In this episode we take a look at the philanthropic giving of MacKenzie Scott (former wife of Jeff Bezos), who has garnered a great deal of attention and praise for the scale, pace and approach of her philanthropy. We ask: what are the key aspects of received wisdom about giving that she is rejecting? And will this lead to wider changes in how big money philanthropy works in future? Including:

-Rejecting the myth of the "self-made billionaire", in favour of recognition that luck, privilege & reliance on wider society are always factors in wealth creation.

-Rejecting the Carnegian idea that "it's harder to give money away intelligently than earn it", and that if you're willing to cede power & give unrestricted grants it's actually eminently possible.

-Rejecting the idea that philanthropy needs to be done slowly, or that it should aim towards perpetuity.

-Rejecting the idea that grants need to be restricted or short-term.

-Rejecting the idea that the donor has all the answers or should set the agenda

-Rejecting the idea that being "strategic" means being top-down or technocratic.

-Rejecting the idea that we need to maintain distance between donor and grantee, or avoid human connection in philanthropy.

-Rejecting the idea that philanthropy by itself can ever be a solution to inequality.

-Rejecting the idea that philanthropy needs to be secretive or opaque.

Related Links:

• MacKenzie Scott's July 2020 and December 2020 Medium posts
• Vox article on MacKenzie Scott's philanthropy
• Marker piece on MacKenzie Scott's background story
• Giving Thought podcast with Paul Vallely
• Giving Thought podcast on Jeff Bezos, Big Philanthropy and Climate Change
• Giving Thought podcast on philanthropy and structure
• Giving Thought podcast on philanthropy and rationality
• Giving Thought podcast on philanthropic pledges