 Every year, Bloomberg Philanthropies follows the data and takes action in the places where we can most effectively fulfill our mission: Ensuring better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. Today, as we release our 2023 — 2024 Annual Report and announce a major new gift to make medical school tuition-free for most students at Johns Hopkins University (read coverage in the Washington Post here), we're inspired by the leaders, experts, and communities that help our mission take shape in so many ways.
Over the past year, our partners have been the key to everything we do, from making bold new investments to save lives from tobacco use and creating capacity for thousands of students to attend great schools, to providing new Asphalt Art Initiative grants for 25 cities in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico and increasing funding for clean energy and local climate action. We worked closely with local leaders to launch the Bloomberg Cities Idea Exchange for mayors to share and refine great ideas, collaborated with local teams through our pro bono consulting to help cities implement innovative solutions, worked to help communites pass 80 gun safety policies across the U.S., and much more.
Through Mike's Annual Letter, we announced a major effort to expand and accelerate our work on some of the biggest challenges we face today. Recognizing that the high cost of medical school is keeping away many prospective students, a new $1 billion gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies will make medical school at Johns Hopkins University tuition-free for the majority of students — with living expenses also being covered for those with limited means — and boost financial aid for the schools of nursing, public health, and other graduate programs.
This new gift ensures that the most talented aspiring doctors representing the broadest range of socio-economic backgrounds will have the opportunity to graduate debt-free from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and that more of the nation's brightest grad students can pursue the fields that most inspire them, rather than ones that will best enable them to repay graduate school loans. You can read more in the Washington Post story, "$1 billion gift to make Johns Hopkins medical school free for most."
Today's announcement builds on our enhanced focus in the past year on health and education challenges in the U.S. — areas where the pandemic amplified existing problems, and where millions continue to struggle. Average life-expectancy in the U.S. today is lower than it's been in almost two decades. Meanwhile, students across the country remain at risk of falling permanently behind as a result of learning loss during remote schooling.
"When a crisis recedes from view, it's natural to want to move on. But it's also a mistake… There is no better time to take stock — and act," Mike writes in his Annual Letter. "[M]any serious problems that existed before COVID-19 have only grown worse. Without urgent action, they'll continue to snowball — with tragic consequences." In these actions — and in all of the big ideas and bold solutions you'll see in the Annual Report — our goal is not only to make a difference on the ground, but to foster continued action, especially among governments and others outside of philanthropy, on the most pressing challenges of our time.
We hope you'll explore all the ways our programs and partners worked to fulfill our mission, and take a moment to share some of the progress you see to help inspire others. You can read and download the full report here:
https://www.bloomberg.org/annualreport/
Thanks!
— Bloomberg Philanthropies
| The Topline
Key data points from the 2023 - 2024 Annual Report
We've built cultural partnerships with more than 600 arts institutions and countless artists in nearly all capital cities throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
Since 2022, Beyond Petrochemicals has helped prevent 37 million tons of carbon emissions — equivalent to the annual emissions of 10 coal-fired power plants — as well as 20,000 tons of toxic air pollutants.
More than 1,300 cities and towns have engaged with the Local Infrastructure Hub to help them apply for the record-levels of federal funding made available by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, securing more than $2 billion in infrastructure investments so far.
1,597 high-risk intersections have been redesigned to promote road safety and reduce traffic fatalities, a leading cause of death for young people around the world.
More than 144,000 students have taken part in career and technical education programs we support, giving them a chance to prepare for good careers without needing to pay for a four-year college degree.
In 2023, Bloomberg Associates teams led more than 90 total projects and provided more than 62,000 hours of pro bono support to cities around the world.
Bloomberg L.P. employees volunteered 183,537 service hours in 2023.
Our support for graduates of historically Black medical schools has cut graduates' average medical school debt by more than $80,000. Of those graduates, 74% chose residency programs in underserved communities. |
In her CEO Letter, Patti Harris writes about the one thing that makes everything in our Annual Report possible: Collaboration. It's "at the heart of everything we do," Patti writes — from the people in our office who work across teams, to the partners we're taking action with on the ground in communities, to the interactions we have with governments at all levels to sustain and scale the solutions we help bring forward. "[N]o dream is too big when we tap into the power of collaboration," writes Patti. Read her full CEO Letter to learn more about the areas where our partnerships have saved lives, created opportunities, protected the planet, and much more.
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Innovation | |  Environment | |  The Arts | | Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg's giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a philanthropic consultancy that advises cities around the world. In 2023, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $3 billion. Learn more at Bloomberg.org Click here to stop receiving the Bloomberg Philanthropies Impact Newsletter Click here to unsubscribe from all Bloomberg Philanthropies emails Bloomberg Philanthropies All content ©2024 Bloomberg IP Holdings LLC. All rights reserved. | | |
