Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is not only one of the wealthiest young Americans in history, he is also one of the most charitable.
According to The Chronicle of Philanthropy this week, Zuckerberg and his wife were the second-biggest charitable donors in the United States last year.
The Zuckerbergs only trailed billionaire Warren Buffett among the most “generous philanthropists” of 2012.
All told, the Zuckerbergs donated close to a half a billion dollars to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation last year. In December, he donated 18 million shares of Facebook to the foundation.
“Together, we will look for areas in education and health to focus on next. I’m hopeful we’ll be able to have as positive an impact in our next set of projects,” Zuckerberg said at the time.
The Facebook founder has actually been on philanthropy’s radar for more than three years now. Zuckerberg famously pledged $100 million to public schools in Newark, New Jersey in 2010.
