The Real Reason Jeff Bezos Gave Van Jones $100 Million

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00:00Jeff Bezos is spreading a bit of wealth. On July 20, the Amazon founder became the

00:05second billionaire in history to fly into space in his own aircraft.

00:10Richard Branson previously beat Bezos to the punch when he was launched into space

00:15on his Virgin Galactic rocket the week prior. Though Bezos' space trip only lasted 11 minutes,

00:21he called it the best day ever and added that he felt unbelievably good after his

00:26spacecraft landed back on Earth. In his post-flight press conference, Bezos also reiterated that his

00:33space tourism business is to encourage people to pursue careers in science and preserve this planet.

00:39Bezos also dropped a big surprise on CNN's Van Jones by giving him the equivalent of four trips

00:45to space. As the richest man in the world, Bezos has never been shy about spending or donating his

00:51money. Nevertheless, he surprised everyone when he announced at his post-flight press conference

00:56that he was giving out $100 million courage and civility awards for two recipients. One recipient

01:03was CNN contributor Van Jones. Bezos said at his press conference,

01:07they can give all to their own charity or they can share their wealth. It's all up to them.

01:12Per The Independent, Bezos called the prize a new philanthropic initiative that aims to support

01:18people and their ideas. Sometimes dreams come true, Jones said after Bezos' announcement was made,

01:24while adding that,

01:25the headlines around the world should be,

01:27anything is possible if you believe. He said that he thought that my attempts to try to bring

01:32people together across party lines, across racial lines, had been inspiring. And can I use some more

01:38support? Jones emphasized the money will be used to give to others who have a similar spirit.

01:43There was a second recipient of Jeff Bezos' Courage and Civility Award. Jose Andres, the renowned chef,

01:49restauranter and founder of World Central Kitchen, also received $100 million from Bezos. Andres said of

01:56the gift,

01:57I'm really grateful for this award and the incredible support from Jeff and the entire Bezos family.

02:03World Central Kitchen was born from the simple idea that food has the power to create a better world.

02:08A plate of food is a plate of hope. It's the fastest way to rebuild lives and communities. Andres

02:15founded World Central Kitchen in 2010, a nonprofit focused on providing meals to those who are

02:20victims of natural disasters. According to their website, they have donated over 36 million meals

02:26to 400 cities. This heavy chunk of change from Bezos will help his organization do even more for

02:32world hunger. Andres said,

02:34This award itself cannot feed the world on its own. But this is the start of a new chapter for us.

02:39It will allow us to think beyond the next hurricane to the bigger challenges we face.

02:44People of the world, now is the time to think really big, to solve hunger with the fierce urgency

02:50of now. Bezos has been on quite the donation run of late, giving $10 billion of his roughly $200

02:57billion fortune to nonprofit organizations focused on climate change, per CBS. Recipients of this money

03:04included Climate Works Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund and World Resources Institute, among

03:10others. Bezos also gave $200 million to the Smithsonian just days before his flight to space,

03:16the museum's biggest donation in its 175-year history. $70 million will go to renovating the

03:23National Air and Space Museum, while $130 million will be used to launch a new education center.

03:30He also donated $100 million to Feeding America, which supplies over 200 food banks across the country.

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