“The problem of our age is…”
Is what? Putting aside the wish that there were only one problem of our age, how would you finish that statement?
In 1889, Andrew Carnegie opened his respected “Gospel of Wealth” essay with this answer: “The problem of our age is the proper administration of wealth.”
Nearly one hundred years later, in 1982, a millionaire, whose sole goal was to properly administer his wealth for the good of people in need, founded a philanthropic organization with an anonymous endowment of several hundred million dollars.
For the next fifteen years, the charitable fund, known as The Atlantic Foundation, funded grants, peace-building initiatives, new universities, cardiac units, and other projects in difficult regions around the world with direct involvement and influence from its anonymous founder.
From anonymity to impact
By 1996, with the public sale of the founder’s $1.6 billion holdings in his company and subsequent gifting of that money to his foundation, his identity was no longer a secret: Chuck Feeney, founder of Duty Free Shoppers.
Once his identity was known, he began to actively promote his philosophy of “Giving While Living,” formalizing his grantmaking strategy to target the aging, children and youth, population health, and human rights — with an aim to complete all grantmaking by 2016. In 2020, he formally ended Atlantic Philanthropies after giving $8 billion over four decades.
Feeney and his wife signing documents in San Francisco marking the close of the Atlantic Philanthropies after four decades of global giving.
Feeney built his “proper administration of wealth” philosophy on two truths: he should use his wealth to help people, and it would be more fun to give while he was alive rather than wait until after he was dead.
When people would ask Feeney why he did what he did, instead of explaining it, he would hand them Andrew Carnegie’s 1889 “Gospel of Wealth” essay and let them figure it out for themselves. It was Carnegie who taught Feeney about the proper administration of wealth; Feeney knew Carnegie’s words could teach others.
Even though Feeney relied on another’s words to explain what he did, his actions spoke volumes to the world and to others gifted with great wealth, like Warren Buffett, who said of Feeney, “Chuck has set an example…he is my hero and Bill Gates’ hero. He should be everybody’s hero.”
“The duty of the man of wealth”
To me, the most outstanding part of Carnegie’s speech is as follows:
“This, then, is held to be the duty of the man of Wealth: First, to set an example of modest, unostentatious living, shunning display or extravagance; to provide moderately for the legitimate wants of those dependent upon him; and after doing so to consider all surplus revenues which come to him simply as trust funds, which he is called upon to administer, and strictly bound as a matter of duty to administer in the manner which, in his judgment, is best calculated to produce the most beneficial results for the community — the man of wealth thus becoming the mere agent and trustee for his poorer brethren, bringing to their service his superior wisdom, experience and ability to administer, doing for them better than they would or could do for themselves.” (edited)
What I admire about Chuck Feeney is that, as a “man of wealth,” he used his entrepreneurial asset allocation abilities in his giving journey. He had the flexibility to make bold and sometimes contrarian moves that professionalized philanthropies would avoid, yet he would persist in his vision.
Over the course of four decades, his foundation gave nearly $600 million to causes in Northern Ireland that included integrated educational programs aimed at facilitating the peace process between Northern and Southern Ireland. He also gave the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) more than $600 million, part of which established the Global Brain Health Institute for training international leaders to use their expertise and translate scientific and clinical knowledge to develop brain health programs in their home countries. Other UCSF initiatives he generously supported include a cardiovascular research institute, a family cancer research building, and the UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay.
Carnegie said, “There are but three modes in which surplus wealth can be disposed of. It can be left to the families of the decedents; or it can be bequeathed for public purposes; or, finally, it can be administered during their lives by its possessors.” (emphasis added)
Feeney believed and lived out the third mode, thoughtfully and generously governing his wealth to contribute to human flourishing. Over his life, he gave over $8B to charity and shut down his foundation a few years ago with only $2M in the bank, which he said was enough for him to live for the rest of his life. He died in October of this year at age 92 with the joy of having given away almost $9 billion.
Feeney’s lasting legacy
The way Feeney chose to live became a model for others. Inspired by Feeney, Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett started the Giving Pledge, a call to the ultra-wealthy to give most of their wealth away while living or in their wills. Those who pledge hope to create a new standard of generosity and philanthropy among the world’s billionaires.
What Feeney leaves behind, then, is much bigger than his personal philanthropy. He has inspired a new social norm, inspiring a generation of people who give while still living.
Bill Gates says:
“Chuck created a path for other philanthropists to follow. I remember meeting him before starting the Giving Pledge. He told me we should encourage people not to give just 50%, but as much as possible during their lifetime. No one is a better example of that than Chuck. Many people talk to me about how he inspired them. It Is truly amazing.”
Want to hear more?
Here are some resources I’ve found fascinating and inspiring:
- As a teaser, I recently came across this inspiring award ceremony for Chuck Feeney hosted by Forbes. Warren Buffett kicks it off.
- The book The Billionaire Who Wasn’t is a rollercoaster ride through his life and philanthropy — lots of twists and turns and an exploration of how he used his philanthropy to impact society through the process.
- Andrew Carnegie’s “Gospel of Wealth”. This audiobook also has part of the essay read by Carnegie himself:
(Source material on Chuck Feeney available at The Atlantic Philanthropies site; Gospel of Wealth quotes here)
written in collaboration with Becky Cook
