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GWWC Team

Our candid perspectives on common concerns about money, relationships, timing, and uncertainty.

Honest concerns thoughtful people have before taking the 10% pledge

Taking the 10% Pledge is a big decision, and it’s natural to have questions before committing. Many people who are drawn to effective giving are careful, reflective, and balancing complex responsibilities around money, family, relationships, and identity.

We’ve spent time listening to the concerns people raise most often before taking the 10% Pledge. Below, we share our perspectives on ten of them, not to dismiss hesitation, but to engage with it. These reflections are grounded in our lived experience and the experiences of pledgers.

You don’t need to agree with everything here to find it useful. Our hope is simply that these perspectives help you think more clearly about what the 10% Pledge could mean for you.

What if taking the 10% Pledge comes at the cost of (or delays) other life objectives? Buying a house? Having kids?

Making a 10% Pledge is a significant commitment, and for many people it does involve real sacrifices. These can include slower progress towards financial goals, reduced flexibility, or harder choices about how and when to take on new responsibilities. In some cases, those trade-offs are especially sharp because certain life goals, such as having children, supporting family members, or pursuing some forms of education, are time-bound rather than indefinitely deferrable.

We don’t think there is a single right answer for everyone.

Most of us are balancing several important priorities at once: financial security, family, personal ambitions, and the desire to help others. For those who do choose to take a pledge, it often enables a more deliberate approach to trade-offs, making giving a considered part of a wider life plan rather than something that only happens if resources remain.

We don’t believe giving should undermine financial stability or crowd out essential or time-sensitive life goals. Many people choose to wait until they’ve built a basic safety net, navigated major transitions, or passed through particularly expensive life stages before committing. Others adjust how they give during periods where demands on their income are temporarily higher.

Like any long-term commitment, the 10% Pledge involves ongoing rebalancing and is intended to be calculated over a lifetime, rather than every year. Life circumstances change, and giving can change with them.

My partner isn’t really onboard with this, and we make financial decisions together.

If you take financial decisions together, we don’t want a giving pledge to put pressure on your relationship. Giving should strengthen your shared values, rather than create conflict. Some couples choose to take the Trial Pledge together, others begin small, review it together, and adjust.

We also offer family donor advisory conversations, which are a safe space where both partners can ask questions, raise concerns, and learn about the approach, with no pressure. If this is something that might be interesting for you, email community@givingwhatwecan.org

It’s true that most people don’t give away 10% of their income. So in that sense, it isn’t normal, but unusual doesn’t mean wrong. Some people may find it inspiring, others may find it uncomfortable, or assume it wouldn’t be possible for them. That reaction is out of your control.

The pledge is a personal commitment; you don’t have to talk about it publicly (though we love it when pledgers do). And you’re not alone, more than 10,000 people worldwide have already taken the 10% Pledge, we think they’re all pretty cool.

What if I’m not currently earning an income?

 pledge, meaning you pledge to give 10% of what you earn over the course of your life, not necessarily meeting a target every single year.

We think that it is within the “spirit” of the Pledge to try to give 1% of your spending money, so whatever is left after rent/mortgage etc. That approach can build the habit of giving before you earn.

Shouldn’t the pledge be for billionaires?

It absolutely should be (and probably at more than 10%)! Elon Musk could do a 99% pledge and still live an extraordinary life. The existence of extreme wealth doesn’t take away your agency to make a positive impact in the world by supporting effective programmes.

As a movement, we’re already donating ~$50M per year to amazing charities doing incredible things. If a million people take the 10% Pledge we’ll be one of, if not the biggest philanthropic organisation in the world. Join us and be part of it.

Isn’t effective tax policy really the answer?

We, and many pledgers, would support higher, more effective taxation to fund the most effective causes.

Taking the 10% Pledge is a concrete action that’s within our control today and helps develop a norm that more resources should be directed towards the world’s most pressing problems, whether through taxation or voluntary donations.

What if I don’t feel ready to make a lifetime decision until I’ve really analysed every aspect of it?

The 10% Pledge is a meaningful decision, and questions about how to do the most good deserve serious reflection.

At the same time, it’s worth recognising that no amount of analysis can remove all uncertainty from life decisions.

Sometimes it’s helpful to complement analysis with lived experience, and that’s why we recommend some people take a trial pledge to get that experience.

If you’re feeling unsure about which causes or cause areas to support, you can read about 

What if I disagree with some Effective Altruism (EA) causes or cause areas, or they don’t resonate with me?

The pledge is a personal commitment to support the organisations 

 can make the most positive difference in the world. We expect people to support causes that align with them, whether that’s for humans, animals, future lives or something else.

If there are non-traditional EA causes that you believe are the most effective ways to create the change you want to see, then supporting them is 

I’m overwhelmed (politics, work, family etc.), is this just another obligation?

There is a lot going on in the world right now.

We’ve heard from many pledgers that taking action through the pledge has given them some peace of mind. They can now rest with the idea that they are contributing significantly to making the world a better, less overwhelming place, and don’t need to reconsider it every day.

The mechanics can also be very simple. You can set up a recurring donation to a fund and let a team of experts guide your giving where it’s guaranteed to make the most impact.

I’m already donating 10% why would I pledge?

If you’re already giving at this level, that’s amazing, and taking a pledge is an opportunity for even more impact by building a social norm.

By committing publicly, you help others follow suit. When people see others like them taking part, it becomes easier to imagine doing it themselves.

And by joining openly, you strengthen the wider movement, increasing its visibility, credibility, and influence.

Honest concerns thoughtful people have before taking the 10% Pledge

Amalie Farestvedt

A first-hand view of Kangaroo Mother Care in Rajasthan

A visit to Ansh in India

’s district hospital wards in Rajasthan, where 

 operates. The air smelled faintly of antiseptic and the walls were painted a faded mint green. But it wasn’t the colours or the smells that struck me, it was the silence. Not the calm of sleep, but the fragile stillness of newborns too small, too underweight, 

On a plastic chair sat Saanvi (name changed). One of her twins rested against her chest, skin-to-skin, guided by one of the Ansh nurses. Her other newborn was in the intensive care unit.

I asked how much the baby on her chest weighed.“1,200 grams”, she said. That’s less than a third of what I weighed when I was born.

I looked from the tiny newborn wrist, and back to Saanvi. She is 18 years old, and holding a new fragile life, giving it a fighting chance.

Globally, 2.4 million babies die in their first month of life each year. About 22% of those deaths occur in India alone, mostly among premature or low-birth-weight infants. And yet, the solution, Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC), is astonishingly simple: prolonged skin-to-skin contact, breastfeeding support, and careful monitoring. Evidence shows it can reduce mortality by a third.

The challenge isn’t knowledge. Hospitals and governments know that KMC works. The challenge is resources: staff shortages, crowded wards, and pressures to discharge the women and their babies too soon. Without support, KMC remains an unrealised government target, and babies that easily could have survived, die.

Ansh works inside government hospitals to make KMC a reality. In the ward we visited, Ansh-trained nurses carefully explained KMC to the new parents and their extended relatives who had come to welcome a new member into their family. Every four hours the nurses check vitals, support breastfeeding, monitor for danger signs, and ensure the babies stay warm from KMC. Their work is constant, but they clearly see the impact they are able to have.

Neha, one of the nurses, told me, “What I love most about my job is identifying a baby in danger and helping them survive. But the hardest part is when we do everything we can with the resources we have and some babies still don’t make it”.

Ansh also ensures follow-up calls are made after discharge, delaying critical discharges when needed, and providing ongoing support to new mothers who may be malnourished or struggling to produce enough milk.

Even for those babies that would have survived without KMC, keeping them warm and regulating their fragile heartbeat with KMC helps avoid lifelong health complications. When these babies survive it gives their families hope. As Supriya, the founder of Ansh, said:

“Honestly, what keeps me going is the young women. They give so much of themselves and their love to their tiny babies and it’s heartbreaking to see someone lose something so precious to them”.

In this ward alone, 15-20% of babies are eligible for KMC, roughly 150 each month. Ansh is now fundraising to expand to new states. Moni, Ansh’s COO, explained that when they enter a new hospital, the change in mortality rate for the newborns is instant. From the very first day, Ansh sees babies who would likely have died without KMC, surviving because underweight infants are identified early and monitored for hypothermia and other complications

I left the hospital feeling humbled and inspired. The nurses’ dedication, the mothers’ courage, and Ansh’s systematic approach showed me how a simple, evidence-based intervention could save and change lives.

As we drove away, the sound of traffic slowly replaced the stillness of the wards. But the image of Saanvi holding her tiny baby, giving it warmth and life, stayed with me. This is what it means to transform health outcomes at scale. And it reminded me why supporting effective interventions, like Ansh, makes the difference between life and death.

Everyone who features, or whose child features, in this article has given their informed consent in advance of publishing. 

We’ve just onboarded Ansh as a supported programme on our donation platform

Where are the Giving What We Can team donating in 2025?

As the year ends, some staff members volunteered to share where they are giving this year, and a little bit about how they currently think about their donations.

For previous years and more on why we do this, you can read our similar posts from 

. And if you enjoy this post, we also encourage you to check out similar posts from teams at other organisations who’ve shared their personal giving this year too, such as 

 through effective animal advocacy are really extraordinary, I expect the majority of my donations this year to go to the two funds that GWWC recommends to donors in our animal welfare cause area: 

. 2025 was my first full year with a 🔸10% Pledge and, like others on the team, I’m excited to continue to reflect on and develop my giving strategy in the future!

This is an exciting year for me as it is a year where I’ve transitioned from being a student with the occasional part-time job, to a full-time job, enabling me to donate at a significantly higher level than before:

: With USAID cuts this year, this fund's flexibility felt all the more important.

Animal Charity Evaluators Recommended Charity Fund

: Since many of the corporate cage-free pledges have 2025 as a deadline, this has seemed like an important year to fund high impact charities working on these commitments.

 (through 10% salary sacrifice): It’s both motivating to donate to an organisation that has a strong 

 and to give myself an additional incentive to do my work in a cost-effective way.

I'm excited to reflect more deeply on my giving strategy in the coming years, as I'm still setting myself up for a lifetime of giving!

I'm still on a learning journey with my giving! My background is in public health, so global health has always felt like natural territory which is why roughly 70% of my giving this year has landed in global health, including through GiveWell's Top Charities and All Grants Fund and to some of Giving What We Can’s recommended programmes including the Against Malaria Foundation, Malaria Consortium, Helen Keller and New Incentives. I was also excited to begin supporting Ansh, (which was recently onboarded to Giving What We Can) and which supports the delivery of Kangaroo care for at-risk newborns in India.

Roughly 20% of my donations also went to supporting programmes focused on reducing animal suffering including the Humane League and through Giving What We Can’s Effective Animal Advocacy Fund - I think the opportunities here to reduce suffering at scale are extraordinary!

I’ve also deliberately tried to diversify my giving this year and also supported preparedness and long-term thinking through the Giving What We Can's Risks and Resilience Fund (roughly 5% of my giving).

I joined Giving What We Can in March, and took a trial pledge in June this year. The past few years—studying, starting a family, moving countries (too many times)— has meant I’ve found it often difficult to strike the right balance with giving. Taking a trial pledge has really helped simplify that and help make sure the habit sticks, even when life feels chaotic. I’m excited to continue with that pledge through 2026 and beyond.

Like many people, I’m still on a learning journey with my giving. This year I’ve deliberately tried to diversify. Why? Because it feels like a way of de-risking my impact. I don’t hold a settled view on which of the cause areas we support carry the greatest moral weight, so I hedge. That said, you’ll still see my instincts coming through: a larger share goes to global health, which has long been where my motivation and experience run deepest.

10% to Founders Pledge Climate Change Fund

While I have worked for non-profits and impact research since the start of my career, I only took the 10% pledge in May this year – right before joining GWWC.

I used to think that the salary I sacrificed vis-a-vis what a similar commercial role would offer me was sufficient. Researching GWWC as I was going through my application process made me realize something. All the convictions I already held that made me dedicate myself to non-profit work applied just as much to giving 10% of my lifetime income. So I took the pledge.

Having only donated token amounts in the past (mostly to Planned Parenthood and climate / nature conservation charities), the process of deciding how much and where I wanted to donate was much more difficult than anticipated. From what my colleagues tell me, it’s a journey, and I’m excited to see what the future holds.

I’ve donated 15% of my income this year to the following causes:

I strongly believe in our multiplier and want to keep myself accountable for the impact of our work.

25% to Fondo Salud Global (23.75%) at Ayuda Efectiva (1.25%)

 Global health is one of my two core priorities, and this is the most tax-efficient way to give to GWWC’s recommended global health charities as a Spanish resident; I tipped 5% to support their operations.

Climate change is my other core priority, so I relied on GivingGreen’s research and recommendations to select a high-impact organisation close to my heart.

, I’ve capped my salary at GWWC to €25k/y, so my largest donation would be to GWWC. I believe we currently have a good multiplier on marginal funding, and it’s very tax-efficient to reduce my salary instead of donating.

Other than that, this year I gave €2k to 

match donations to my birthday fundraiser

 hosted on the Italian effective giving organisation 

, with the hope that this helped them debug/test their shiny new donation platform and get some first donations through it.

I’m mostly holding off for more donations this year, aiming to contribute ~€7k to the April round of the 

they aim to launch some great animal charities

I fundamentally believe that currently growing the total amount of money directed toward high-impact charities is a crucial bottleneck. As part of this, I’m giving 10% of my income this year to 

our multiplier at GWWC is exceptionally high

, and I’ve previously written more about why I think effective giving organisations could do with more support 

. While I’d love to give to other effective giving organisations, part of my work as 

Effective Giving Global Coordinator and Incubator

 means that I see value in avoiding any appearance of bias that could complicate my work.

Outside of my 10% pledge, I’ll give to 

 to offset my annual carbon footprint and to a variety of animal welfare charities, inspired by 

, to offset the harm caused by my (minimal) animal product consumption as a vegetarian.

This year, I decided to give 50% of my income (I wrote about why 

, because this is what I recommend to most people without expertise in charity evaluation, and I want to practice what I preach.

, because these are building new infrastructure to make more high-impact giving happen, and they can productively use more funding.

 itself (via salary sacrifice), because they quite reliably provide a strong 

, which are two projects I co-founded and have close context on, and I know could productively use extra funding as well.

Alana Horowitz Friedman

Suriyaa Sundararuban

From growing up in poverty to pledging 10% of his income, Suriyaa Sundararuban shares how effective giving  and the 10% Pledge became part of his path to lasting impact.

Pledger Spotlight: Suriyaa Sundararuban

Meet Suriyaa Sundararuban, an entrepreneur and Oxford Cambridge Fellow living in Munich, Germany. 

We recently spoke about what effective giving, the 🔶 

, and Giving What We Can mean to him.

“I grew up in poverty,” Suriyaa told me. “My parents lost everything during the Sri Lankan civil war and came to Germany with nothing.”

Despite these struggles, Suriyaa has always valued giving back. As a child, he admired the legacies of philanthropists like Carnegie, Rockefeller, Gates, and other public figures. But it was the classic 2007 Tamil film 

 that really hit home. The film had a profound influence on Suriyaa, shaping many of his core beliefs:

“Some of the values that led me to take the Pledge are actually lessons from that movie: 

Take action because others won’t. Lead by example. And be a role model – even if you have to overcome obstacles to do so."

Suriyaa took the Pledge In January 2023. Since then, his giving streak has remained uninterrupted.“The realisation that effective giving doesn’t require extraordinary wealth was liberating,” he told me. 

“I’ve always wanted to give back, but traditional charities often proved less impactful than I hoped. When I discovered that there are more effective options, everything changed.”

Here's more about Suriyaa and his approach to giving.

1. Tell us about yourself. What keeps you busy and what makes you tick?

I would call myself a tech enthusiast. I’m constantly exploring innovations that shape the present and the long-term future. Professionally and personally, I enjoy diving into new technologies, collaborating with builders, and creating solutions that move society forward. I’m passionate about using my income and wealth to help others and create better systems for social mobility, and I’m fueled by creative problem-solving and ambitious goals.

2. What are the issues in the world that you care most deeply about?

Poverty reduction and health improvement are my top priorities, as they lay the foundation for human flourishing and opportunity.

3. Which organizations do you give to (and why)?

. These organizations embody rigorous evidence-based approaches and deliver measurable impact for those most in need.

4. Do you ever find it difficult to give?

At the start, allocating 10% of income was challenging. But it becomes second nature, especially after setting up systems and habits that make regular giving seamless.

5. Do you try to effect change in any other way?

In addition to financial giving, I contribute through volunteering, Open Source projects to make technology more accessible, and other initiatives that empower others — like teaching coding on StackOverflow before the AI era, investing in high-impact startups, and mentorship.

6. What effective giving tips would you like to share?

Start small! Donate just 1% of your monthly income and gradually increase. Set up automatic transfers to savings accounts dedicated to giving; this makes budgeting easier and giving regular.

7. What suggestions do you have for other people considering the 

Don’t just promise, take action. Be a doer! The real impact comes from follow-through, not intentions.

My vision is to lead and build transformative organizations that positively impact billions, creating enduring prosperity for humanity across generations. Some of my startups and innovation projects include an initiative to make Open Source the new primary industry standard, projects to empower the “unbanked” (those who lack access to financial services), and healthcare to address chronic diseases.

9. Have you found anything to be helpful in talking to people about effective giving?

Absolutely. Sharing personal experiences and insights has inspired others to explore effective giving themselves. The ripple effect is real!

The Pledge connected me with some of the smartest, most principled people globally. I felt so inspired to join this global community where integrity and impact come first. I’m really interested in getting to know other pledgers and driven people who want to make the world a better place, and think the 

 helps us connect and empower each other. This community has enriched my perspective and strengthened my commitment – it’s been a real privilege.

Blog

Honest concerns thoughtful people have before taking the 10% Pledge

A visit to Ansh in India

Where are the Giving What We Can team donating in 2025?

Pledger Spotlight: Suriyaa Sundararuban

Balancing crisis relief and effective giving: how to think about donations

How to end factory farming - and what you can do today

Can money go 100x further overseas?

10,000 pledgers and the impact of strategic giving

Give more, live...better?

A radically unfair world, and how we’re responding