Big-dollar BETS

Mega-donations spurring social change. Plus: Drive like a billionaire.

LARGE FORTUNES beget large gifts, and more than ever, prominent philanthropists are anteing up $25 million–plus to help tackle problems of poverty, disease, substandard education and more. Boston’s Bridgespan Group found 74 such gifts in 2016, totaling $6.7 billion. Its panel of outside experts then ranked the 10 listed below as the most promising. For more, please see forbes.com/big-bets-2017.

1. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis & Malaria

BILL AND MELINDA GATES $600 million

The Gates Foundation’s money, augmenting $12.9 billion donated by others, aims to save some 8 million lives and prevent 300 million more from contracting these diseases.

2. (tie) Innovative Vector Control Consortium

BILL AND MELINDA GATES $75 million

The funds go toward continued development of a trio of insecticides to prevent the spread of malaria and other illnesses.

2. (tie) Nurse Family Partnership

BLUE MERIDIAN PARTNERS $33 million

Helps finance expansion of NFP home-visitation programs across the U.S. and improve pregnancy and other health outcomes for 100,000 young, lower-income, firsttime mothers and their children.

4. Susan G. Komen African-american Health Equity Initiative

FUND ii FOUNDATION

$27 million

This Komen program seeks to reduce the black/white breast cancer mortality-rate gap across ten U.S. metro areas over five years.

5. (tie) Tobacco Control

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG $360 million

Building on $600 million he has given since 2007, New York’s exmayor aims to reduce tobacco use in developing countries where smoking remains widespread.

5. (tie) Youth Villages

BLUE MERIDIAN PARTNERS $36 million

The donation will help launch and finance Yvlifeset, a program to aid the 23,000 Americans who age out of the foster-care system every year, assisting their transition to independent adulthood.

7. Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa

ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION $50 million

AGRA works to help small farmers across Africa triple or quadruple their production through better technology and storage.

8. Cohens Veterans Network

STEVEN AND ALEXANDRA COHEN

$275 million

The hedge-funder and his wife founded this network of 25 clinics that treat—for free—veterans (and their families) who have post-traumatic stress and other ailments.

9. United Negro College Fund

FUND ii FOUNDATION

$48 million

The foundation’s money will go toward mentoring, internships and college scholarships for Africanamerican students interested in careers in STEM fields.

10. Building Equity Initiative

WALTON FAMILY

$250 million

Founded in 1997, the Waltons’ BEI finances low-interest loans to nonprofit lenders that help charter schools nationwide secure and upgrade their facilities.