I think there’s no perfect solution here, but funding circles like the global health and animal welfare ones already set up can be a good balance between not handing all donor authority to a fund @abrahamrowe and not falling into the pressure of getting pitched to whenever you go.
Within my non-EA GHD world the “collective action problem” is basically accepted as a norm and then everyone just does their best to fundraise within that. it’s mostly collaborative and non-competitive and works better than you might think. But most money within GHD is given through big aid and philanthropy which mitigates the pressure on individuals somewhat. Also high-net-worth-individuals (fundraising jargon) are generally older rich people who aren’t so accessible socially as they might be within EA circles. So there’s not really a big program being pitched to all the time.
I do think these dynamics should be fairly obvious to the person with money too. They can make a conscious decision whether they want the burdens and joys of giving money themselves, or defer that to a fund. Or something in between like a funding circle.
“Approach interactions with honesty and integrity” isn’t straightforward. even two of your suggestions have some inherent conflict. I find “be direct about your asks” and “let the relationship be real” difficult to reconcile at times. I’m a naturally friendly and open person so my relationships are always “real”, but agendas always shape the time we spend our time with people and the nature of relationships. If I really am super “direct” about my asks especially early in a relationship as you suggest, it can at times compromise a real relationship.
Ive also had the opposite problems a number of times, where genuinely i just want to get to know someone and have great chats but I suspect they think I’m building a in relationship so I can ask them for money later. Sometimes I’m even not sure myself whether I’m just having a good time or if I have some underlying agenda! It’s not easy…
Also everyone is different. some people who want to give money don’t really want to be in a relationship with those they give money to and others do. That’s fine! navigating these tensions isn’t easy but a lot of the time there can be wonderful relationships between donors and grantees.
Like you I have a lot of faith in the integrity of most EAs I’ve met running GHD orgs at least. A non-EA funder recently asked me to provide an opinion of a fantastic at-least-EA-adjacent org. i contacted that org and ran by them what I planned to tell the funder. They replied with something like “that’s fine and even if you said they shouldn’t consider us that’s all good”.
That’s rare integrity in a world where fundraising ain’t easy.
I think there’s no perfect solution here, but funding circles like the global health and animal welfare ones already set up can be a good balance between not handing all donor authority to a fund @abrahamrowe and not falling into the pressure of getting pitched to whenever you go.
Within my non-EA GHD world the “collective action problem” is basically accepted as a norm and then everyone just does their best to fundraise within that. it’s mostly collaborative and non-competitive and works better than you might think. But most money within GHD is given through big aid and philanthropy which mitigates the pressure on individuals somewhat. Also high-net-worth-individuals (fundraising jargon) are generally older rich people who aren’t so accessible socially as they might be within EA circles. So there’s not really a big program being pitched to all the time.
I do think these dynamics should be fairly obvious to the person with money too. They can make a conscious decision whether they want the burdens and joys of giving money themselves, or defer that to a fund. Or something in between like a funding circle.
“Approach interactions with honesty and integrity” isn’t straightforward. even two of your suggestions have some inherent conflict. I find “be direct about your asks” and “let the relationship be real” difficult to reconcile at times. I’m a naturally friendly and open person so my relationships are always “real”, but agendas always shape the time we spend our time with people and the nature of relationships. If I really am super “direct” about my asks especially early in a relationship as you suggest, it can at times compromise a real relationship.
Ive also had the opposite problems a number of times, where genuinely i just want to get to know someone and have great chats but I suspect they think I’m building a in relationship so I can ask them for money later. Sometimes I’m even not sure myself whether I’m just having a good time or if I have some underlying agenda! It’s not easy…
Also everyone is different. some people who want to give money don’t really want to be in a relationship with those they give money to and others do. That’s fine! navigating these tensions isn’t easy but a lot of the time there can be wonderful relationships between donors and grantees.
Like you I have a lot of faith in the integrity of most EAs I’ve met running GHD orgs at least. A non-EA funder recently asked me to provide an opinion of a fantastic at-least-EA-adjacent org. i contacted that org and ran by them what I planned to tell the funder. They replied with something like “that’s fine and even if you said they shouldn’t consider us that’s all good”.
That’s rare integrity in a world where fundraising ain’t easy.