Our History

Eric Melin was assigned a college research project at Boston's Grantmaker's Library researching so called "free money" via archaic pre-internet philanthropy databases and paper books. Global giving totals roughly $2.3 trillion per year, USA is about $600 Billion, however most, 75% or more originates from the "non-wealthy" who donate or screen investments according to personal values (Faith, Tobacco, Alcohol, Abortion, Guns, etc.).

With ideas from philanthropic databases Eric Melin writes a 85-page business plan for ValueSystem.com (www.ericmelin.com/cagbusinessplan.pdf) in the height of the dot-com boom outlining many of the ideas for philanthropist.org and philanthropist.run later to be known as Values-Based Investing, Socially Responsible Investing, Triple Bottom Line Investing, Green Investing, ESG, etc. A software product was developed allowing investor to screen stock investments according to personal values 20 years before social investing became mainstream.

Seven founders from BU, BC, UVM, UPENN, MIT and Harvard Business School meet in Eric's Park Plaza office near the Liberty Tree Site, Where The Sons Of Liberty Patriots Met for a kickoff Founder's Meeting for philanthropist.org.

Eric Melin sponsors the Harvard Democrat vs Harvard Republican Debate Club Teams in a Red vs Blue Paintball Match to attempt to create the perfect purple dot.

Philanthropist.org hosts its first Annual <The Philanthropist Party> Fun-raiser with over 200 world leaders at Harvard's Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology.

The Philanthropist Party celebrates America's 250th Birthday by launching a Purple Dot advertising campaign and new philanthropist.run website to bring awareness and raise money for platform operations.