Microsoft is an international technology corporation. It was launched in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen. In 1985, it announced the first version of Windows, a graphical user interface for its MS-DOS operating system (OS).

Since the mid-2010s, Microsoft has engaged in fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), rural internet development ventures, and computer-assisted farming, in which Microsoft actively works with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help farmers cut costs, increase yields, and breed crops it claims will be “more resilient to climate change” using AI and data. ¹

Microsoft is well known for its global philanthropic efforts, which began early in the company’s history with its employee-match Giving Program. In 2015, Microsoft announced it was launching its own philanthropic arm, Microsoft Philanthropies, conceived as a fund for increasing access to technology across the world’s disadvantaged populations.

In recent years, Microsoft has become increasingly focused on environmentalism and sustainability, leading to a significant increase in funding for environmental causes. Microsoft has a long-standing partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), the world’s largest conservationist organization.

Background

Microsoft was launched in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen to develop software for the personal computer Altair 8800, with the pair reportedly inspired to do so from a cover of Popular Electronics magazine. In 1985, it announced the first version of Windows, a graphical user interface for its MS-DOS operating system (OS). The company relocated from Bellevue, Washington, to a 30-acre lot in Redmond, Washington. It officially went public in March of 1986. ²

In 2000, Steve Ballmer was named chief executive officer, succeeding Gates. Ballmer had been hired by Gates in 1980, having him serve as first business manager. Ballmer was the individual who played a pivotal role in partnering Microsoft’s operating system with IBM computers. ³

Starting in 2008, Microsoft aimed to stay competitive after the PC revolution, introducing a string of new ventures over the next few years such as Windows Azure, the Bing search engine, the cloud-based Office 365 IT suite, the Surface hybrid tablet, and the Xbox video-gaming consoles. It acquired Skype in 2011 and the popular video game Minecraft in 2014. In 2014, Satya Nadella was named CEO, who as of 2023 was still working in that role. ⁴

Since the mid-2010s, Microsoft has been pioneering fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), rural internet development ventures, and computer-assisted farming where Microsoft actively works with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help farmers cut costs, increase yields, and breed crops “more resilient to climate change” using AI and data. ⁵

Philanthropy

Microsoft’s philanthropic efforts began early in the company’s history. In 1983, Microsoft launched its Giving Program in which it matched employee contributions. ⁶ In 1994, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and his then-wife, Melinda Gates, founded the William H. Gates Foundation, which was initially dedicated to global health care and the Pacific Northwest. It was managed by Bill’s father William Gates, Sr. In 2000, the pair founded the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has since become one of most powerful philanthropic groups in the world. ⁷ In 2006, Microsoft and its employees had gave over $2.5 billion in charitable donations. ⁸

In 2015, Microsoft announced it was launching its own philanthropic arm, Microsoft Philanthropies, conceived as a fund for increasing access to technology across the world’s disadvantaged populations. It was headed by Mary Snapp, the first female lawyer employed by Microsoft, and was operated by Lori Forte Harnick. ⁹

Over the years, Microsoft has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to various charitable causes. In 2022 alone, Microsoft’s U.S. employees donated more than $255 million (including the company matching gifts) to over 32,000 nonprofits, and 29,000 of its employees collectively volunteered more than 725,000 hours for charitable groups. ¹⁰

Environmentalism

Microsoft has become increasingly focused on environmentalism. In January 2020, the company announced a new initiative to become carbon negative by 2030, meaning that it plans to remove more carbon from the atmosphere than it emits. ¹¹ Microsoft also committed to being water positive—replenishing more water than it consumes—and zero waste by 2030. ¹² It announced it was working on a “new planetary computing platform” to transform the way we manage the planet’s natural systems. ¹³

To achieve these goals, Microsoft has significantly increased its funding for environmental causes. In January 2020, the company announced a massive initiative to reduce its own carbon footprint along with a $1 billion Climate Innovation Fund to aid other firms in the development of “carbon reduction, capture, and removal technologies.” Its stated intention was to cut its carbon emissions both from itself and across its entire supply chain by more than half by 2030, and by 2050 it intends to have removed all the carbon it has ever emitted. ^{14 15}

As of 2022, Microsoft claimed to have invested in acquiring 2.5 million tons of carbon removal and recycling it into products. It also projected its water replenishment projects would generate over 1.3 million cubic meters of “volumetric benefits.” Rather than sending some of its used materials to landfills, as it had been doing, it was reappropriating over 15,000 metrics tons for other uses. Through its Planetary Computer program it aimed to create a global environmental network, making available over 40 petabytes of data for sustainability decision-making purposes. ¹⁶

In September 2021, Microsoft announced a $100 million donation to the Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, which aims to support companies that are developing nontraditional energy technologies. ¹⁷

Microsoft has a long-standing partnership with the Nature Conservancy (TNC), the world’s largest conservationist organization. It has used its cloud computing platform Azure as well as other intelligent cloud tools to aid TNC in its internal operations and coastal resilience programs. In 2020, Microsoft donated $150,000 to the Nature Conservancy to conserve land and water systems. Microsoft set up a program that allows users to contribute to TNC through their Bing search Rewards point. Microsoft in partnership with TNC and climate tech company SilviaTerra have an initiative to protect forests, with Microsoft running the FOCUS/Forests Project to help interested donors find a forest to invest in. ¹⁸

1. “About Microsoft.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/about/.
2. “About Microsoft.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/about/.
3. “About Microsoft.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/about/.
4. “About Microsoft.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/about/.
5. “About Microsoft.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/about/.
6. “About Microsoft.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/about/.
7. Langley, Kathryn. “Gates Foundation.” Britannica, February 17, 2023. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Gates-Foundation.
8. ^[1] “Microsoft and Its Employees Surpass $2.5 Billion Mark Through Charitable Donations.” Microsoft, September 21, 2006. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://news.microsoft.com/2006/09/21/microsoft-and-its-employees-surpass-2-5-billion-mark-through-charitable-donations/.
9. “Microsoft Announces New Philanthropic Organization.” Candid, December 20, 2015. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/news/microsoft-announces-new-philanthropic-organization.
10. “Employee Giving & Corporate Giving Program.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/philanthropies/employee-engagement.
11. Smith, Brad. “Microsoft will be carbon negative by 2030.” Microsoft, January 16, 2020. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2020/01/16/microsoft-will-be-carbon-negative-by-2030/.
12. Smith, Brad. “Microsoft will replenish more water than it consumes by 2030.” Microsoft, September 21, 2020. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2020/09/21/microsoft-will-replenish-more-water-than-it-consumes-by-2030/
13. Smith, Brad. “Microsoft will replenish more water than it consumes by 2030.” Microsoft, September 21, 2020. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2020/09/21/microsoft-will-replenish-more-water-than-it-consumes-by-2030/.
14. ^[1] “Microsoft Announces $1 Billion Climate Innovation Fund, Microsoft To Be Carbon Negative By 2030.” CDE News, January 22, 2020. https://cde.news/microsoft-announces-1-billion-climate-innovation-fund-microsoft-to-be-carbon-negative-by-2030/
15. Smith, Brad. “Microsoft will be carbon negative by 2030.” Microsoft, January 16, 2020. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2020/01/16/microsoft-will-be-carbon-negative-by-2030/.
16. “Environmental Sustainability.” Microsoft. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/sustainability.
17. Joppa, Lucas. “Further, faster, together: Microsoft donates $100 million to Breakthrough Energy Catalyst to accelerate and scale climate tech.” Microsoft, September 19, 2021. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2021/09/19/further-faster-together-microsoft-donates-100-million-to-breakthrough-energy-catalyst-to-accelerate-and-scale-climate-tech/
18. “Teaming Up With Microsoft – Using Technology to Impact Conservation.” The Nature Conservancy. Accessed April 23, 2023. https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/who-we-are/how-we-work/working-with-companies/cause-marketing/microsoft/.