

Together, Mr. Buffett and Mr. Gates have actually tried to persuade other wealthy Americans to give away a large chunk of their fortunes. They have created something called the Giving Pledge for this purpose.

Interactive Database of Laws

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , ,

The first ever interactive database of pretrial justice based laws for all 50 states is being put together by the Laura and John Arnold Foundation (LJAF).  In recent news, the third phase (of this four-part project) has been completed.  The subjects covered are pretrial detention and diversion.  Materials assembled complement the ones that have already been released to date that provide summaries of statutes on related topics including: release conditions, pretrial risk assessments and more.

According to Vice President of Criminal Justice at LJAF, Anne Milgram, “using the resources developed through this project, states can learn from one another as legislators focus on these vital issues.”   While the LJAF funded the project, it was implemented by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). To date, research has shown that many states have been attempting to reduce pretrial detention and offer alternatives to detention where possible.

It is hoped that the project will ultimately help jurisdictions find ways to improve pretrial justice.  Using the resources will give lawmakers and criminal justice practitioners access to the current legal framework while providing reform opportunities.

Alicia Keys Teams with Prizeo for Keep a Child Alive Foundation

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , , ,

Alicia KeysAlicia Keys, the fourteen-time Grammy Award-winner has joined with Prizeo to raise money and awareness for Keep a Child Alive (KCA). Prizeo is a new celebrity charity-fundraising platform that democratizes the fundraising platforms traditionally seen.

Keys co-founded KCA and she is the Global Ambassador for the non-profit. This organization is dedicated to offering life-saving HIV treatment, care and support to children who are affected by HIV in Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda and India.

The way that it works is that people can donate as little as $3 and they will be entered to win a trip to Rio de Janeiro for a VIP trip with Keys. The campaign is at Prizeo.com/Alicia and will continue until July 15, 2013.

As Keys said, ”I’m very passionate about the work we do at Keep a Child Alive. Partnering with Prizeo really allows us to share the incredible mission of KCA with a wider audience, and also gives me a whole new way to connect with my fans at the same time. My hope is that we inspire people all over the world to come together and bring about change in a huge way.”

Peter Twyman, the CEO of KCA said, “Keep a Child Alive pushes the bar on innovation, whether we’re tackling important issues on the ground or engaging our supporters in new ways. Prizeo provides us with an excellent opportunity to be innovative in the fundraising space. It is so exciting that Alicia, our co-founder and Global Ambassador, has partnered with Prizeo, and we are so thankful for her support.”

Knox Country Schools Receive Grant from Gates Foundation

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , ,

The Knox County Schools is able to feel like it just one the lottery. They just received news that they are getting $1.2 million from the “Smart Spending” grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. $850,000 will be coming from the foundation and a local match will cover the rest. Knox County is one of four school districts in the country to receive this grant.

The grant is not for school supplies or technology. Rather, it provides assistance to district leaders and offers expect advice for aligning financial resources with the schools’ educational mission.

As Superintendent Dr. Jim McIntyre said, “One of the challenges for any public education everywhere across the country is limited resources, and you have a certain pool of resources to work with. And so the challenge is to make sure you’re using every dollar and every dime that you have, effectively and efficiently, to support great instruction and high level learning for our kids.”

Dr. McIntyre said that the district plans to focus much of their attention on the 2015 school budget and on building financial capacity for the future. As he said, “We’re really excited about, not just the short-term impact this will have on the budget process coming up, but also the long-term impact on making sure we are getting the best possible return on our educational investment in our community.”

A Wish for a Swish Event with Stacy Keibler

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , , ,

stacy-keibler-062513sp2Stacy Keibler was recently part of the Colgate “A Wish for a Swish” event on Tuesday June 25 in New York City. The event was a chance for Colgate to introduce their new Colgate Total Advanced Pro-Shield mouthwash.

As part of the event, they got the crowd to attempt to break a Guinness World Record for the most people who use mouthwash simultaneously. The mouth care manufacturer donated a dollar for every person who participated in the event. The money went to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Lily Cole Creates Jewelry Collection with Rainforest Charity

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , , ,

If you love jewelry and you enjoy the idea of being green, here is a combination for you. Lily Cole, the British model, has just created her first jewelry collection in collaboration with a rainforest charity. Approached by Sky Rainforest Rescue in 2012, Cole loved the idea of creating a collection made from raw materials.

As Cole explained to Vogue, “For me, the collection is a metaphor of what is possible. I hope we can use the material in many other products in the future. Jewelry is also a good way of communicating the value and delicacy of the rainforest it represents. Wearing it against skin can connect us with a place and a dialogue that is seemingly far away.”

She explains the thought behind the jewelry choices she made. As she said, “I wanted it to be something people would both love and treat delicately. I am more interested in the story behind the objects than the process of design itself, but design is an inherent part of a lot of what I do, and important for communicating ideas.”

She continued, “I like the green economic approach of this specific Sky Rainforest Rescue initiative, and am excited to see what can be done in the future to create long-term structural change.”

Her jewelry is available from Stylist Pick.

The Robin Hood Foundation’s 25th Anniversary Celebration

Posted on
By JohnPosted In: Charity ActivityTagged: , ,

Last month, the Robin Hood Foundation raised more than $80 million for the fight against poverty in NYC at a star-studded event. The Gala, which featured performances from Mary J. Blige, Bono, Elton John, Sting and many others, united donors with “the need to give love,” according to foundation founder Paul Tudor Jones II.

This year’s 25th anniversary event hosted more than 4,200 people. The celebration was chaired by Mr. Jones and his wife Sonia; KKR & Co. co-founder Henry Kravis and his wife, Marie-Josee; CBS Corp. CEO Leslie Moonves and his wife; and Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel.

Since its inception, the Robin Hood Foundation has donated more than $1.25 billion to the fight against poverty by helping to feed New Yorkers, install libraries in public schools and help victims of the Sept. 11 attacks. Last year, the Foundation also launched the 12-12-12 benefit concert in support of Hurricane Sandy victims, with performances by Bruce Springsteen and the Rolling Stones.