Scott wouldn't say how much money she donated to charity since her last disclosures.
In a Medium post titled "No Dollar Signs This Time," the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said she wants to turn the focus away from thinking about philanthropy just in terms of money.
She wrote that "how much or how little money changes hands doesn't make it philanthropy." It is philanthropy because oftention and effort. There will be more of it if we acknowledge what it all has in common.
Scott wouldn't be revealing how much she'd donated over the last six months.
"I want to let each of these incredible teams speak for themselves first if they choose to, with the hope that when they do, media focuses on their contributions instead of mine," she wrote.
Scott is worth about $60 billion and has signed the Giving Pledge, promising to give her wealth away until the safe is empty. Over the last 18 months, she has announced a total of $8.6 billion in donations.
In June, Scott revealed that she had donated more than $2.7 billion to 286 organizations in the first six months of the year.
Scott said that philanthropy goes beyond monetary donations by wealthy people.
She wrote that contributions to the welfare of others by financially wealthy people don't merit disproportionate attention.
An employee at a nonprofit who takes leave to care for a dying parent or someone who helps an isolated elderly neighbor get a cell phone are examples of other forms of philanthropy.
Scott wrote that this is all philanthropy.
Scott's fortune has grown since she divorced Jeff Bezos. She received a 4% stake in the company in the divorce settlement, and Amazon shares are up 11% year-to-date.
Scott's latest post raises questions on transparency and accountability, while taking the debate about philanthropy forward. She isn't subject to the same public reporting requirements as foundations because she donates as a private individual.
Scott's decision not to disclose numbers is one of the issues that Brian Mittendorf, a professor of nonprofit accounting at Ohio State University, told MarketWatch.
Each gift she gives is effectively made in concert with the general public because it comes with substantial tax deductions. She has an obligation to bring the general public along for the ride. The attention she will get is inescapable, but the accountability provided by giving choices to the public is one of the few levers we have to influence billionaire philanthropy.
Bridgespan Group, a consulting firm that works with Scott, did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
