A Turning Point?
GATES FOUNDATION HOLLOW PHILANTHROPY REVEALED: BUT COULD IT BE A TURNING POINT?
By Kristle Calisto-Tavares
Fritjof Capra wrote in his 1981 book entitled The Turning Point that the reality of profound issues – like poverty, resource depletion, human exploitation, pollution, conflict and disease – and our apparent ineptitude to address them is a result of the fact that “these problems must be seen as just different facets of one single crisis, which is largely a crisis of perception.” Capra goes on to examine the outdated worldview to which many of us subscribe – “a perception of reality inadequate for dealing with our overpopulated, globally interconnected world.” By viewing and attacking each problem in a piecemeal fashion, we run the risk that our actions will be counter productive. Capra proposed a “turning point” toward the evolution of a holistic worldview that considers the complexities and connections between the many issues we face.
Despite this message being as old as I am, Capra might well argue that we continue to experience a chronic case of this crisis. Perhaps that’s why he founded the Center for EcoLiteracy in California which offers learning opportunities on sustainable living and systems thinking to a much younger demographic. The offspring of Gen Xers and Yers, like their parents did, will inevitably wish to build a better world for their children to inherit. Perhaps having grown up practicing the principles of sustainable and ethical living, they will be better equipped to advance the progress we make. (And yes, I believe we will absolutely make a positive contribution.)
January 7, 2007 may have marked a “turning point” for the Gates Foundation. It certainly presented an opportunity for others to gain a little perspective. Thanks to the LA Times, an investigative report was published on the clash between the Gates Foundation philanthropic mission and the nature of its investments. The Times pulled together a series of perhaps not startling but nonetheless appalling conclusions based on more than 90 interviews and hundreds of documents on Gates Foundation grant descriptions and policies, evaluation reports, tax forms, filings to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission through September 2006, and lists of endowment holdings from 2002 through 2005.Calvert Group Ltd., Innovest, KLD Research & Analytics Inc., and Oekom Research were consulted for information on corporate performance in areas including social responsibility, ethics, and sustainability.
Selected findings:
- $1.4 billion was doled out as grants in 2005 which accounts for 5% of the Gates Foundation’s total worth. 95% is invested.
- $218 million is spent on polio and measles immunization and research worldwide.
- $423 million is invested in Eni, Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and Total of France — the companies responsible for oil plants in places like the Niger Delta and other developing regions which burn oil containing toxic by-products such as benzene, mercury and chromium that “lower immunity…and make children more susceptible to polio and measles”.
- $8.7 billion in endowment funds (41% of the Foundation’s total assets excluding
U.S. and foreign government securities) are invested in companies that “countered the foundation’s charitable goals or socially concerned philosophy”. - Major holdings in companies ranked among the “worst
U.S. and Canadian polluters” including ConocoPhillips, Dow Chemical Co. and Tyco International Ltd.
These findings demonstrate that the investments the Gates Foundation is making through grants toward the health and community well-being of humankind are less valuable than those made in the name of profit. Paul Hawken and the Natural Capital Institute are referenced in the Times article commenting on this reality. One of the guiding principles of the Institute that appears on its website is the belief that “the present economic system, one that marginalizes people and the environment, is the most costly system possible…”
Fortunately, there is some positive news – some philanthropies have already expanded their worldview. The Times article also highlights several foundations that make it their business to invest responsibly and even better, participate directly in shareholder initiatives to influence corporate action on issues. “The Nathan Cummings Foundation, with an endowment of $481 million, has sponsored proxies to force corporations to address environmental sustainability and political transparency.” A turning point? You decide.
Filed under: Corporate Citizenship
