Foreign Policy Blogs

Google.org's Five-Ten Year Plan

Yesterday, Google.org announced the five core activies that they will pursue for the next five to ten years. All are intimately connected to technology. The dollar amounts announced today are small when compared with those the Gates Foundation throws around – only $25 million in new grants and $175 million over 3 years – but that isn't a fair comparison. Google sets as its goal to donate 1% of their total equity and 1% of annual profits to philanthropic purposes.

The five core activities are:

1. Technology to predict and prevent crises such as epidemics

2. Information sharing and analysis in public services

3. Small and medium enterprise investments

4. Cheap renewable energy

5. Commercialization of Plug-In vehicles

 

Author

Kevin Dean

Kevin Dean is a graduate student pursuing a master's degree in international conflict management and humanitarian emergencies at Georgetown University. Before returning to school in Fall 2006, he spent six years working in the former Soviet Union - most of that time spent in Central Asia. He has managed a diverse range of international development programs for the US State Department and USAID. He has also consulted for several UN agencies and international NGOs, and is fluent in Russian. Kevin is originally from Des Moines, Iowa and studied Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies at the University of Iowa.