UK Charitable Trust
The Smithsonian UK Charitable Trust is an independent charitable trust established in England and Wales to advance the work of the Smithsonian Institution worldwide by means that are exclusively charitable under English law.
The Trust builds on the mission of Englishman James Smithson (c.1765-1829), a chemist and mineralogist and the founding donor of the Smithsonian who left the entirety of his estate to the United States to found "at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge."
Learn more about James Smithson »
Registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1147674), the Trust has been established to support charitable projects that leverage the scholarship, experience, and resources of the Smithsonian, funded by tax-efficient donations from UK donors. Trust-funded projects include:
- Museum exhibitions and related educational programming,
- Educational conferences, seminars, lectures, performances, and recordings,
- Fellowships, internships, and other scholarship programmes,
- The acquisition and care of collection items, and
- Scientific research initiatives.
