Morgan Freeman: Charity Work & Causes

Freeman hosted an online disaster relief auction to benefit the American Red Cross.

He created a cookbook (with recipe contributions from other celebrities such as Tom Hanks, Hilary Swank and Michael Douglas), ‘Morgan Freeman and Friends: Caribbean Cooking for a Cause.’ Proceeds go to the Grenada Relief Fund, a charity Freeman helped set up after Hurricanes Ivan and Emily ravaged the small Caribbean island in 2004.

Freeman also sits on the Board of Directors for Earth Biofuels, a company whose mission is to promote the use of clean-burning fuels in America.

“I firmly believe that alternative fuel supplies need to be developed to allow the US to wean itself off its significant dependence on foreign oil. Moreover, I feel that our development of alternative sources such as biodiesel fuel will help the environment, farmers, and the economy in general.”

He joins Julia Roberts and Willie Nelson as a spokesperson for the organization.

The Oscar-winning actor also lent his distinctive voice to the hit 2005 documentary March of the Penguins, and an episode of the PBS series e2: the economies of being environmentally conscious.

Showing his affection for animals, Freeman has given support to the Mississippi Animal Rescue League, and he donated funds to help create a new research area at the Mississippi State College of Veterinary Medicine, subsequently named the Morgan Freeman Equine Reproduction Research Unit.

Freeman founded the Grenada Relief Fund, now known as Plan!t Now, to help victims of natural disasters, and his diverse philanthropic profile is further rounded out by his patronage of Artists for a New South Africa, and the Campaign for Female Education.