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Toni Adleberg

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.

" 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 

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

Kelly Wanser was on the 80,000 Hours Podcast discussing 

whether to deliberately intervene in the climate

What should coal communities do when power plants shut down?

" Vox's Lili Pike covers three big lessons from Germany's transition off of coal power.

why they are giving $250,000,000 to fight the pandemic

The Centre for Global Development published a post on "

Allocating Global Aid to Maximize Utility

Twitter founder Jack Dorsey's first ever tweet has been sold for the equivalent of $2,900,000 and he is 

planning to donate all of it to GiveDirectly

the first country in Central America to be certified malaria-free

The predicted doubling of malaria deaths in Africa due to COVID-19 

Hepatitis C prevalence in Egypt dropped from 7% to 2% since 2018

Evidence Action chronicles their efforts to 

bring back school-based deworming to Kenya during COVID-19

Long-Term Future, Existential Risks, & Emerging Technologies

governments to improve their resilience to prevent catastrophes

On future people, looking back at 21st century longtermism

a response to "The Case Against Longtermism."

disinformation and the rise of synthetic media

 with Giving What We Can and effective altruism.

Discuss effective giving and effective altruism on the 

Do you have questions about the pledge, Giving What We Can, or effective altruism in general? Check out our 

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.

MF Mika

GWWC Team

In 2016, 30 of the largest providers of foreign aid (a group known as the Development Assistance Committee) gave a total of $142.6 billion, a sum so large that it is difficult to truly comprehend. Yet, while it’s no doubt a large number, it is only 0.32% of the combined national income of those countries — that's three dollars in aid out of every thousand. The amount that wealthy countries spend on foreign aid is generally just a tiny fraction of their budgets. 

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

This article is part of a series addressing 

In 2016, 30 of the largest providers of foreign aid (a group known as the 

, a sum so large that it is difficult to truly comprehend.

Yet, while it's no doubt a large number, it is only 0.32% of the combined national income of those countries --- that's three dollars in aid out of every thousand. The amount that wealthy countries spend on foreign aid is generally just a tiny fraction of their budgets.

Many people don't donate to international aid charities because they believe that their governments already spend too much on foreign aid. For example, when asked what percentage of the U.S. federal budget is spent on foreign aid, Americans' guesses hover 

, with a more recent poll reporting as much as 

As it turns out, U.S. foreign aid spending is only about 1% of the federal budget. That's less than 1/25 of what Americans believe, and only about 1/10 of what the same Americans 

In contrast to the 1% of its budget that the U.S. spends on foreign aid, it spends nearly 16% of its budget on national defence and about 24% on Medicare and Medicaid.

Per citizen, the U.S. government gives about $89 in foreign aid. Oxfam 

 that $89 is less than the average American spends on candy ($107), sporting goods ($209), or jewellery ($212).

Meanwhile, private Americans, foundations, and corporations gave about 

 to support international affairs in one recent year. Again, that's an astoundingly large number, but it's only about 5% of the 

 that Americans donated to charity that year.

As Bill Nye points out in the video below, the public misconception of the amount we spend on foreign aid could lead us to neglect important opportunities for helping others. For instance, there's a lot more that wealthy countries could be doing to prevent leading causes of death, like communicable diseases, birth problems, and poor nutrition:

There is a lot of work that still needs to be done in low-income countries, and those of us in wealthier countries have an opportunity to make a huge impact at little cost. You can help improve --- and even save --- lives by donating to one of many 

 working to support health and promote economic empowerment throughout the world.

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

Common Concerns About Donating to Charity

Many people don't donate to international aid charities because they believe that their governments already spend too much on foreign aid.
But is that argument well-supported? Read the full post here:
🔗



— Giving What We Can (@givingwhatwecan) 

In 2016, 30 of the largest providers of foreign aid (a group known as the Development Assistance Committee) gave a total of $142.6 billion, a sum so large that it is difficult to truly comprehend. Yet, while it’s no doubt a large number, it is only 0.32% of the combined national income of those countries — that's three dollars in aid out of every thousand. The amount that wealthy countries spend on foreign aid is generally just a tiny fraction of their budgets.

Ben Chugg

It’s true that political action is a necessary step towards achieving meaningful, lasting change. However, the dichotomy between political action and philanthropy is a false one. Both play an important role in improving the world, and they can be mutually beneficial.

Don’t we need political action rather than charity?

 is that it neglects political action and institutional change in favour of philanthropy, which can't solve the world's most fundamental problems on its own. Many argue that, rather than giving to charity, we should focus on achieving systemic change through political action.

It's true that political action can be an important step towards achieving meaningful, lasting change. However, the dichotomy between political action and philanthropy is a false one. Both play an important role in improving the world, and they can be mutually beneficial.

Giving What We Can appreciates the important need for political action. In some circumstances, political action is more appropriate and effective than donating to charity. For instance, regarding the Syrian refugee crisis in 2015, Giving What We Can Co-Founder Will MacAskill 

 that lobbying for changes in immigration policy was the most effective way to help refugees. "Donations can be helpful but are unsustainable in this instance," he wrote, "whereas political action could bring about real change." On the 80,000 Hours blog, Director of Research Rob Wiblin provides 

 of effective altruist individuals and organisations working towards systemic change.

Charity, however, can also play an important role in improving the world. It can help improve lives directly by, for example, providing support to low-income communities. There are some highly effective charities that alleviate suffering, reduce the burdens of disease, and help children receive an education. These are amazing giving opportunities, and many of them will have a lasting impact.

In order to advocate for political change, basic needs must first be met. In communities suffering from poverty and/or disease, political action is 

 to be a priority. Donations can lift individuals out of dire circumstances, giving them greater autonomy and enabling them to play a larger part in their community's politics, if they so desire. Indeed, many of the outcomes we associate with political action can be achieved by increasing the health and well-being of low-income communities.

In addition to directly helping individuals and communities, giving to charity can also support political or institutional change. Donations to advocacy organisations or campaigns, for instance, can play an important role in changing public opinion, which is frequently a necessary precursor to political mobilisation. And donating to charities that focus on public health can also have more systemic consequences, since issues with class mobility, educational access, and other similar problems are often symptoms of public health failings. 

In addition to the systemic effects of supporting poverty-alleviating interventions, there are many 

 advocating directly for institutional change. For instance, the 

 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. 

, 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.

Surbhi Bharadwaj

Heather Heckman

Most people around the world pay a significant portion of their income in taxes to support government services. Fulfilling this large, obligatory payment can feel like a significant financial burden, and perhaps make people feel complacent about the need for charitable giving. However, while tax revenue can fund important social services, taxes are not a replacement for charity.

 of their income in personal income tax to support government services. Fulfilling this large, obligatory payment can feel like a significant financial burden, and perhaps make people feel complacent about the need for charitable giving. However, while tax revenue can fund important social services, taxes are not a replacement for charity.

Governments collect taxes from their constituents and predominantly use that revenue to pay for services that benefit their constituents. Some tax revenue is spent on altruistic goals such as helping lower-income nations via foreign aid, but the amount is substantially less than 

 --- it increases the reputation and influence of the benefactor government.

Aside from voting and engaging in activism, there's little that an average citizen can do to influence government spending. However, individual donors can exercise complete agency in directing their personal charitable donations. While governments typically need to factor in political viability when making decisions, individual donors can choose to only support the 

Donors can also choose to help groups who are not able to vote for their own interests, and/or whose interests may not be well served by government policies. These groups include (in no particular order):

, whose needs are unlikely to be well served by your own government/tax dollars 

Non-citizens and those without the right to vote (e.g., convicted felons)

Donors can also support groups that, while able to vote, are not adequately served by government programs.

, Peter Singer argues that "if it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it."