Can Melinda French Gates change the fact that only 2% of charitable giving goes to women?

For most of her adult life, Melinda French Gates has helped control vast amounts of money — and wielded the resulting power. But even by billionaire philanthropist standards, she’s having a breakout year.

In May, three years after her divorce from Bill Gates, French Gates resigned from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation — taking $12.5 billion with her. Her departure, after a quarter century spent helping to build the foundation into the country’s largest charity, sent shock waves through the world of big philanthropy.

But now that French Gates gets to make all of her own decisions, she’s building up an even bigger profile in philanthropy — as well as government policy and U.S. politics. She’s spending $1 billion of her money, and leveraging her ever-growing celebrity, to call more attention to a cause she has long championed: The systemic problems facing women and girls, and the persistent lack of funding to fix them.

“This is a hole that has existed for a long time. And by putting my resources there, and my voice … I think I can shine a light,” French Gates told NPR in an interview this week.

On Wednesday, French Gates is officially launching an “open call” for nonprofits to apply for grants from her Pivotal organization. The main requirement is that those applying for her funds should be addressing issues relating to women’s mental and physical health.

The aim, Pivotal and its partners say, is to identify nonprofits working around the country and the world — especially those who wouldn’t normally cross French Gates’ path or be invited to apply for her money.

“We hope to find organizations all over the world that are have been working on women’s health issues — probably below the radar, quietly — and call attention to the work they’re doing, so that [other] people can imitate it and support it,” says Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change, the nonprofit that is running the “open call” process for French Gates and Pivotal.

Encouraging others to join her or imitate her has become a crucial part of French Gates’ strategy. And she acknowledges that governments will ultimately have to do far more than charitable billionaires to fundamentally fix systemic societal problems.

By going solo, and “using my own personal resources to put substantial investments behind women or minorities,” French Gates says, “I am pointing in a direction, I hope, for other philanthropists or even other governments.”

A spotlight for women and girls

French Gates has long been focused on a particularly brutal problem: The disparities facing women and girls, who make up half of the population — and yet receive less than 2% of all charitable giving in the United States.

Now French Gates is donating $1 billion over the next two years towards issues affecting this half of the population. She has already committed $440 million to some U.S. nonprofits and to several individuals, who she has asked to make their own grant-making decisions with her money.

Her latest initiative will allocate another $250 million, through grants of $1 million to $5 million each, to nonprofits who apply for her women’s health funds.

And her increased activity goes beyond writing charitable checks: French Gates is also advocating for access to abortion and other reproductive health care. She’s endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris and has donated to her presidential campaign.

Philanthropy experts say that her growing celebrity is already making a difference for French Gates’ chosen cause.

“She’s going to increase the spotlight on the issues and the needs that women and girls are facing in the U.S. and globally,” says Elizabeth Dale, a researcher and the Frey Chair for Family Philanthropy at the Johnson Center for Philanthropy.

A celebrity in her own right

French Gates has long been prominent in business and policy circles, thanks to her decades at the Gates Foundation and to her longstanding advocacy for women. The charity that she cofounded with her former husband is now a heavyweight in the worlds of global health and philanthropy: It gave away almost $8 billion last year alone.

Yet it was her divorce, followed by her decision to walk away from the country’s largest foundation, that turned French Gates into a mainstream celebrity. It’s a role that she’s embraced: In recent months, French Gates has made the rounds of Vanity Fair, the New York Times and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. She has her own YouTube series, for which she’s interviewed Michelle Obama and Oprah.

And she’s enlisted other bold-faced names — including Olympic athlete Allyson Felix and Hollywood director Ava DuVernay — in her philanthropy, funneling several of them $20 million each to give towards organizations focused on helping women.

“I see so little investment around the globe in women’s health,” French Gates says. “We all need to step up and look at these issues.”

How Roe v. Wade shaped her political involvement — and women’s health

French Gates’ focus on women’s health has also led her to wade into the fraught presidential election, after years of staying quiet on partisan topics. She’s faced some criticism both for her previous silence on abortion, and for her presidential endorsements this year. But French Gates tells NPR she was motivated to get involved in this year’s election because of the Supreme Court’s decision to repeal Roe v. Wade.

The resulting abortion bans and other state restrictions have worsened conditions for women’s reproductive and other health care across the country, as French Gates argues.

“Anytime, anywhere in the world, that you roll back a law related to women’s health, it will have detrimental effects,” she says. “And we’re already seeing that in our own country.”

Yet despite her endorsement of Harris, French Gates says that she hopes Republicans apply for her philanthropic funding and the new grants that she will be making through her open call.

And she adds that she could “very likely” vote for a Republican candidate in a future election.

“I am an independent voter,” French Gates says. “And what I believe in for our country is bipartisan legislation, and bipartisan funding.”

Conclusion

Melinda French Gates’ decision to step into the spotlight of philanthropy and advocacy for women and girls marks a significant shift in her career. By committing $1 billion to address systemic challenges facing women and girls, she hopes to encourage others to follow suit and support initiatives focused on gender equality and women’s health. Through her Pivotal organization, French Gates is providing grants to nonprofits working in this space, aiming to shine a light on their efforts and inspire further support for their work. Her influence and activism are already making a tangible impact on the issues she cares about, and she continues to leverage her resources and voice for positive change.

FAQs

1. How much money has Melinda French Gates committed to women and girls’ causes?

Melinda French Gates has committed $1 billion to address issues affecting women and girls over the next two years.

2. What is the main focus of French Gates’ philanthropic initiatives?

The main focus of French Gates’ philanthropic initiatives is addressing systemic problems facing women and girls, particularly in the areas of mental and physical health.

3. How is French Gates using her platform to advocate for women’s health?

In addition to providing financial support, French Gates is advocating for access to abortion and reproductive health care, and endorsing political candidates who align with her views on women’s health issues.

4. What is the significance of French Gates’ increased celebrity status?

French Gates’ increased celebrity status has helped bring more attention to the issues facing women and girls, amplifying her voice and influence in the philanthropic and advocacy spaces.

5. How does French Gates hope to inspire others to join her in supporting women and girls’ causes?

French Gates aims to set an example for other philanthropists and governments by using her personal resources to address critical societal challenges affecting women and minorities, hoping to spark broader support and action in these areas.

Editors Note: The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is among NPR’s financial supporters.

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