The founder of the Tata family’s fortunes was Jamsetji Tata who was an Indian pioneer industrialist. The family are Indian industrialists and philanthropists who founded iron and steel works, cotton mills and power plants that contributed to India’s industrial development.

The family gives away between 8 and 14 percent of the net profits from its controlling company each year to myriad causes: science, medicine, social services, health, civil society and governance, rural welfare, performing arts, education and the needs of children. Tata family funding has established pioneering institutions in social sciences, cancer research and treatment and tropical disease research. The family’s philosophy of “constructive philanthropy” has become embedded in its businesses, and has played a role in changing the traditional concept of charity throughout India. The family is considered one of the few philanthropic forces in the country with the potential to facilitate collaborative action on the problems that threaten individual, local and national development.

The Mellon family fortune originated with Mellon Bank, founded in 1869. The Family’s impact on philanthropic giving began with Andrew Mellon’s donation in the 1930s of his extensive art collection to provide the beginnings of the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. as well as the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. In 1969 Andrew’s children Paul and Ailsa established the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, which supports museums and art conservation as well as higher education and scholarship, information technology research, performing arts, conservation and the environment.

Henry J. Heinz was born in 1844 in the Birmingham section of Pittsburgh. He began his business by peddling prepared horseradish. After entering into a partnership and forming Heinz & Noble, they sold the product in clear bottles to prove that unlike some foods, it was totally unadulterated. Heinz bought out his partner and through his benevolent management style made the H.J. Heinz company a pioneer in labor relations. He worked tirelessly against a large segment of the processed food industry to gain passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906. It inaugurated the modern food industry and guaranteed purity to all consumers. Years of hard work and innovation made the man and his products internationally known and respected.

The Heinz family’s sustained philanthropic giving has supported the environment, education, economic opportunity and the arts as well as efforts to enhance the lives of women and children.

Eli Broad is a renowned business leader who built two Fortune 500 companies in different industries (KB Home and SunAmerica Inc.). As the child of immigrant parents, Eli Broad was instilled with the values of hard work, education and the dream that anything was possible. Eli and his wife, Edythe, are devoted to philanthropy as founders of The Broad Foundations. With assets of more than $2.25 billion, The Broad Foundations are focused on entrepreneurship for the public good in education, scientific and medical research, and the arts. In working to dramatically improve urban K-12 public education, the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation’s major initiatives include the $1million Broad Prize for Urban Education, The Broad Superintendents Academy, The Broad Residency in Urban Education and the Broad Institute for School Boards. In advancing innovative scientific and medical research, The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation focuses on the areas of inflammatory bowel disease, stem cell research and human genomics. In an unprecedented partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University and the Whitehead Institute, the Broads gave $200 million to create the Eli and Edythe Broad Institute for biomedical research. In fostering public appreciation for contemporary art, The Broad Art Foundation is a lending library of more than 1,200 artworks that have been loaned to more than 400 museums and university galleries worldwide.