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2015
Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy
Awarded to Outstanding
Individuals and Families Who Dedicate Private Wealth to the
Public Good Carnegie Family of Institutions Pays Tribute to
Andrew Carnegie’s Legacy of Philanthropy
The
eight recipients of the prestigious Carnegie Medal of
Philanthropy were announced today by Carnegie Corporation of New
York, on behalf of the international consortium of Carnegie
institutions. Among the most charitable and visionary
philanthropists in America, the recipients embody the spirit of
giving set forth by Andrew Carnegie, each having had significant
and lasting impact on a particular field, nation, or the
international community.
Medalists’ generosity has also influenced a wide range of
issues, including education, the environment, cancer research,
culture, the arts, science, citizenship, healthcare, and
technology.
The 2015 Medal recipients were:
Paul G. Allen,
Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist
Charles F. Feeney, founder of The Atlantic Philanthropies
Jeremy and Hanne
Grantham, leading environmental philanthropists
The Haas
Family, longtime Pennsylvania philanthropists
Jon M. Huntsman,
Sr., Utah philanthropist
and founder of the Huntsman Cancer
Institute
Irwin and Joan Jacobs, prominent San Diego
philanthropists
Brothers Robert B. Menschel and Richard L.
Menschel,
two stalwart New York philanthropists
David M.
Rubenstein, celebrated culture and education philanthropist
The recipients of the 2015 Carnegie Medal were honored at
The New York Public Library
during an invitation-only ceremony.
The event was hosted by
Carnegie Corporation of New York;
Judy Woodruff, Co-anchor and
Managing Editor of the PBS News Hour,
served as master of
ceremonies.
“Through the Carnegie Medal, the members of the
Carnegie family of institutions seek to celebrate the importance
of philanthropy in society and to honor the exemplary,
longstanding commitment demonstrated by the recipients,”
said Vartan Gregorian, President of Carnegie Corporation of New York.
“These extraordinary individuals and families reflect and carry
on the vision of philanthropy embodied in the ideals of Andrew
Carnegie, who believed that the rich are trustees of their
wealth and are under a moral obligation to reinvest it in
society in ways that promote the progress of society.”
2015
Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy Awarded to Outstanding
Individuals and Families Who Dedicate Private Wealth to the
Public Good President Gregorian added,
“It is heartening to see
Americans’ sustained and growing engagement with philanthropy.
Since the days of Mr. Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller,
Americans’ collective charitable giving has risen immensely, to
$358.38 billion annually in 2014.”
The Carnegie Medal of
Philanthropy was established in 2001 to mark the centennial of
Andrew Carnegie’s retirement from business and the start of his
career as a philanthropist, with the stated goal of doing “real
and permanent good in this world.” Medalists are nominated by
the more than 20 Carnegie organizations throughout the United
States and Europe, and selected by a committee consisting of
representatives from seven of those institutions.
This year’s Medal Selection Committee included William Thomson
CBE, great-grandson of Andrew Carnegie and former Chair and
Honorary President of the Carnegie United Kingdom Trust, serving
as the Medal Selection Committee’s Honorary Chair, and Carnegie
Corporation President Vartan Gregorian serving as Chair. Other
members are William J. Burns, President of the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace; Clive Gillinson, Executive
and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall; Matthew Scott, President
of the Carnegie Institution for Science; Subra Suresh, President
of Carnegie Mellon University; and Andy Walker, Secretary and
Treasurer of the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of
Scotland. Carnegie Corporation of New York acts as secretariat
for the Carnegie Medal. Starting in 2015, the Carnegie Medal of
Philanthropy will be awarded annually.
Past recipients of the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy: 2013: Sir
Tom Hunter, Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, James and
Marilyn Simons, the Wolfson Family, and Dmitry Zimin 2011: The
Crown Family, the Danforth Family, Stanley and Fiona
Druckenmiller, Li Ka-shing, Fred Kavli, the Lauder Family
(Leonard and Evelyn Lauder, Ronald and Jo Carole Lauder), Pierre
and Pamela Omidyar, the Pew Family, and the Pritzker Family
2009: Michael Bloomberg, the Koç Family, Gordon and Betty Moore,
and Sanford and Joan Weill 2007: Eli Broad, the Heinz Family,
the Mellon Family, and the Tata Family 2005: His Highness the
Aga Khan, the Cadbury Family, Sir Tom Farmer, Agnes Gund, the
Hewlett Family, and the Packard Family 2003: Kazuo Inamori and
the Sainsbury Family 2001: Walter and Leonore Annenberg, Brooke
Astor, Irene Diamond, the Gates Family,
the Rockefeller Family,
George Soros, and Ted Turner.
2015 Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy
Recipients
Paul G. Allen
Four decades after co-founding
Microsoft, entrepreneur and philanthropist Paul G. Allen is
still exploring the frontiers of technology and human knowledge,
and working to change the future. 2015 Carnegie Medal of
Philanthropy Awarded to Outstanding Individuals and Families Who
Dedicate Private Wealth to the Public Good Through his company
Vulcan Inc. and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, Mr. Allen
is working to save endangered species, fight Ebola, research the
human brain, support the arts, protect the oceans, and expand
educational opportunities for girls.
As a signer of The Giving Pledge, he has committed to giving
away the majority of his fortune, and has already donated more
than $2 billion to worthy causes around the world.
Charles F.
Feeney
Charles “Chuck” Feeney was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey
during the Great Depression. Following service in the U.S. Air
Force, Feeney took advantage of the GI Bill to attend Cornell
University. Upon graduation, he started a business that would
eventually become Duty Free Shoppers, the world’s largest luxury
goods retailer. He quietly transferred virtually all his assets
to The Atlantic Philanthropies in the 1980s. Atlantic has since
made more than $7 billion in grants to promote education,
health, reconciliation, and human dignity throughout the world,
and will make its last grants in 2016. Feeney’s Giving While
Living philosophy has been credited by Bill Gates and Warren
Buffett as inspiration for The Giving Pledge.
Jeremy and Hanne
Grantham
Jeremy Grantham is co-founder and strategist at GMO, an
investment management firm. His quarterly investment letter also
covers financial ethics, deficiencies in capitalism, resource
limitations, and problems posed by climate change. The Granthams
have established foundations for the protection of the
environment, emphasizing climate mitigation. Jeremy earned his
undergraduate degree from the University of Sheffield (U.K.) and
an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, and holds three honorary
degrees. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences. Hanne Grantham is presently co-chair of the Grantham
Foundation for the Protection of the Environment, which she
co-founded in 1998. She shares responsibilities in setting
funding priorities and grant allocations. She is on the advisory
boards of various organizations, including the WWF, Oxfam
America, and Environmental Defense Fund, and she is on the joint
Imperial College/London School of Economics Climate Committee.
She received her undergraduate and master’s degrees from
Brandeis, and an honorary doctorate from Imperial College. She
has been a teacher of German language and literature at various
levels. She lives in Boston with her husband, Jeremy, and they
have three grown children.
The Haas Family
In 1945, German
entrepreneur Otto Haas and his American wife, Phoebe, created
what became the William Penn Foundation, dedicated to improving
the quality of life in the Greater Philadelphia region. For over
70 years and four generations, Haas Family members have
continued Otto and Phoebe’s philanthropic vision. Through the
Foundation, the Haas Family is committed to fostering learning,
protecting watersheds, and cultivating creative communities. The
Family’s commitment to philanthropy also continues through other
foundations created by family members, personal contributions,
and commitments of time. As the family grows, each generation
encourages the interests of the next, further expanding the
impact of their efforts in service to the community.
2015
Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy Awarded to Outstanding
Individuals and Families Who Dedicate Private Wealth to the
Public Good
Jon M. Huntsman,
Sr. Jon M. Huntsman, Sr., is
Founder and Executive Chairman of Huntsman Corporation, a global
manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with more than
16,000 employees worldwide. Widely recognized as one of
America’s foremost philanthropists, Mr. Huntsman focuses his
giving on higher education, the rebuilding of Armenia after its
devastating earthquake, homelessness, hunger, and abused women
and children. In 1993, he and his wife, Karen, founded the
Huntsman Cancer Institute, the major focus of their giving, to
accelerate the work of curing cancer through human genetics. The
Institute is now one of America’s few comprehensive cancer
centers, featuring leading-edge research laboratories, a
hospital, outpatient clinics, an education center, and the
world’s largest genetic database.
Irwin and Joan Jacobs
Joan
Klein Jacobs was born in New York City and graduated from
Barnard School for Girls and Cornell University. Trained as a
dietician, she has worked for Groton Central Schools and Boston
Lying-in Hospital. Since moving to La Jolla, California, in
1966, she has played an integral part in shaping the community
through her activism and perseverance. She has served on
numerous community groups, including support organizations at
the University of California San Diego, the Jewish Community
Foundation, and City National Bank. She has also played a vital
role in the San Diego arts community, with major contributions
to La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego Symphony, and the Museum of
Contemporary Art San Diego, among others.
Irwin Mark Jacobs
is
Founding Chairman and CEO Emeritus of Qualcomm, which he
cofounded in 1985 and led from startup to Fortune 500 Company.
For pioneering CDMA wireless technology, Dr. Jacobs was awarded
the National Medal of Technology in 1994 by President Clinton.
Dr. Jacobs previously served as co-founder, CEO, and chairman of LINKABIT Corporation and as a professor at Massachusetts
Institute of Technology and University of California San Diego.
A longtime philanthropist, Dr. Jacobs has chaired the Board of
Trustees of the Salk Institute since 2006, was chair of the
National Academy of Engineering from 2008 to 2012, and has
served on boards for UCSD Foundation, Cornell NYC Tech, and the
Lang Lang International Music Foundation, among others.
Robert
B. Menschel
Robert Menschel joined Goldman Sachs in 1954,
establishing the Institutional Sales department, the first in
the industry. He became a partner in 1968 and continues at
Goldman Sachs as a Senior Director. Through Vital Projects, the
foundation he started over 50 years ago, Mr. Menschel has been a
major supporter of photography and has established galleries
and/or programs at the Museum of Modern Art (where he was
Chairman and President), The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the
National Gallery, among others. He is a Trustee and member of
the Executive Committee of New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Through Vital Projects, he is also one of the nation’s largest
supporters of criminal and social justice reform.
Richard L. Menschel
2015 Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy Awarded to
Outstanding Individuals and Families Who Dedicate Private Wealth
to the Public Good Richard Menschel was raised in Manhattan and
graduated from Syracuse University and Harvard Business School.
He served as an officer in the Air Force. His career at Goldman
Sachs began in 1959; he was a Partner and Management Committee
Member when he retired and is now a Senior Director. He has been
a trustee of the Hospital for Special Surgery since 1989,
serving as its Chairman for 12 years. He is a vice president and
trustee of The Morgan Library and Museum. He has given major
financial support to Harvard University and was a Co-Chair of
The University Campaign from 1994 to 1999. His philanthropy is
directed largely through trusts he established, the Charina
Foundation, and the Charina Endowment Fund.
David M. Rubenstein
David Rubenstein is a Co-Founder and Co-CEO of The Carlyle
Group, founded in 1987. Mr. Rubenstein is Chairman of the Board
of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing
Arts and of Duke University, a Regent of the Smithsonian
Institution, Co-Chairman of the Brookings Institution,
Vice-Chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations, and President
of the Economic Club of Washington. Mr. Rubenstein is on the
Board of Directors of the University of Chicago, is a member of
the Harvard Business School Board of Dean’s Advisors, and is
Chairman of the Advisory Board of the School of Economics and
Management at Tsinghua University.
About Andrew Carnegie Born in
1835, Andrew Carnegie immigrated to the United States from
Scotland and became a self-made millionaire. His 1889 essay,
“The Gospel of Wealth,” helped establish Carnegie as the
founding father of modern, strategic philanthropy. After selling
his steel empire at the beginning of the 20th century, he
devoted his life to philanthropic work. By the time of his death
in 1919, he had given away some $350 million—nearly all of his
fortune—to advance education, science, culture, and
international peace, and to recognize the heroism of outstanding
individuals.
For more information about the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy,
visit:
www.carnegiemedals.org
follow on Twitter @carnegiecorp,
or search #CMoP15 to follow
updates. ### i
Giving USA
Americans Donated an Estimated
$358.38 Billion to Charity in 2014;
Highest Total in Report’s
60-year History.” June 29, 2015.
www.givingusa.org/giving-usa-2015-press-release-giving-usa-americans-donated-anestimated-358-38-billion-to-charity-in-2014-highest-total-in-reports-60-year-history
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