MacKenzie Scott is an American novelist, philanthropist, and the ex-wife of Amazon founder and world’s richest person, Jeff Bezos. After her multi-billion-dollar divorce settlement with Jeff Bezos, Scott took up world-changing philanthropy through her initiatives and donations to important causes and organizations. She has donated more than $2 billion to charitable causes in 2020, making her one of the most generous human beings in the world.
Early Life and Education
MacKenzie Scott was born MacKenzie Tuttle on April 7, 1970 in San Francisco, California. She was the daughter of Craig and Judith Tuttle, who were both lawyers. MacKenzie was a voracious reader as a child and excelled in school.She attended high school in San Francisco and upon graduating, she attended Princeton University, where she studied for her Bachelor’s degree in English in 1992.
Career
After college MacKenzie went into writing, and she published her first of four novels in 2006. Her debut novel, ‘The Testing of Luther Albright’, was an instant success and MacKenzie was nominated for a PEN/Faulkner Award. MacKenzie also held leadership positions in several companies, such as Shopbop and Dreamworks animation.
Marriage and Divorce
In 1993, MacKenzie met Jeff Bezos and the two married in 1994. Together, the couple had four children, Hastings, Nika, Connor and Olivia, and lived together in Medina, Washington. After 25 years of marriage, the couple divorced in 2019.
Divorce Settlement and Philanthropy
After the divorce from Jeff Bezos, MacKenzie received a 4% interest in Amazon, amounting to a $38 billion divorce settlement. With her newfound fortune, MacKenzie chose to use her wealth for philanthropic endeavors. In 2020, MacKenzie donated $2 billion to charities including, but not limited to, Feeding America, the ACLU, NAACP, World Central Kitchen and Walker’s Legacy.
The Giving Pledge
In 2020, MacKenzie Scott also became an official signee of the Giving Pledge, an international campaign created by Warren Buffet and Bill Gates, to encourage wealthy people to commit to giving more than half of their net worth to philanthropic causes. This pledge aligns with Scott’s goal of donating the vast majority of her wealth during her lifetime.
Responsibility Towards Wealth
With her immense wealth, Scott has identified the importance of responsibilities towards her resources. In a statement about the Giving Pledge, Scott stated “I believe in now, and will continue to believe in the future too, that true ownership of money and assets is stewardship – caretaking rather than consuming and taking, sharing widely and investing within a community”.
Philanthropic Donations
Since her divorce in 2019, MacKenzie Scott has donated more than $1.7 billion and supported 416 nonprofits, organizations and communities in 2020. Here is a list of some of the philanthropic organizations MacKenzie Scott has donated to in 2020:
- Feeding America
- ACLU
- NAACP
- World Central Kitchen
- Walker’s Legacy, Women Who Code
- Opportunity Finance Network
- Secure Justice
- The Equality Lab
- Climate Solutions
- LGBT Foundation of America
- 18by18
- No Kid Hungry
- American Refugee Committee
- Stand For Children
- Room To Read
- American Indian College Fund
- Institute for Black Economics
- United Negro College Fund
- Kiva
- Code for America
- The Warriors’ Circle
- Rainforest Alliance
- National Immigration Law Center
- Planned Parenthood Federation of America
- The Audre Lorde Project
MacKenzie Scott’s generosity has had a positive impact in society and her donations are supporting a variety of projects from feeding families to fighting for equal rights. She has chosen to use her resources for the greater good and her pledge to donate the majority of her fortune is a milestone for philanthropy.
