The Rockefeller Foundation is celebrating its 110th year of promoting the well-being of humanity and the grand reopening of its global headquarters in New York City. To celebrate these milestones, we are hosting a one-day event on May 24, 2023 titled “RF110: Making Big Bets for Humanity” to showcase some of our most impactful programmatic and institutional achievements, and to stimulate conversation on important issues facing our world today.
Watch the individual sessions below:
Dr. Rajiv J. Shah on Making Big Bets for Humanity
Masha Gessen on Geopolitics in an Age of Uncertainty
Ayisha Siddiqa on the Rising Voices of Climate Action
Jeff Reichert and Anika Larsen on Art and Climate Action
Cornelius Eady and Charlie Rauh on Art in Times of Crisis
Dr. Ashish Jha on Innovations in Public Health
Sara Menker and Paul Romer on Innovation for Food Security
Sen. Gillibrand on Community to Global Political Leadership
Rebecca Dixon and Ai-jen Poo on Equitable Access to Jobs
Sec. Kerry and Sen. Coons on Funding Climate Action
Luis Miranda and the Hamilton Education Program
Mayor Eric Adams on Local to Global
Full list of speakers included:
- Kirsten Gillibrand, United States Senator (NY)
- John Kerry, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate
- Chris Coons, United States Senator (DE)
- Ai-jen Poo, President of the National Domestic Workers Alliance
- Anika Larsen, Tony Award Nominee and Broadway Actor
- Ashish Jha, White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator
- Ayisha Siddiqa, co-founder, Polluters Out and Fossil Free University
- Betsy McKay, Pulitzer Prize Laureate and Senior Writer for Public Health and Medicine, The Wall Street Journal and New York Times Best-selling Author
- Charlie Rauh, composer and guitarist
- Cornelius Eady, Pulitzer Prize Nominee and Poet
- David Gelles, Climate Desk Correspondent, The New York Times, and New York Times Best-selling Author
- David Westin, Anchor, Bloomberg Wall Street Week, Bloomberg: Balance of Power
- Eileen O’Connor, Senior Vice President, Communications, Policy, and Advocacy, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Jeff Reichert, Academy Award-winning filmmaker
- Liz Yee, Executive Vice President, Programs, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Luis Miranda, philanthropist, strategist, advocate
- Masha Gessen, Staff Writer, The New Yorker
- Molly Ball, National Political Correspondent, TIME
- Natalye Paquin, Chief Operating Officer, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Rebecca Dixon, President and CEO of National Employment Law Project
- Paul Romer, 2018 Nobel Prize Laureate in Economics Sciences and Director, Boston College’s Center for the Economics of Ideas
- Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President, The Rockefeller Foundation
- Ryan Heath, Global Tech Correspondent, Axios
- Sara Menker, Founder and CEO of Gro Intelligence
- #RFBreakthrough
The Role of Philanthropy in Building Great Institutions
Supporting institutions around the world has been at the heart of The Rockefeller Foundation’s mission since its founding 110 years ago. This RF110 #RFBreakthrough episode highlights the major role of philanthropy has played in launching and sustaining major institutions.
For over a century, The Rockefeller Foundation has advanced the well-being of humanity with transformations in public health, food, clean energy, and more. As we celebrate our storied past, we will discuss the big bets we are making today to build an even brighter future.
Dr. Rajiv J. ShahPresident, The Rockefeller Foundation
Lasting Impact
From our very first grant—to the American Red Cross more than a century ago—through to today’s vast array of initiatives, The Rockefeller Foundation has built a reputation for making big bets that spur breakthroughs in science and understanding and leverage unlikely partnerships to deliver transformative change. Our list of achievements over the last 110 years is long.
Since 1913, we have worked with grantees and partners in:
Our Current Focus Areas
We improve lives and the planet, and unleash human potential, through innovation. We are dedicated to the principle that all individuals – dignified and resilient as they are – have the right to health, food, power and economic mobility. We seek to advance those goals with a better use of science and data and through collaboration with broad and diverse partners and grantees. By pursuing the big bets humanity needs, The Rockefeller Foundation is making opportunity universal and sustainable .
- Health Addressing the global health emergency of climate change
- Power We accelerate access to and consumption of reliable, renewable electricity in underserved, low-income communities worldwide, empowering hundreds of millions of people while building the climate-smart energy system of the future
- Food Advancing a more nourishing, regenerative and equitable food system
- U.S. Economic Opportunity Our vision is that every working person in America should be able to meet the basic needs of their families – and have a path to a better future
- Innovation We seek solutions to the world’s great inequities at the frontiers of science, technology, and innovation
- Innovative Finance Addressing global development challenges by unlocking private capital for impact at scale
A Convening Space for Changemakers
The LEED-certified renovation of our global headquarters reflects our deep roots in New York City while showcasing our lasting impact across the geographies and people at the heart of our work. Our new offices promote more collaboration and innovative thinking than ever before, creating a hub for passionate problem-solvers to blaze a path to making opportunity universal and sustainable for all.
Read a few highlights of our new space:
Download the brochure