Honoring America’s 250th Anniversary Through Service and Stewardship
Image courtesy of Matt Griffis
More than fifty years ago, when I first arrived in the United States, I was struck by the nation’s vast openness and its sense of possibility. The landscapes seemed to stretch without end, as did the ambitions of the people I met. Americans approached life with a tenacity and ingenuity that I found contagious, and it was not long before that spirit began to shape my own. Over time, America became more than just my home. It became the foundation for the opportunities I was given and the lifelong friendships for which I am profoundly grateful.
America’s 250th anniversary is an occasion to look both backward and forward. It asks us to honor a remarkable history, but it also asks something bigger: that we take responsibility for what comes next. The ideals that have guided this country for generations demand our ongoing commitment and stewardship. Upholding these principles is a shared responsibility that calls each of us to action.
During my years in the United States, I have had the privilege of supporting initiatives doing that work. Researchers are pioneering medical breakthroughs that change—and save—lives. Educators are preparing the leaders and citizens of the next century. Artists and cultural institutions are safeguarding our shared stories, helping us understand both ourselves and one another. And across the country, conservation organizations and Indigenous communities are protecting the public lands and waters that belong to every American, ensuring that this inheritance passes intact to those who follow.
In conservation, the Wyss Foundation and its partners have helped permanently protect more than 130 million acres of land and 5.7 million square kilometers of ocean since 1998—work that became the Wyss Campaign for Nature, a $1.5 billion commitment to conserve thirty percent of the planet’s lands and waters by 2030. Because lasting conservation ultimately depends on people, we also invest in them directly: the Wyss Fellows Program gives emerging conservation leaders campaign experience, while the Wyss Scholars Program supports graduate and law students preparing for careers in U.S. land conservation.
In medicine, drawing on my own years in the medical device industry, the Foundation has invested widely from the laboratory to patient care, founding the Wyss Institute at Harvard while funding hands-on care that ranges from pediatric orthopedic trauma programs to a wellness center for Philadelphia’s immigrant and refugee families.
And in the arts, a recent gift to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston — in honor of my late wife, Rosamund — will help spotlight underrepresented artists, while support for community spaces like the Featherstone Center for the Arts ensures creativity thrives everywhere, not only in the grandest institutions.
Work like this is why I have devoted so much of my philanthropy to conservation, medical innovations, and the arts and education. I am convinced that investing in these pillars is how we keep faith in the future—how we ensure that the next generation inherits the same sense of opportunity and openness that first drew me to this country.
This Fourth of July carries a special weight as we approach a quarter-millennium of American independence. It is a moment to honor the people and institutions whose vision built this nation, and to recommit ourselves to the chapter still being written.
My optimism for America’s future is undimmed, fueled by the generosity, innovation, and unwavering determination I witness in communities nationwide every day.
I owe my own journey to the opportunities this nation made possible—among them the chance to fall in love with its wild landscapes. Supporting the people, communities, and institutions that keep America strong remains, to me, the most meaningful way I know to repay that debt.