Carnegie Creates Awards to Honor Philanthropists

The Carnegie Corporation of New York has announced the winners of its first Andrew Carnegie Medals of Philanthropy.

The medals this year honor seven individuals and families “who understand how modern philanthropy plays a critical role in building and sustaining our democratic institutions,” said Vartan Gregorian, Carnegie’s president. He said he hoped the award would come to be viewed as the philanthropic equivalent of the Nobel Prize.

This year’s recipients are:

• Ambassadors Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg for their support of education.
• Brooke Astor for her contributions to libraries, museums, and other cultural organizations in New York.
• Irene Diamond for her donations to AIDS research.
• Bill Gates and his family for supporting education and international health efforts.
• The Rockefeller family for its philanthropic work over the past century.
• George Soros for his efforts to strengthen civil societies.
• Ted Turner for his $1-billion gift to establish the United Nations Foundation and the Nuclear Threat Initiative.

The winners, said Mr. Gregorian, provide inspiration to others and represent “a diverse cross section of philanthropic commitments and geographic locations, as well as old and new views of giving.”

The Medals of Philanthropy will be presented at a luncheon at the New York Public Library on December 10.

The luncheon is part of an all-day event commemorating the 100th anniversary of Andrew Carnegie’s philanthropies.