Dear Max: Zuckerberg Pledges 99% Of Facebook Fortune to Charity in Honour of Baby Daughter
Mark Zuckerberg, the Chief Executive of Facebook and his wife Priscilla Chan has announced they will be donating 99% of their Facebook shares to charity, following the birth of their daughter, Max.
In an open letter to their newborn they detailed the reasons behind this massive charitable contribution, equating to $45 billion dollars. The couple outlined their hopes of making the world a better place for their daughter to live in and for future generations. The letter was posted to Zuckerberg's Facebook page writing: "We believe all lives have equal value, and that includes the many more people who will live in future generations than live today. Our society has an obligation to invest now to improve the lives of all those coming into this world, not just those already here".
The letter highlighted a number of key issues such as equality, advancing human potential, curing diseases, personalised education and protecting the environment. The announcement also included the launch of a new initiative called 'the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative' where the couple will combine forces with people from across the globe in dealing with these issues.
Zuckerberg did confirm that he will continue to act as the CEO of Facebook "for many years to come" but that work needed to be done now rather than later, in order to tackle these problems. More details of the sizeable donation will be released after the newbee parents return from their two month maternity and paternity leave.
Some of the reactions to the news on twitter read:
You can now feel guilt-free when you consume your Facebook feed. Your actions are leading to more charitable giving. https://t.co/P5sYd1wboa
It was no surprise, then, that Mark Zuckerberg took to Facebook -- his first baby -- to announce the birth of his daughter, Oscob
Mark Zuckerberg pledges to give away 99% of his Facebook shares in his lifetime. Baby's first words: Wait.. What??
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