Wealthy Donors

Few Americans are seeing relief from the nation’s economic slump, but the finances of some nonprofits are much rosier as the nation’s wealthy stepped up their multimillion dollar gifts in 2011.

The biggest gifts announced by Americans totaled more than $2.6-billion, compared with $1.3-billion in 2010. (Twelve donations were included in the list because of two ties for the 10 biggest donations of the year.)

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Washington native and former Miami bank executive Adrienne Arsht has returned to her hometown and established herself as a full-time philanthropist, The Washington Post writes in a profile.

The politically and socially connected donor and businesswoman moved to Miami in 1996 to run TotalBank, which she owned with her late husband, Myer “Mike” Feldman. After Mr. Feldman’s death in 2007 she sold the company for $200-million and moved back to Washington with plans to give way her entire fortune.

Jon M. Huntsman Sr. — billionaire industrialist, father of a presidential hopeful, four-time cancer survivor — has no patience for the Scrooges of the world. Even the philanthropist club of billionaires started by Mr. Huntsman’s friend Warren E. Buffett that is trying to enlist the world’s richest to give away half their wealth seems tight-fisted to him. “I suggested 80 percent,” he said. “A tremendous number of wealthy people haven’t given much of anything.”

He argues that the rich, if they could be induced to greater generosity could go a long way toward fixing things.

Until last year, Tom Steyer was just another billionaire hedge fund manager keeping a low profile. What a difference a year makes. First, Steyer and his wife, Kat Taylor, signed onto the Giving Pledge, the public commitment by the wealthy to give away at least half of their fortunes.

Now he is working with his brother Jim to build the Center for the Next Generation, a nonprofit organization that aims to be a loud voice in major public policy debates.

Korea’s top businessmen are rallying to make personal donations as Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo launched his own initiative on Sunday.

Chung donated 500 billion won ($462 million) of his personal funds to the charity group Haevichi Foundation, making the nation’s biggest-ever contribution by a single person.

His donation is meant to create programs nurturing young talents from low-income households in fields from science to art to sports, Hyundai said.

At an age when most guys still hone their skateboard moves, Jason Franklin got a call from his grandfather’s secretary, asking him if he’d like to get involved in the family foundation.

Just 22, Franklin began a life-changing journey into philanthropy. Today he gives away one-fourth of his income and serves as executive director of Bolder Giving at the tender age of 31. And like many other young philanthropists, Franklin has benefited from new resources that didn’t exist a generation ago. As he has learned, philanthropy is about more than just giving a check, and that some training is involved.

The University of North Texas has received the largest gift in its history with a $22 million pledge from a former student from Thailand. The Denton, Texas school said Monday the gift from Charn Uswochoke is intended for professorships, academic chairs, scholarships and programs for the school's music, engineering and business colleges.

Billionaire investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, often referred to as India's Warren Buffet for his investment strategy, has decided to pledge one-fourth of his wealth for charity — marking yet another common-ground with the legendary American investment guru.

Replying to e-mailed queries from media, 51-year old Jhunjhunwala said that he would donate 25 percent of his wealth and the inspiration has come from his father, who was an income tax official.

In a country that spent the last three decades getting rich, Yang Lan wants to show that giving back is glorious.

Yang, a television host and one of China's wealthiest women, is leading a movement to encourage the growth of philanthropy.

She aims to gather some of the best resources from the U.S. nonprofit sector to help China build a modern system of philanthropy, and bring Chinese philanthropists here for exchanges with American foundations.