Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, Chairman of Alwaleed Philanthropies, has been honored with the "Special Award for Contribution to Humanity" at the Global Thinkers Forum last Dec. 8, for pledging his wealth to charitable causes. In 2015, Prince Alwaleed pledged his entire $32 billion fortune to charitable causes. This year he became the first Arab Muslim to take the Giving Pledge, a commitment to philanthropy which was first pioneered by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffet. Alwaleed said at the time of taking the pledge that he hoped many more Arabs and Muslims would follow in his footsteps and take the pledge in years to come. Through Alwaleed Philanthropies, Alwaleed has supported projects in all corners of the world, most recently in Turkey, Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Peru, Syria and in Saudi Arabia. Among other significant contributions, Alwaleed Philanthropies is proud to have played an important role in the historic decision to allow women to stand for election to municipal councils in Saudi Arabia by providing them with the appropriate training and supporting the awareness campaigns. Princess Lamia Bint Majed Alsaud, Secretary General of Alwaleed Philanthropies, who received the award on behalf of Alwaleed, said: "HRH Prince Alwaleed is deeply honored to receive this award from the Global Thinkers Forum. We at Alwaleed Philanthropies embrace the trend towards innovation in philanthropic efforts, and we look forward to utilizing new, innovative approaches to have the greatest possible global impact in the years to come." Elizabeth Filippouli, Founder & CEO of Global Thinkers Forum, said: "The purpose of philanthropy is to improve the wellbeing of humankind by preventing and solving social problems. It is our duty to do whatever we can to improve the lives of other people. HRH Prince Alwaleed's action to donate his fortune to Philanthropy is a move that needs to be followed by other high-net worth individuals from all over the world. With this special Award, Global Thinkers Forum is sending a call to action to them, to act now for the sake of Humanity. We are delighted to celebrate the global work of Alwaleed Philanthropies, under the inspiring leadership of HRH Princess Lamia Alsaud." For over 37 years, Alwaleed Philanthropies has supported and initiated projects in over 124 countries regardless of gender, race or religion. We collaborate with a range of philanthropic, government and educational organizations to combat poverty, empower women and youth, develop communities, provide disaster relief and create cultural understanding through education. Together with our partners, we help build bridges for a more compassionate, tolerant and accepting world.
