A new report shows “disappointing” philanthropic giving to climate causes in 2022.
by Arielle Samuelson, Heated
When billionaires announce grand philanthropic donations for the planet, they tend to get heaps of positive attention.
Who can forget the wave of press coverage that followed Jeff Bezos’ announcement of the $10 billion Bezos Earth Fund; Elon Musk’s unveiling of a $100 million prize for “best carbon capture;” or Kim Kardashians’ recent announcement that she’s donating a portion of sales from her Skims Ultimate Nipple Bra to an environmental nonprofit.
(On the View, Whoopi Goldberg said she was “so proud of this girl” for donating money to climate change. And we are too, Whoopi. We are too.)
It is always good to see money going toward climate solutions. But one thing we notice about these media cycles is that they tend to miss a critical point: that billionaires should be giving money to fight climate change, because they are doing a lot to cause it.
Not only do billionaires personally emit one million times more greenhouse gases per year than the average person on Earth; their money often comes from high-emitting corporations that foster a global culture of excessive consumerism. (We’re looking at you, Bezos).
Recent Posts
Trump’s First Week Was About As Bad As It Could Have Been
Take Action NowTrump’s first-week performance was calculated, expected — and highly traumatic. What happens next will be crucial.…
Leaked Documents Show Ties Between Israeli Army And Microsoft
Take Action NowSince Oct. 7, the Israeli military has relied heavily on cloud and AI services from Microsoft and its partner OpenAI, while the…
The Shame of What We’ve Done
Take Action Now Assessing Jews’ Responsibility for Israel’s ActionsBy Abba Solomon The dominant self-conception of the Jewish story is…
Republicans Want To Deport Survivors Of Domestic Violence
Take Action NowAdvocates say the bill will put domestic violence survivors who face false allegations from their abusers at greater risk of…