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babylonsister

(171,099 posts) Thu Sep 22, 2016, 08:40 AM Sep 2016

Chan & Zuckerberg give $3B to science & research to cure disease

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/9/21/1572731/-Chan-Zuckerberg-Initiative-invests-3-billion-for-scientists-engineers-and-techies-to-fight-disease?detail=faceboook

Chan & Zuckerberg give $3B to science & research to cure disease—Chan overcome with emotion
By Leslie Salzillo
Wednesday Sep 21, 2016 · 3:49 PM EST

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and wife/activist/pediatrician Pricilla Chan have announced that the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative/CZI will be investing $3 billion over the next 10 years to help “cure, prevent, or manage all disease.” Joining Chan and Zuckerberg at the press conference in San Francisco on Wednesday were experts in science, engineering, health fields, as well as philanthropist and Microsoft founder Bill Gates (of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation).

During her presentation, Pricilla Chan became very emotional when talking about her experiences with children and diseases.

“As a pediatrician I have worked with families at the most difficult moments of their lives. From making a devastating diagnosis of leukemia to sharing with the family that we’re unable to resuscitate their child—in those moments and in many others we are at the limit of what we understand about the human body and disease, the science behind medicine, the limit to our ability to allievsatae suffering. We want to push back that boundary. By investing in science today, we hope to build a future in which all our children can live long and rewarding lives.

Chan wiping the tears leaves the stage to get a tissue, then quickly composes herself to finish her presentation. You can watch the full press conference at link~

Mark Zuckerberg begins his presentation announcing the plan includes three parts: to bring scientists and engineers together, to build tools and technology and to grow the movement to fund science:

Part of that money will go to a $600 million investment in BioHub, which will unite researchers from Stanford, Berkeley, and UCSF with world-class engineers to find new ways to treat disease. BioHub will be led by UCSF’s Joe Delisi and Stanford Stephen Quake, known for the expertise in biophysics and bioengineering. BioHub will be located in San Francisco’s Mission Bay district.

Last year, Zuckerberg and Chan announced the creation of CZI after the birth of their daughter, Max. They will donate 99% of Facebook shares or $45 billion to the organization. The CZI is set up as an LLC so that Zuckerberg can control his shares and make investments in for-profit companies, political campaigns, and policy lobbying as well as non-profits. The group’s goal is to advance human potential and equality.

The CZI’s first investment saw it lead a $24 million Series B in June for Andela, a startup that helps train and place African engineers with tech companies. It then led a $50 million investment in Indian video learning startup Byju earlier this month.

While those investment’s focused on education, this new program will put the family’s money into research to tackle disease before the end of the century. “We want to dramatically improve every life in Max’s generation and make sure we don’t miss a single soul” Chan said.

There are many in the liberal world who, in general, resent the “1%” and fail to trust the motives of the extremely wealthy—and rightfully so, because there is an ugly mound of greed among them. But then there are folks like Chan and Zuckerberg who could be doing other things with their wealth, but choose to invest in the welfare of others, rather than in just themselves.