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13 Celebrities Who Aren’t Squandering Money on Yachts and Diamonds, They Are Saving the World
According to statistics, in America alone, $410 billion were given to charity in 2017. Worldwide, 41% of donors give money to natural disaster funds and 31% to non-governmental organizations and charities outside their country. The rest is given to other causes like education, animals, human services, etc.
Celebrities play an important role here, as they donate a big part of the money they earn and bring a lot of awareness to certain causes, influencing their fans to donate as well.
Bright Side is truly inspired by these celebrities’ actions toward making the world a better place and we want to share them with you.
1. Keanu Reeves
Back in 2003, Keanu said that the money he already had was enough for him to live for the next few centuries. The Matrix star is known for being very generous. He gave millions of his earnings from the movie’s sequel to the costume and special effects teams for their work.
Apart from the world of movie’s, Keanu Reeves runs a private foundation that donates millions to cancer research and children’s hospitals. Cancer research is a very personal issues for Keanu due to the fact that his sister Kim Reeves was diagnosed with leukemia around 1991. Keanu has also given money to the Spinal Cord Opportunities for Rehabilitation Endowment, a group responsible for helping people live with spinal cord injuries.
2. Leonardo DiCaprio
The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation was created in 1998 and has already given around $80 million toward more than 20 environmental projects.
DiCaprio usually works through partnerships with localized projects all around the world, as well as with international organizations, some of them being: Oceana, Wild Foundation, and World Wildfire Fund.
The actor, producer, and activist has spoken several times publicly about subjects related to climate change. He is also an investor in some important vegan companies.
3 & 4. Amal and George Clooney
This couple created the Clooney Foundation for Justice together. Inside the foundation, they have 2 programs that expose corruption related to human rights violations. Their goal is to be advocates for human rights all over the world.
The foundation gives money to help refugees and vulnerable and marginalized communities targeted by hate in order to help them rebuild their lives. They are also helping to reunite children who have been separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border.
5. John Cena
This professional athlete is known for working a lot with the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He is currently the person who has granted the most wishes to children.
In 2012, alongside WWE, Cena headed a campaign which raised $2 million for the Susan G. Komen “For the Cure” Breast Cancer Foundation.
John Cena also just recently gave $2 million to FlipOps charity. He called on his fans to raise $1 million and he matched the money. FlipOps Foundation helps military veterans find stability through fitness.
6. J.K. Rowling
In 2001, J.K. Rowling wrote the book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them to raise money for the charity Comic Relief. She then raised money for several other charities.
Rowling founded an organization named Lumos. This non-profit organization has a mission to help children in orphanages all around the world to be returned to their families or placed in a good family environment. They want to revert the orphanage trend and replace it with programs that help increase the support for children in families.
The writer also created The Volant Charitable Trust that supports women, children, and young people who are at risk. The charity tries to alleviate social deprivation.
7. Emma Watson
Emma Watson is involved with humanitarian and feminist causes. She’s worked with organizations like UNICEF, CAMFED, United Nations, HeForShe, and Our Shared Shelf, to name a few.
She also helps women who are affected by sexual harassment. She has donated $1 million to the UK Justice and Equality Fund and was one of the first donors for the fund. Emma and nearly 200 other British and Irish celebrities signed an open letter which called for an end to sexual harassment in the workplace.
8. Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan is a supporter of charities like UNICEF and Operation Smile. Both companies help children all around the world. Apart from that, Jackie created the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation in 1988 and Dragon’s Heart Foundation in 2004.
The Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation provides scholarships and helps young people in Hong Kong. The foundation also offers medical services and aid to victims of natural disasters.
The Dragon’s Heart Foundation helps children and the elderly in remote areas of China. The foundation has built schools and donated all the materials needed for them to run smoothly and raised millions of dollars to provide educational opportunities for the poor. The foundation also gives clothes, wheelchairs, and other things to the elderly.
9. Christy Turlington
This model started a project called Every Mother Counts as a result of an experience that changed her life forever. When she had her first child in 2003 she experienced some complications when a retained placenta caused hemorrhaging. She survived because she had access to medical care and that day changed her life forever.
Every Mother Counts was launched in 2010. Christy and her team now work to try and make pregnancy and childbirth safe for everyone, everywhere. They raise awareness and engage with communities to take action regarding these issues. Every Mother Counts also invests in programs to improve the quality of maternity care.
10. Ringo Starr
The iconic ex-Beatles member started a charity organization called The Lotus Foundation. The foundation offers money and supports and promotes charitable projects related to social welfare. Some of the areas of action are: substance abuse, cerebral palsy, brain tumors, cancer, battered women and their children, homelessness and animals in need.
11. Matt Damon
Matt Damon launched H2O Africa in 2006. The objective of the foundation was to raise awareness about clean water in Africa. In 2009, H2O Africa merged with WaterPartners and created Water.org.
Water.org works to bring access to safe water and sanitation to the whole world through affordable prices. In 2013, Matt Damon posed with a toilet seat in protest of the 2.5 billion people who don’t have access to water and sanitation.
He also supports ONE, a movement that campaigns to end extreme poverty and preventable diseases in developing countries.
12. Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas in an activist for the rights of disadvantaged people. In 2010, he created the Fundacíon Lágrimas y Favores (Tears and Favors Foundation). The foundation provides scholarships to students at the University of Malaga that don’t have enough money to pay for fees.
His foundation has a partnership with Cudeca. Together, they also fund and give palliative care for terminally ill cancer patients.
13. Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie became aware of the need for humanitarian activism when she was filming Tomb Raider in Cambodia. When she returned home, she contacted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and joined. Since 2001 Angelina has been on missions around the world, meeting and helping refugees in more than 20 countries.
In 2003, she created what is now named the Maddox Jolie-Pitt Foundation. Their mission was initially to support local villages and protect endangered wildlife and forests. Since 2006, they’ve started working on agriculture, education, gender equality, and health care issues in Cambodia.
In 2012, Angelina Jolie was promoted to Special Envoy. Since then, can represent the High Commissioner António Guterres and UNHCR at a diplomatic level.
The work of these celebrities should always be respected and praised. It is important that people use their power and money to make the world a better place. Did you know that these celebrities were supporters of these causes?
Preview photo credit Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP/East News, ASSOCIATED PRESS/East News
