Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Google.Org

This is the philanthropic arm of Google and it is concentrating on Poverty elimination and Environmental threats (most especially but not limited to Global Warming). There is a strong theme throughout the effort to leverage high opportunity investments and programs into global initiatives.

The organization is run by Dr. Larry Brilliant, MD. It is formulated so as to be able to make business investments to accelerate the ability of groups of people to climb from poverty to plenty. Dr. Brilliant is especially focused on steps that can have major leveraging effects on poverty and environmental challenges.

Point of Contact: Larry Brilliant (Larry.Brilliant@google.com) oona@google.com

About Google.org

In 2004, when Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin wrote to prospective shareholders about their vision for the company, they outlined a commitment to contribute significant resources, including 1% of Google's equity and profits in some form, as well as employee time, to address some of the world's most urgent problems. That commitment became Google.org.

Google.org is a hybrid philanthropy that uses a range of approaches to help advance solutions within our five initiatives. We operate in a traditional manner by supporting our partners’ work with targeted grants. But we can also invest in for-profit endeavors, such as efforts by companies to develop breakthrough renewable energy technologies. Our structure also allows us to lobby for policies that support our philanthropic goals. Additionally, we can tap Google’s innovative technology and, most importantly, its inspired workforce. We’ve already begun to donate and invest Google.org’s funds, and we expect to continue to do so in the future.

Google also established the Google Foundation in 2005, which is a separate 501(c)(3) private foundation. The Google Foundation is managed by Google.org and supports our mission and core initiatives as one of our sources of funds for grant making. As of May 2008, Google.org has committed over $85 million in grants and investments to further our five initiatives.

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