On his Facebook page, where he welcomed his first child, Zuckerberg uploaded a photo of his family with a text, "Letter to our daughter", where they mentioned the donation for the first time. His wife is a pediatrician. Their daughter, who was born last week, was named Maxima, with the diminutive "Max".
This year the couple has made several donations, to public schools, and to improve internet access at San Francisco General Hospital, where Chan works. They said they would give more details about their initiative when they return from their licenses.
His plans were greeted with more than 570.000 "likes", including by former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Melinda Gates (wife of Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder), and singer Shakira. Gates and other billionaires like Warren Buffett have set up their own foundations to donate their vast fortunes to charity.
Zuckerberg, 31, who will co-control the new program with his wife, Priscilla Chan, while remaining head of the world's largest social network, said he would sell or donate up to $ 1 billion ($ 946,7 million). euros) in shares in each of the next three years.
He also stated that he intends to remain the head of Facebook for "many, many years".
The program, to be called the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, is not his first donation. When he was 26, he signed a promise, Giving Pledge, calling on the world's richest people and their families to pledge to donate more than half of their fortune to charity or to institutions, either as long as they live or through their will.
"Mark and Priscilla are pioneers in this amazing commitment," Buffett said on Facebook. "A combination of intelligence, passion and resources on such a scale will change the lives of millions. On behalf of future generations, I thank them. "
Melinda Gates said, "The first word that comes to my mind is 'Wow'. The example you set today is an inspiration to us and the world. ”
Buffett himself has pledged to donate shares of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. in 2006, valued at about $ 29,1 billion ($ 31 billion), the largest donation ever made.
Zuckerberg is relatively new to such a donation - Gates was 45 in 2000 when he and his wife founded the foundation that bears their name, while Buffett was 76 in 2006 when he promised to donate his fortune.
About $ 329,6 billion ($ 350 billion) is donated to the United States each year by institutions, said Stacy Palmer, editor-in-chief of the weekly Chronicle of Philanthropy. The donation of Zuckerberg and his wife is amazing not only because of their size, but also because of their age. Large donations are usually made when donors are over 70, he added.
Source: RES-EAP