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Philanthropists embrace new business model:
Philanthropy used to equal donating money. Now, those who want to do good discover that investing might have a bigger social impact than just donating money.
A life full of freedom and travel and helping to make other peoples lives better at the same time. That became the dream of Mike Velings when he became member of the World Wildlife Fund at age 12. ‘I wanted to roam the world, setting up projects, like the WWF’, he says in his office in downtown Utrecht. ‘But I knew that first, I had to earn money before I could start living my dream.’
To the question why he chooses to invest rather than to donate, Velings answers that he highly values the charity sector. ‘However, I’m an entrepreneur and I believe that building a better life is only possible if a project is there for the long haul. It needs to be profitable, or it isn’t viable any more.’