San Francisco — Dr. Larry Brilliant, the physician who contributed greatly in eradicating small pox in Asia and was the founding executive director of Google.org, the philanthropic arm of the search engine giant, is altogether leaving the company to devote his time to manage a $100 million project at Jeff Skoll Foundation, which will focus on several “Urgent Threats” globally.
Brilliant, 64, who in February stepped down as head of the search giant’s philanthropic arm and was named Google’s “Chief Philanthropic Evangelist,” announced his departure in a post on the Google.org blog.
“It is with a grateful heart that I leave full-time work with Google to begin a new chapter in my life,” he said.
Jeff Skoll, founder and chairman of the Skoll Foundation and Participant Media, today confirmed the appointment of Dr. Larry Brilliant as president of a new organization Skoll is launching to address urgent threats confronting humanity and the planet.
Brilliant, appointed as president of a new organization called the “Skoll Urgent Threats Fund” created ‘to address urgent threats confronting humanity and the planet,’ the Skoll Foundation said. The initial funding of $100 million will be utilized “to identify and support advance, high impact ventures to combat climate change, water scarcity, pandemics, nuclear proliferation, and Middle East conflict.”
Brilliant will also function as senior adviser to Skoll to ascertain alignment of work on these urgent threats across Skoll’s business and philanthropic activities.
“Over the last few years, it has become increasingly evident that humanity’s failure to address critical issues like climate change and nuclear proliferation are not just making these challenges more difficult, they are putting life on the planet at risk,” said Jeff Skoll, founder and chairman of the Skoll Foundation in a statement on the organization’s web site. “This new organization is designed to make serious advancement on these issues by identifying and supporting the most innovative initiatives and solutions out there. I can not think of anyone better prepared to shape and lead this effort than Larry Brilliant.”
Brilliant, a leading epidemiologist widely acknowledged for his major contribution to the World Health Organization’s efforts in eradicating smallpox from Asia. His vast experience and networks across a range of social and environmental issues will help him develop the strategy and partnerships to get the Skoll Urgent Threats Fund up and running quickly. Brilliant is familiar with Skoll’s vision for social and environmental change, having served on the Skoll Foundation board since 2007.
As Head of the Urgent Threats Fund, Brilliant will develop its strategy and investment approach and will draw on Skoll Foundation resources and expertise, according to the statement. Sally Osberg, CEO of the Skoll Foundation, will join Brilliant and Skoll on the board.
That is a daunting list of challenges, but Brilliant has a courageous resume. Besides his work at Google.org, he was prominent in the effort to eradicate smallpox, worked for a decade as a professor of international health and epidemiology at the University of Michigan, founded Seva Foundation to cure blindness, co-founded the pioneering Internet community called The Well, and was chief executive of two publicly traded companies.
“This is an extraordinary opportunity for me to bring my life’s work and experience to join with so many others who feel the urgency of the times to work on the most critical challenges facing us as global citizens,” said Brilliant, in a statement.
The fund is an initiative of the Skoll Foundation founded 10 years ago by billionaire Jeff Skoll.
“Google is grateful for Larry’s contributions to starting Google.org and welcomes the arrival of the Skoll Urgent Threat Fund,” the company said in a statement.
In a post on the Google.org blog, Brilliant said he hoped the two organization could work together in the future. “I love Google,” he wrote, adding that he was leaving with a “grateful heart.”
Skoll is the founding president of online auction giant eBay and the chairman of Participant Media, producer of such films as “An Inconvenient Truth,” a movie about climate change featuring former vice president Al Gore.
“Jeff Skoll is a tremendously innovative proponent of social change, creating a unique, powerful and diverse set of both philanthropic and business tools to promote change. I look forward to working closely with him, the Skoll Foundation and his business ventures to make sure we are as effective as we can be in changing course for our children’s future. I am also tremendously grateful to Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Sheryl Sandberg who were my first board of directors at Google.org for giving me the opportunity to work for Google.org and to learn so much from working at Google, one of the most remarkable companies in the world,” added Brilliant.