Eva Longoria and Admiral Bill McRaven to receive $100 million Bezos Award

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancée Lauren Sánchez are awarding $50 million each to a retired Navy admiral and former chancellor of the University of Texas System, and an actor and entrepreneur as part of Bezos’ annual prize to individuals who make significant contributions to society.

The annual Bezos Courage and Civility Award has been handed out since 2021 and is given to people who try to find solutions to complicated problems, attempt to be uniters and embrace civility.

In 2021, the inaugural recipients of the prize were a lawyer and CNN commentator and a chef, each of whom received $100 million. Entertainer and philanthropist Dolly Parton was the 2022 recipient; there was no 2023 award.

One awardee expressed interest in focusing on educating the children of deceased veterans, mental health and brain performance of veterans, and developing future military leaders through education.

The other awardee has focused on education and entrepreneurship in Latino communities, aiming to connect Latinos and Latinas in lower-income areas with peer mentors and supporting Latino-owned small businesses.

Bezos plans to give away the majority of his wealth during his lifetime, focusing on climate change and supporting people who can unify humanity. He has not signed the Giving Pledge, a commitment by the world’s richest people to give away the majority of their wealth to charitable causes. Bezos and Sánchez previously pledged $100 million to recovery efforts after wildfires and have given away hundreds of millions of dollars through philanthropic initiatives.