Thank you for writing this! I think your analysis can be specifically useful for people who want to contribute and feel like they’re not sure where to look for neglected areas in EA.
I’ll add a small comment regarding “It is difficult to compete with the existing organisations that are just not quite doing this”:
My experience with orgs in the EA community is that pretty much everyone is incredibly cooperative and genuinely happy to see others fill in the gaps that they’re leaving. I’ve been in talks with 80,000 hours and a few other orgs about an initiative in the careers space for a while now. Everyone we’ve talked to was both open about what they’re doing (and what they aren’t doing) and ridiculously helpful with advice and support.
I think if someone is serious about trying to fill a gap in the EA body of work: It’s important to understand from adjacent orgs how big \ real this gap is and if they have comments about your approach to it. And while I can see why someone would be worried, I think if you approach with the right attitude, the ‘competition’ would have far more benefits than harms.
Thank you for this comment. I fully agree with this and would say that my experience of the EA community is a very positive one and that the EA community and EA organisations work very well together and are very willing to share ideas, talk and support one another. I am sure would be much support for anyone trying to fill these gaps.
Thank you for writing this!
I think your analysis can be specifically useful for people who want to contribute and feel like they’re not sure where to look for neglected areas in EA.
I’ll add a small comment regarding “It is difficult to compete with the existing organisations that are just not quite doing this”:
My experience with orgs in the EA community is that pretty much everyone is incredibly cooperative and genuinely happy to see others fill in the gaps that they’re leaving.
I’ve been in talks with 80,000 hours and a few other orgs about an initiative in the careers space for a while now. Everyone we’ve talked to was both open about what they’re doing (and what they aren’t doing) and ridiculously helpful with advice and support.
I think if someone is serious about trying to fill a gap in the EA body of work: It’s important to understand from adjacent orgs how big \ real this gap is and if they have comments about your approach to it. And while I can see why someone would be worried, I think if you approach with the right attitude, the ‘competition’ would have far more benefits than harms.
Thank you for this comment. I fully agree with this and would say that my experience of the EA community is a very positive one and that the EA community and EA organisations work very well together and are very willing to share ideas, talk and support one another. I am sure would be much support for anyone trying to fill these gaps.