MacKenzie Scott announces nearly $4 billion in donations

MacKenzie Scott, the billionaire philanthropist, revealed that she had donated almost $4 billion to 465 non-profits according to a post Wednesday.

MacKenzie Scott announces nearly $4 billion in donations

This confirms the gifts that these groups have been making public for months.

Scott has now made more than $12 billion in publicly disclosed donations since 2019, including Tuesday’s announcement of a $436million donation to Habitat for Humanity International, and 84 affiliates working to build affordable housing. This donation is Scott's largest publicly disclosed gift.

Scott also presented $275 million to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, 21 of its affiliates, and the largest gift of their history -- $275,000,000 -- on Wednesday. Scott listed the recipients of donations totalling $3,863,125,000, but not individual amounts.

Scott stated that "Our team has focused on some new areas over the last nine months, but as always our goal has been to support underrepresented people from all groups," Scott wrote. The cause of equity does not have any sides. It cannot have one solution.

She believes that "supporting people directly affected by inequities" is crucial, both because it's informed by insights no other person can provide and because it plants power and opportunity within the community.

Scott claims that 60% of the groups Jewett and she donated to are headed by women, and 75% by people who have lived in the areas they support and are able to address the issues they are trying to address.

Scott declines interviews and discusses her philanthropic choices only through her blog posts. She explained that she believes there is a diversity of voices and that this belief guides many of her decisions regarding announcing her giving. She wrote that this belief underlies her approach to answering press inquiries. "I respect the autonomy and role journalists by not trying to influence or control their reporting."

Forbes estimates Scott's net worth at $48 billion. He signed the Giving Pledge, where billionaires pledge to give more than half their wealth.

Scott's blog post sparked a wave among nonprofits that announced their plans to accept donations.

Scott donated $10 million to HIAS' campaign to raise $40 millions for its emergency response to Ukraine. Mark Hetfield (president and CEO of HIAS) stated in a prepared statement that HIAS has been active in independent Ukraine for more than 20 years. Hetfield said that HIAS worked with Ukrainians to launch a Ukrainian-led organization (Right to Protection – R2P) to welcome and protect asylum seekers from other countries, as well as displaced Ukrainians.

Community Catalyst in Boston announced that it had received $25 million. The funds would be used to "create a system of health care that is rooted in equity and justice."