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Toni Adleberg

Faiz Surani

GWWC Team

As individuals, we are not able to help everyone in need and so we must make difficult decisions about where we use our resources. One way of making such a decision might be to favour people who live locally. After all, there’s no shortage of people — even in the wealthiest countries — who need and deserve our help. We may be especially well-placed to attend to the needs of those near to us. Yet, while there may be some benefits to making local donations, it is in general vastly more cost-effective to support interventions in low-income countries.

Charity begins at home; shouldn't we solve our own problems before helping others?

This article is part of a series addressing 

As individuals, we are not able to help everyone in need and so we must make difficult decisions about where we use our resources. One way of making such a decision might be to favour people who live locally. After all, there’s no shortage of people --- even in the wealthiest countries --- who need and deserve our help. We may be especially well-placed to attend to the needs of those near to us. Yet, while there may be some benefits to making local donations, it is in general vastly more cost-effective to support interventions in low-income countries.

The proverb "charity begins at home" is often mistaken for scripture. The Bible 

 the importance of helping those nearest to us: "Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever."

The phrase "charity begins at home" was popularised in the 17th century by Thomas Fuller, a British clergyman and historian. However, Fuller's meaning is often 

 today. He didn't mean that we should only help those near to us. His 

" (emphasis added). In other words, we should nurture a sense of compassion and generosity in our relationships with those around us, but we should then work to extend that compassion and generosity to the rest of the world.

Helping those near to us and helping those who are far away are not mutually exclusive. We can do both; it's just a matter of striking the right balance. We've not found that balance yet. For example, according to the 2023 

 report, only 6% of American donations went to international affairs organisations in 2022. This is consistent with cross-cultural research on generosity. A 

 conducted in Germany and China found that subjects in both countries were willing to forego greater sums of money to help those nearer to them than those farther away.

Figure 1. Subjects' generosity decreases as social distance increases.

In some cases, giving within your home country might make sense. If you live in a low- or middle-income country, there might be highly impactful giving opportunities in your community that you are well-suited to identify (see our 

). If you live in a high-income country like the U.S., it might make sense to give domestically depending on which cause you are interested in supporting. For example, if you are interested in advancing climate policy, it makes sense to work in a country where some of the largest corporations are located.

Most of the time however, if you live in a middle- or high-income country, you can maximise the impact of your dollar by sending it to a lower-income country. For $619, you can increase 

 in the U.S. by about 1%. For $547, you can 

 the income of a household in Kenya. In fact, for each dollar spent, those who live in wealthy countries can expect to do at least one hundred times more good for those in low-income countries than they could for themselves. Giving What We Can Co-Founder William MacAskill 

Charity might start at home, but it has a much greater impact when extended around the world.

You can direct your giving overseas by donating to one of our many 

that work internationally. You can also donate to EA Funds' 

, which aims to improve people's lives in the poorest regions of the world.

 of like-minded people who are working to make the world a better place.

Common Concerns About Donating to Charity

Achim Fischbach is an MBA student, a libertarian, and an effective altruist. He recently took the Giving What We Can Pledge.

Member Profile: Achim Fischbach

Achim Fischbach is currently pursuing an MBA in Munich, Germany. First, he studied computer science in the armed forces. During this time, he experienced a shift in worldview.

"A colleague of mine said to me once that I had too much free time for thinking during my studies, which is true, because I became a libertarian during this time."

Achim's growing commitment to libertarian principles eventually led him to leave the military due as a conscientious objector. After leaving the military, he worked as an IT specialist and studied philosophy. He explains, "I am curious about all kinds of philosophical, social, and political topics, and always eager to learn more."

In addition to leading him away from the military, Achim's interest in libertarianism sparked his interest in 

. He first learned about the movement at a 

 conference he organised in Germany. Achim didn't immediately join the movement, but the core ideas impressed him. Recently, Achim listened to Sam Harris' conversation with Will MacAskill, 

. The conversation persuaded him to take the 

Reflecting on the causes he's most passionate about, Achim says: "I am deeply interested in human liberty and dignity, and, to an extent, in the development of liberal institutions that work toward peace, prosperity, and a good life for people around the world." Achim does not find it particularly difficult to give. Instead, he is grateful for what he has.

"I know that I am very lucky and well-situated [...]. Because I am thankful, and because I know I did not earn my good fortune, I want to help others, too."

After finishing his MBA, Achim plans to resume his support of the Network for Constitutional Economics and Social Philosophy. He also plans to dedicate some time to writing articles, doing translations, and other activities.

" series which profiles a selection of the Giving What We Can community. The Giving What We Can is a community of people from all walks of life, with different perspectives and motivations for giving – all united by their desire to make a significant commitment to use their income to effectively helping others. Read more 

 to help inspire others to give more, and more effectively.

For more information about Giving What We Can we recommend you check out our 

Surbhi Bharadwaj

Andrew Leeke

People in the effective altruism movement often support organisations doing direct work with easily measurable outcomes. After all, effective altruists try to make evidence-based decisions whenever possible, and it's difficult to find evidence supporting interventions with very indirect, long-term, and/or abstract consequences. This has led to the misconception that people in the effective altruism movement only care about short-term, measurable change. In fact, many effective altruists care about outcomes that are harder to measure and are supportive of working towards systemic change.

Do effective altruists only value short-term, measurable outcomes?

People in the effective altruism movement often support organisations doing direct work with easily measurable outcomes. After all, effective altruists try to make evidence-based decisions whenever possible, and it's difficult to find evidence supporting interventions with very indirect, long-term, and/or abstract consequences. This has led to the misconception that people in the effective altruism movement only care about short-term, measurable change. In fact, many effective altruists care about outcomes that are harder to measure and are supportive of working towards 

 of effective altruism have pointed out that effective altruists are particularly susceptible to a bias towards measurable outcomes. Because effective altruists rely on evidence to figure out how to best help others, they are often drawn towards interventions that produce a quantifiable or measurable impact.

However, while it may be easiest to study and promote measurable change, effective altruists value other kinds of change as well. On the 80,000 Hours blog, 

 that effective altruists love systemic change.

Organisations within the effective altruism movement work across a range of cause areas and rely on a wide variety of evidence --- both quantitative and qualitative --- to make inferences about the potential impact of interventions. There are many 

 working towards systemic change. For instance:

 studies global catastrophic risks, like human-caused climate change and threats from artificial intelligence. These risks and the impact of potential interventions can't be measured through randomised controlled trials, so FHI relies on a 

 engages in legal and legislative advocacy to support climate-friendly policy change.

The Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security

 works with policymakers to prepare for threats to public health.

 works with political leaders across the world to improve global nuclear policy.

 distributes "Movement Grants" to support organisations doing more speculative or long-term work.

, in addition to developing and promoting alternatives to animal products, is working to secure fair policy and public funding for research to develop a more sustainable global food system.

You can help support systemic, long-term change by donating to one of these or many other 

Meet Sonya and Carl Christensen, philanthropists and members of Giving What We Can. They have been married for 53 years.

Member Profile: Sonya and Carl Christensen

Meet Sonya and Carl Christensen, philanthropists and 

Sonya and Carl have given away at least 10% of their income for many years. It began when they were working in the Peace Corps and making more money than they needed to live comfortably. Sonya's generosity was perhaps inspired by her father, who had an enduring interest in helping others through charity. Now that Sonya and Carl's children are grown (and they have seven grandchildren!), the couple hopes to increase their giving:

"In the last few years we are trying to reach 50% as the children are grown, our house is paid for and we live simply."

Sonya is a retired librarian and Carl is a social worker in private practice. Both spend significant time volunteering. Currently, Sonya is doing taxes for low-income and older adults. After tax day, she will shift her focus to community gardening and education. With help from friends and neighbours, Sonya maintains seven gardens and created a "Pocket Park" in an overrun city block at the end of their street. Sonya and Carl also love to travel as volunteers, though travel has been on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic. In January, they hope to travel to Cuba with 

Sonya and Carl give to a variety of organisations, including 

, and more. They direct the majority of their donations towards the causes they are most passionate about: global poverty and education. They make the majority of their giving decisions each fall, taking care to allocate their giving according to their priorities and ensuring that a substantial portion goes overseas.

"I never find it difficult to give. It can be difficult to decide to which causes to give and to get information about them or ideas of what is most useful."

Sonya uses a wide range of materials to inform her giving. She learned about effective altruism and 

 from The Christian Science Monitor. She reads extensively about philanthropy and enjoyed William MacAskill's 

. She joined the Giving What We Can community to learn more about the charities supported by like-minded philanthropists.

Luke Freeman

Our April newsletter contains information about: our member motivations survey;  upcoming events (including World Malaria Day); ways you can help spread effective giving in your workplace; updates from our community; and news about our top priority cause areas.

April 2021 Newsletter

Upcoming events (including World Malaria Day)

Ways you can help spread effective giving in your workplace

What motivates you to give more, and more effectively?

We would really appreciate our members answering a few short questions about their motivations. Their responses will help us select the key messages that we will use to promote our ideas.

~ 5 minutes, requires Google Account for optional uploads

Help Spread Effective Giving In Your Workplace

 are seeking opportunities to talk about effective giving at workplaces. Using a 'lunch and learn' format, we host a one-hour talk to explain how we can assess cost effectiveness across multiple cause areas and charities. So far, we have delivered sessions at Microsoft, Bridgewater, Bain, Facebook, LinkedIn, Accenture and smaller SMEs and have raised over $85k in recurring donations.

If you think your colleagues might like to hear about the amazing opportunities of effective giving, please get in touch! Even in companies we have already contacted, there are always new teams, offices, and territories to explore --- so if you'd like to help us bring ever more people into effective giving, please 

Looking for more ways to spread effective giving? Check out our 

Come along and meet other people who are committed to effectively using their resources to improve the world:

: Celebrate progress fighting malaria and discover the path ahead
Apr 25: 20:00 UTC

: Myths & Misconceptions About Charity
May 1: 23:00 UTC

: Myths & Misconceptions About Charity
May 2: 09:30 UTC

: Ask anything, discuss donations, meet effective givers
May 19: 20:00 UTC
If you have any questions or want to discuss your donation decisions with other members or our team, we recommend registering for an Open Forum event. 

We have recently published a series of new posts on myths, misconceptions, and common question about charity, including:

Don't we need political action rather than charity?

Don't we spend too much on foreign aid already?

If I pay my taxes, why should I also give to charity?

Can foreign aid and international charity make a difference?

Does corruption in recipient governments interfere with foreign aid?

Can an individual donor really make a difference?

We will be expanding these to cover more cause areas and other common questions. If you'd like to be part of the effort please 

: "The idea resonated: if you say you care about various causes in the world, then you should put your money on it."

, a recent blockchain billionaire and Giving What We Can member, on how effective altruism has influenced his donations.

Canadian residents can now donate tax efficiently to Faunalytics, Mercy For Animals, New Incentives, Ought, and Wild Animal Initiative 

 from the EA Forum including two posts announcing joke organisations: "

, this has been launched with some initial content and is using their existing tags system.

80,000 Hours just launched a new podcast feed called "

 which is a carefully chosen selection of ten episodes of The 80,000 Hours Podcast, with various new intros and outros to guide folks through them.

the elite class mainly donate to things that provide themselves with some form of benefit

When it comes to charitable giving, people are more motivated by appeals to the good feelings they'll receive as a donor ("warm glow") --- and give 23% more in donations --- than by benefits for others ("pure altruism"), according to a 

based on an experiment of fundraising appeals in Alaska.

comparison of Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) providers

Long-Term Future Fund has room for funding, right now

GiveWell have published research on two recent Incubation Grants to 

Vital Strategies (Alcohol Control Policy)

released an update to their Charities Quiz

 to match donors to their latest recommended charities.

$3.1 billion invested in alternative proteins

 in 2020 signals growing market momentum for sustainable proteins.

potential for consumer adoption of alternative proteins

James from Animal Rebellion UK wrote about how they 

 (in expectation) with a volunteer campaign.

 to shed light on the treatment of chickens raised for meat and to call on major food companies like Dairy Queen, Wingstop, and Bob Evans to end these abuses.

A new Good Food Institute initiative highlights key 

alternative protein industry challenges and potential solutions

A French city announced it would serve meatless school lunches and 

the potential environmental benefits of cultivated meat

what proportion of global greenhouse gas emissions come from food