David Einhorn is one of those Wall St. philanthropists who may fly below most people’s radar, but the Greenlight Capital founder, worth $1.2 billion, is a significant giver with an interesting, and perhaps slightly unusual philanthropic mission—“to inspire a movement of empathetic citizens who, with mutual respect and understanding, ultimately build an increasingly civil society.”
But whatever about Einhorn’s day job. His giving really is cool stuff. In 2010, Einhorn’s philanthropy started to coalesce around the idea that, as the Einhorn Family Charitable Trust’s (EFCT) motto states, “helping people get along better,” would be the most effective use of his money, and create the greatest long-term impact.
After a $132,000 grant to an organization called Roots of Empathy that year, he followed it up in 2011 with a gift of just over $1 million, and a gift of $1.25 million to Ashoka’s Empathy Initiative.
