Game-changers: Can Philanthrocapitalism Rid Australia of a Dubious Distinction?

Two of the world's richest men, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and US investor Warren Buffett are role models for a new style of strategically focussed philanthropy that's helping to solve devastating medical and social problems. The payout for philanthrocapitalists is not personal financial returns, but seeing the evolution of benefits that save society money. A trailblazer for this finely focussed wealth-sharing in Australia is an ambitious network – seed-funded by Billabong surf wear millionaire Gordon Merchant – that hopes to set a benchmark for philanthrocapitalism and develop a vaccine to prevent skin cancer, a disease that costs the Australian economy A$5 billion annually.