#BadGirlRiri: Rihanna Makes a $15 Million Donation to Climate Change Organizations
The #BadGirlRiri, queen, singer, business icon, and philanthropist, Rihanna (Robyn Rihanna fenty) is kicking off the year yet again with a bold and powerful action for climate change as she donates $15m to climate change organizations through her foundation.
Rihanna has a long history of supporting good and philanthropic causes. It is in light of this that Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation which was founded in 2012 has pledged $15 million to the fight against climate change.
Rihanna established the Clara Lionel Foundation which was founded in honor of her grandparents, Clara and Lionel Braithwaite, as a philanthropic organization that would connect organizations. According to their official website, the foundation is aimed “to address the unique needs of the communities in which we work, while also working strategically to address issues and challenges on a global level.
According to a verified press release, the nine-time Grammy winner announced that her Clara Lionel Foundation will donate $15 million to multiple climate-change-related organizations, demonstrating her opinion that it is a social justice problem. Rihanna notes that her organization focuses on both climate resilience and climate justice.
The funds, which were given in collaboration with Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey’s StartSmall philanthropy effort, are aimed at organizations that have female, LGBT, Black, and Indigenous leaders, as their communities are the most vulnerable.
By awarding funding to an organization that is led by or focused on Black, Indigenous, women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ figures, and communities, they hope to contribute to policy reform and equitable systems
“Climate disasters, which are growing in frequency and intensity, do not impact all communities equally, with communities of color and island nations facing the brunt of climate change,” says Rihanna, who is from the eastern Caribbean island of Barbados. Funders must build partnerships with grassroots organizations, acknowledging their deep understanding of what is necessary to achieve climate justice in their own communities,” Justine Lucas, Clara Lionel Foundation’s executive director, said in a statement.
The Black Feminist Fund, the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN), the Climate and Clean Energy Equity Fund, the Indigenous Environmental Network, Movement 4 Black Lives, and The Solutions Project are among the 18 organizations that will receive funding.
It is imperative to note that Rihanna’s philanthropic gestures were also witnessed during the heat of the pandemic. Clara Lionel Foundation gave $5 million in response to COVID-19 in March 2020. The money was used to help underserved populations in the United States, the Caribbean, and Africa affected by the pandemic.
Rihanna and the Clara Lionel Foundation also gave masks, gloves, and other PPE to the state of New York in March 2020. Rihanna and Dorsey paired together the following month to donate money to Los Angeles domestic violence sufferers. They committed a total of $4.2 million to the mayor’s fund to help victims of domestic violence seek shelter, food, and therapy during the pandemic.
Following these events, Last year, Forbes put Rihanna’s net worth at $1.7 billion, making her a billionaire for the first time. Her cosmetics brand, Fenty Beauty, is valued roughly $1.4 billion and accounts for the majority of her fortune. Her lingerie line, as well as her singing and acting careers, account for the remaining $270 million. Her Savage X Fenty lingerie company announced a fresh $125 million investment round led by Neuberger Berman earlier this week, and it’s safe to say that #Badgirlriri is truly owning up good!
We’re excited with this new initiative and can’t wait to see what else Rihanna has got coming for us!
All images are gotten from instagram.com
What's Your Reaction?
