Billionaire philanthropy – change maker or small change?
Using the recent news that Walmart heiress Alice Walton, one of the richest people in the world, has achieved a lifetime giving total of US$1.5 billion (£1.2 billion) Professor Jung, writing for The Conversation, points to some of the questions that billionaire philanthropy presents.
He highlights that while billionaire philanthropy might be impressive in absolute terms, in relative terms its actual contribution to society seems to be quite negligible, and not always actually as generous as the large sums involved imply.
He concludes that while the major sums involved in billionaire philanthropy can offer unrivalled potential for change, it is remains necessary and important to ask questions about the actual significance, scale and sacrifices for all of the parties involved.
The full piece “Why billionaire philanthropy might not be as generous as you think” is available at https://theconversation.com/why-billionaire-philanthropy-might-not-be-as-generous-as-you-think-241862
Image thanks to Christine Roy