The wealthiest man in Australia, Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest, has donated $5billion worth of shares in his mining company to his charity, the Minderoo Foundation.
Forrest, the second-richest person in Australia behind mining heiress Gina Rinehart, and his wife Nicola donated 220 million shares in Fortescue Metals Group.
The donation is about one-fifth of their stake in the company Forrest founded in 2003 and of which he is now executive chairman.
The Forrests established the Minderoo Foundation in 2001, with the charity now working to tackle a range of issues from modern slavery to plastic pollution.
'As our world faces enormous challenges, we have elected to continue to use our material wealth to help humanity and the environment meet these existential risks,' he told Nine newspapers.
'Accumulating wealth should only be a small part of a person. Their contribution to their family and society is way more important.
'If you happen to be good at accumulating wealth, then I believe in using that skill for the greater good.'
Forrest is worth an estimated $33billion and his foundation was the second-highest philanthropic spender following the Yajilarra Trust in the 12 months to June 30, 2022.
He became the first Australian to sign Bill Gates' and Warren Buffett's 'giving pledge' in 2013. The pledge encourages billionaires to give away more than half of their wealth in their lifetime.
The Forrests have donated more than $7billion to their foundation since 2001.
Nicola Forrest said their latest donation will help support vulnerable communities.
'From the outset and over the past 22 years, we have remained focused on supporting families to ensure every child has the opportunity to thrive and reach their full potential - as children are our future,' she said.
Andrew Forrest stepped up as chairman of Fortescue last May following a company restructure that saw $50million cut from the executive employee bonus system.
Almost 20 of Fortescue's executives have left the company in the last two years following the failure of the major Iron Bridge magnetite project that forced chief operating officer Greg Lilleyman and projects director Don Hyma's resignations.
Forrest's new role is the most hands-on position he's held in the company in over a decade.