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Grace Adams

September news: Reversing a decline in generosity

Hi and welcome to our September newsletter!

Together, we’re reversing a major trend.

Generosity is declining, with fewer households donating to or volunteering for charities, according to a new, in-depth analysis of current trends in generosity: 

Although recent years have shown significant progress in many areas – including a decline in child mortality, an increase in the adoption of renewable energy and the creation of a new vaccine for malaria, we have a long way to go towards addressing the world’s problems. For example, there are still a billion people living in extreme poverty, tens of billions of animals in factory farms each year, and global catastrophic risks looming over us.

The world needs the generosity of regular people to tackle these issues. And I’m grateful that each of you is giving what you can to help.

 made me feel a bit disheartened – until I refocused on the fact that I’m part of a community of thousands of people who are helping to reverse the trend of declining generosity and set a new norm of giving significantly and effectively.

If you want to help accelerate this reversal, consider signing up for 

 to help equip you with the tools and confidence to speak to your friends and family about effective giving and pledging.

If you want to read the takeaways of the report on generosity, I liked 

from Vox. And we’ve got lots of great news from this month below!

Here are some of our favourite responses from people who took a pledge last month:

What motivated you to take a pledge with Giving What We Can?

“I’ve been thinking about it for way too long and it’s time to take action”. 

(Translation) “Because I want to make the world a better place. Because I want to feel useful and know that I am useful. And because I know that my income is largely the result of luck.” 

“I've previously pledged 2%, but given the state of the world at the moment, the degree of uncertainty about the future, but the very real and current suffering, I'm committing to 10% as a way of increasing my impact in parallel with pursuing an impactful career.” 

Giving Green: How to Drive Systemic Change Via High-Impact Climate Donations

 on high-impact climate giving, featuring panellists from organisations such as the 

. Giving Green’s Founder and Executive Director, Dr Dan Stein, will lead a panel discussion with leading changemakers in climate about the most promising philanthropic strategies and where more capital is needed to accelerate them.

You can join the evening of drinks and conversation to learn what the latest research says about how and where to donate to spur the systemic change we need to slow global warming. Registration required.

Thursday, 26 September from 5 - 8 pm EDT at 307 West 38th Street, New York, NY

GWWC London and Ambitious Impact: Founding and Funding Effective Charities

 at the new AIM offices in London on the journey from research to reality as founders and early employees discuss funding, running and measuring brand-new effective charities. Please come along if you’re interested in using evidence and reason to find the best ways to help others and then putting them into practice.

Wednesday, 16th October from 6 - 10 pm BST at 52 Old Castle Street, London

We’re spreading the word about the 10% Pledge by partnering with organisations that share our values and commitment to making giving effectively and significantly a global cultural norm. Below are some highlights from the past month – see our pledge page for the 

Word of mouth is one of the best ways for people to learn about the pledge! However, we’ve heard from many pledgers that it can be difficult to bring up the pledge in conversation. To help with this, as mentioned in the intro to this newsletter, we are launching a new 

 to empower our community members to have thoughtful conversations about pledging with their friends, family, and colleagues. We're currently looking for another 20 pledgers excited to help us shape our new Pledge Advocacy Program. Please 

 if you’re interested in joining the programme.

We will be running two 8-week pilots in Q4 2024:

Pilot A, from 30 September to 25 November

We are energised to see more pledgers taking to social media to share their decision to take the 10% Pledge or a trial pledge. Here are some examples for inspiration::

Rebecca Cutter wrote an article to explain why she and her organisation have taken the 10% Pledge – acknowledging that talking about money and philanthropy can feel uncomfortable, but that the benefits are worth pushing through. 

how being a 10% Pledger inspires the way he runs his company

Erin Braid publicly celebrated 10 years of being a 10% Pledger. 

Congratulations and thank you to our 559th pledger

On the 4th anniversary of taking the 10% Pledge, Fernando Martin-Gullans shared with his network that he gives 10% of his income effectively because he knows that 

the best version of himself dedicates a meaningful portion of his resources

 and energy towards trying to make the world a better place effectively.

Two 10% Pledgers are getting married and are asking their guests to contribute to their fundraiser instead of buying wedding gifts. You can donate to 

 if you feel moved to do so – donations will go to 

. Congratulations and thank you, Will and JP!

 for 2023-24, detailing achievements and progress made over the past 12 months and sharing the vision going forward: ending the worst and most widespread abuse of animals raised for food and greatly increasing compassion for these animals by 2050.

 to: The grants award up to $200,000 per project, for a total of over $1 million in this round. With methods ranging from treating wild mice with anti-parasitic medication to developing a “lick-o-metre” to assess wild bee welfare, each project demonstrates novelty, methodological rigour, and a high degree of relevance to high-priority research areas in wild animal welfare science.

 shared news of a malaria vaccine breakthrough for pregnant women, asserting a major step forward in addressing the real-world health needs of pregnant women in malaria-endemic settings. 

support from US AID in scaling its approach

 to getting lead out of consumer goods to reduce lead poisoning and improve the health, wellbeing and potential of children worldwide.

 and Former Member of Parliament, gave a 

 exploring why many global development projects waste money on programs that don’t work. His talk, “

To End Extreme Poverty, Give Cash — Not Advice

” promotes cash transfers as an evidence-based intervention to address extreme poverty.

Many of us can save a child’s life if we rely on the best data

. The article is a wonderful introduction to the principles behind effective giving and the vast differences in the efficacy of different interventions – consider sending it to a friend! You could also use it to open up a conversation about pledging/donating with Giving What We Can if you feel inspired to do so.

how its team has been thinking and acting in light of the 2024 US election

, primarily in relation to climate change policy and investment. The brief describes how the team has been preparing for different outcomes since 2023 and how they think about philanthropic strategy in the context of increased climate policy backlash.

 published several blog posts and reports:

A look at how the statistical concept of 

current strategy and thinking on vaccines grantmaking

 reviewing the evidence for community-based tuberculosis household contact management programs

 to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine to study the economic impact of distributing reading glasses

 to design and pilot the “Be In A Net” program with the Behavioural Insights Team.

 after receiving a tremendous response from animal advocates worldwide, with 324 applications from 73 countries. ACE is proud to be disbursing $1,024,172 in grants to support 30 innovative projects that will drive positive change for animals.

 shared the recently-released recording of a July debate between Peter Singer and Alice Crary: “

Does the effective altruism movement get giving right?

 (CEARCH) completed an external evaluation of Giving What We Can’s giving multiplier, estimating that every additional $1 GWWC spends on promoting pledging in 2025 will have an impact equivalent to generating $13 for GiveWell’s top charities. You can 

 and see more about how it differs from/lends support to what we found in our latest internal impact evaluation on our 

Are you following us on social media? You can stay connected with us on 

Have any feedback on our newsletter or communications? 

 with Giving What We Can and effective giving.

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

GWWC Newsletter: September 2024

Board of Directors

Leadership Transition at Giving What We Can: A Message from the Board

We are writing to share important news about the leadership of Giving What We Can.

Luke Freeman has decided to step down from his role as global CEO, effective October 3rd, 2024. He explains and provides context for this decision in 

We’re incredibly grateful to Luke for four years of dedicated service. He is an energetic, committed, and visionary leader who oversaw tremendous growth in the reach of the Pledge, and of the organization as a whole. He has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership, judgment and kindness to the GWWC team, the GWWC members, the effective giving community, and to all of us. We wish him well and look forward to continuing to work with him in the community.

To ensure a smooth transition, Sjir Hoeijmakers has stepped in to serve as Interim CEO until a permanent global CEO is appointed. Sjir has been with GWWC for several years and very capably stepped in as Acting CEO during Luke’s recent parental leave. We are confident in his ability to ensure Giving What We Can continues to grow and thrive during this period of transition.

We have already initiated the search process for the new CEO to lead the organization into its next phase of growth and impact. We are seeking an exceptional leader who is passionate about effective giving and can build upon the foundation laid over the past years. The job description and application process can be found 

We are deeply appreciative of the significant impact Luke’s leadership has had on our organization, and we're excited about the future and the opportunity to further expand our impact under new leadership. For any questions or concerns about the transition, please contact ceo-search@givingwhatwecan.org.

Thank you for your continued support and dedication to making the world a better place through effective giving.

The Directors and Trustees of Giving What We Can

Giving What We Can

Giving What We Can is now its own legal entity!

Giving What We Can (GWWC) has now completed the “spin-out” we 

. As a result, we are no longer a legal project of the Effective Ventures Foundation UK and US (collectively referred to as “

”), and have instead set up our own independent charitable entities in both the US and the UK, with Canada coming soon!

We’re super excited to take this important step as an organisation. While our core mission, commitments, and focus on effective giving remain unchanged, we’ve already begun to feel some of the benefits of being fully in charge of our own operations, including:

Aligning our organisational structure and governance more closely with our mission

Facilitating greater internal clarity and transparency around our core processes

Having greater control over our operational costs

Processing donations made via bank transfer, DAF, stock, or crypto more quickly than before


Of course, we owe a very big thank you to the team at EV for its incredible support over the years, which has helped us grow into the organisation we are today, and has prepared us to embark on this new chapter.

As we continue to move our ambitious plans forward, we’re focused more than ever on our core mission: 

to make effective and significant giving a cultural norm

Check out the details of our new entities (

Lucas Moore

August news: New effective giving initiatives in the US, Europe and India

My name is Lucas, and I’m writing to you this month as Grace is taking some well-deserved leave. We wish her a restful break!

Today, I'm excited to share some news about a project I've been working on as part of my role as Effective Giving Global Coordinator and Incubator here at Giving What We Can. For the past 15 months, I've been supporting the 

 and helping develop new effective giving initiatives (EGIs). Today, I want to tell you about some exciting developments in this space.

In May 2024, we partnered with Ambitious Impact (AIM) to incubate five new EGIs across different countries. These initiatives focus on raising awareness and channelling donations to some of the most cost-effective charities worldwide. The new EGIs include 

 in France and French-speaking Switzerland, 

 in India. You can find out more about these new EGIs 

. If you live in any of these regions and would like to get in touch with your local EGI, you can reach out via their 


You might wonder, "Why do we need more EGIs when we have GWWC?" Great question! While GWWC has been incredibly successful globally, we’ve recognized an opportunity to help create and support new specialised organisations that can cater to specific demographics, regions, or approaches to giving.

This expansion of the effective giving ecosystem is a crucial step towards our goal of making giving effectively and significantly a cultural norm, since it allows for a diversification of approaches and the ability to tailor messaging to different audiences; in short, by helping to incubate and support new EGIs, we're creating more entry points for people to discover the stunning impact that we can all have through evidence-based giving.

Together, we're building a global community committed to making sure that our giving does as much good as possible! Lots of more great news below –

P.S. Speaking of new entry points into effective giving, have you seen

? We’re thrilled that Ali felt motivated to share these ideas with his extensive network! (By the way, we had nothing to do with this video; Ali’s thoughts are entirely his own.)


P.P.S. A huge thank you to everyone who filled out the recent survey we ran to improve our understanding of what helps or hinders people from giving to effective charities and/or pledging. We have had responses from over 300 pledgers and almost 250 non-pledgers and will be in touch over the coming months with the results!

I wish to see the world become a better place and want to contribute to that cause in a society where the wealth gap is continuing to grow and things are becoming more and more divisive. Kraze Kode from India

In challenging personal circumstances, upholding one’s values is both necessary from the standpoint of personal integrity and serves as a source of strength. Hawk Yang from Canada

As I progress into my 20s and beyond, I want to cultivate generosity as a habit as well as a key value. Making a commitment to doing good now puts me on the path of doing more good later. Tyler Stark from the United States

GWWC Meetup (Online): Interview with founder of Fair Fryer Tristan Makking: Fair Priced Doughnuts for Effective Giving

You can join online for this interactive interview with fair pricing and effective giving entrepreneur Tristan Makking, hosted by Tjeerd Dijkstra from Amsterdam-Netherlands. Tristan is the founder of the Dutch doughnut vendor Fair Fryer. He doesn’t only put time and effort into doing good, he also charges fair prices and donates effectively to invest in the future of the planet. This meet-up will be an open and interactive interview – join and ask Tristan whatever you’d like!

 and you’ll receive the link for the video call.

Thursday, 5th September 24 at 8 - 9.15 pm (CEST)

GWWC Sydney – Profit for Good: Driving Social Impact with Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy

Join us for an inspiring evening featuring innovative entrepreneurs and thoughtful philanthropists who are reshaping the business landscape. You’ll gain practical insights on building impactful businesses, strategies for effective giving, and networking opportunities with like-minded professionals. Whether you're an entrepreneur, investor, or professional interested in maximising your positive impact, this event is not to be missed!

Tickets are limited and previous events sold out. 

Wednesday, 18th September at 5:30 - 8 pm AEST

You can join the evening of drinks and conversation to learn what the latest research says about how and where to donate to spur the systemic change we need to slow global warming. 

Giving What We Can is seeking a Senior Community and Growth Manager to lead the expansion of effective giving in Canada! As the Senior Community and Growth Manager (and first hire for GWWC in Canada), you will play a pivotal role in embedding and growing GWWC’s presence across the country [Role Closed].

on August 31st. We have already spun out from Effective Ventures US and will finalise the UK transition by the end of August. Read more 

We published a guest post from Nina Friedrich of 

Turning Privilege into Effective Donations

 to educate and empower high school students, 12 school events were organised with 3,519 participating students! The charities on the ballot this year were the 

Animal Charity Evaluators Recommended Charity Fund

. Some of our favourite reflections from participants are showcased below:

Charity Elections Participants Share Their Reflections

It makes me realise how much I can do for the world.

I realised it's a lot more cost-effective to help out than people assume.

The charity election helped me realise that I need to do more research so I can help [more] people.

It helps me feel like I am a part of a change that will make things better in the long term.

, after taking the pledge as an individual back in 2019. He posted the following video about why he took the pledge (both as an individual and for his company), and why he thinks others should learn about the pledge too!

 for 2024, entitled: 'Who's Selling You Frankenchickens?' The report names companies in the UK that are profiting from the use of cruelly-bred Frankenchickens and also provides a handy 

 (ACE) awarded $1,394,955 to its 2023 Recommended Charities this year through the ACE Recommended Charity Fund – its second-largest disbursement ever! ACE recently posted an update about 

how those organisations have used their grants to help animals

 (GFI)’s Alt Protein Project (a student-led movement) has expanded, 

 announced that Nick Allardice, former CEO of Change.org, will be GiveDirectly’s new President & CEO! Interim President Samuel Mwale has returned to his position on GiveDirectly’s Kenya Board of Directors. Read more about 

this appointment and the organisation’s ambitious plans

 for continued scaling on GiveDirectly’s blog.

 based on Max Roser’s classic article "

The world is awful. The world is much better. The world can be much better

Blog

GWWC Newsletter: September 2024

Leadership Transition at Giving What We Can: A Message from the Board

Giving What We Can is now its own legal entity!

GWWC Newsletter: August 2024

Turning Privilege into Effective Donations

GWWC Newsletter: July 2024

Member Profile: Duncan Hamra

We’re renaming the Giving What We Can Pledge

The general population cares more about effective giving than you might think: Results from a 2024 study in Australia

Member Profile: Christoph Hartmann