Gates may change direction of philanthropy

At the same time Gates has the potential to be a leader in effecting change, the Gates Foundation has run afoul of critics because of its methods that are linked to the ideas of creative capitalism.

Though its ultimate goal is to provide basic needs to many of the world's poor, the foundation supports long-tail projects in agriculture and medical research as much as it puts food and important vaccinations immediately into the hands of people who need them.

This approach has been criticized because it sometimes sacrifices people's short-term needs for a long-term goal, Leopold said.

That Gates would employ this strategy in his philanthropy is not surprising, given his business style. At Microsoft, he used a similar tactic of investing in products that had long-term potential to lead markets, even if they didn't bring in short-term revenue.

But while "thinking long-term is probably good and strategically it's a good way to go," Leopold said, others who think it's better to invest in saving human lives now rather than investing for the future do not agree.

The foundation's business investments also have been called into question, most notably in an article by the Los Angeles Times last year that exposed some of the less socially responsible places the foundation was investing its endowment money.

According to the L.A. Times, the Gates Foundation had investments in companies ranked as some of the worst environmental polluters in the United States and Canada, and also in pharmaceutical companies that price drugs beyond the reach of AIDS patients the foundation is trying to treat.

These investments drew ire from critics for running counter to the foundation's interest in providing affordable health care and promoting health among the economically challenged.

"It's the idea of talking the talk but not walking the walk," Leopold said.

Still, Gates' commitment to the foundation's and his own personal interest in solving basic needs of billions of people is beyond reproach.

Time and again, in public speeches and interviews, he has stressed his interest in making the world a better place through a rethinking of philanthropy so that it does not just engage in charity, but also empowers the people it's helping to effect long-term change on their own.

This is something Gates -- with his wealth, business acumen, and one of the world's keenest minds -- is in a unique position to actually achieve on a global scale.

Whether his work at The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will not only have this effect but also transform the way people direct their philanthropic efforts in the future is a question that will only be answered well into the next stage of Gates' already influential career.