Melinda French Gates has announced that she is resigning from her position as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
“The time has come for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy,” she said. wrote in a statement on.
French Gates added that she would have “an additional $12.5 billion to spend on my work for women and families” thanks to a deal with her ex-husband, Microsoft founder and billionaire Bill Gates.
French Gates’ resignation takes effect June 7.
Following the couple’s divorce in May 2021, French Gates said she would stay with the powerful charity for two years and the two would attempt to run the organization jointly. As recently as last July, spokespeople for French Gates told the Wall Street Journal that she had decided to remain co-chair.
“I’m sorry to see Melinda go, but I’m sure she will have a huge impact on his future philanthropic work,” Gates said in a statement. separate declaration.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation was launched in 2000 with a broad executive order aimed at fighting global poverty, disease and inequality, according to its website. He is known for his influence in the world of public health and was instrumental in the eradication of polio and malaria.
As of last year, the Foundation had awarded $77.6 billion in grants since its inception and had a total endowment of $75.2 billion. Warren Buffett – a partner of Gates and French Gates in creating the Giving Pledge and a former trustee of the foundation – has given $39.3 billion to the foundation.
Perhaps French Gates’ departure was imminent.
As of 2021, divisions in the couple’s areas of interest within the foundation have emerged. Employees told BI that Gates focused on global health and the climate crisis, while French Gates focused on global development, gender equality and U.S. education-focused programs.
“Bill and Melinda each have their own priorities, and that just creates stress, confusion and chaos,” one of the employees said at the time.
In early 2022, reports emerged that French Gates was not donating most of his fortune – currently $13.3 billion, according to Bloomberg – to his eponymous foundation. Some of her donations have been made to her Pivotal Ventures and Pivotal Philanthropies foundations, both focused on social progress and “the expansion of women’s power and influence in the United States.”
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