Generous Donators

美国40位亿万富翁承诺捐出过半家产

Forty U.S. billionaires or their families pledged on Wednesday to give over half of their money to charity, according to a philanthropy drive organized by Microsoft nfounder Bill Gates and legendary² investor³ Warren Buffett.

美国微软公司创始人比尔·盖茨和传奇投资家沃伦·巴菲特联合发起的“人道行动”宣布，已有40 位亿万富翁或家庭承诺，将把自己一半的财产捐献给慈善事业。

Apart from the Gates family and Buffett, those who pledged to donate include self-made billionaires such as Microsoft co-founder¹ Paul Allen, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, pharmaceutical⁴ tycoon⁵ Patrick Soon-Shiong, Oracle⁶ founder Larry Ellison and Hollywood director George Lucas.

除了盖茨夫妇及巴菲特外，参与捐赠的亿万富翁海还包括微软创始人之一保罗·艾伦、纽约市长迈克尔·布隆伯格、华裔生物制药大亨陈颂雄夫妇、好莱坞电影导演乔治·卢卡斯等。这些人都是通过自己的努力才积累下万贯家财的。

The list also include David Rockefeller, who came from the storied Rockefeller family, and Barron Hilton, son of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton.

此外还包括洛克菲勒家族的戴维·洛克菲勒、希尔顿家族的巴伦·希尔顿等大家族继承人。

The wealthy families all participated in “ the Giving Pledge,” a donation drive launched by Buffett and Gates six weeks ago. The idea is to invite the wealthiest individuals and families in the United States to commit to giving the majority of their wealth to the philanthropic causes and charitable organizations during their lifetime or after their death, according to the drive’s website. A statement from the Giving Pledge website said “the pledge is a moral commitment to give, not a legal contract.”

这些家庭都参与了由盖茨和巴菲特6 个星期前联合发起的“捐赠承诺”行动。根据其网站提供的信息，这一行动主要邀请美国最富有的个人或家庭参与，参与者承诺在生前或死后捐出过半家产，用于慈善事业。这一承诺是一个“道德承诺”，并无法律效力。

Buffett, the founder of Berkshire Hathaway investment firm, said the drive has “just started, but already we’ve had a terrific response.”

巴菲特，伯克希尔·哈撒韦投资公司总裁说，尽管“捐赠承诺”行动才刚刚开始，但他们已收到很多回应。