August 2020 marks the tenth anniversary of the Giving Pledge, an initiative cofounded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to boost giving by America’s billionaire class. Signers promised to give at least half of their net worth to charity, either while living or upon their death.

The Giving Pledge went public on August 4, 2010, with an initial 40 signers, all from the United States. At that time, there were 403 US billionaires. Now, 10 years later, the US has at least (the number fluctuates) 614 billionaires and dozens more of them have taken the Pledge. Since 2010, over 210 individuals and couples have signed on, and the group has expanded to include international pledgers.

Read the full article at Nonprofit Quarterly.

Chuck Collins directs the Program on Inequality and the Common Good at the Institute for Policy Studies. Follow him on Twitter @Chuck99to1. Helen Flannery is an Associate Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies.

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