Personally I haven’t found givedirectly the most straightforward sell, but its pretty close to anecdata as my sample size is small, n = 10ish. Sure the mechanics are easy to explain which is great, but I often get hit with more skepticism than for other charities. When I try to explain about cash, I often get some form of “teach a man to fish” or “but it doesn’t deal with the root causes of poverty”.We then get into a great discussion and by the end people are often convinced about givedirectly but I wouldn’t call it super straight forward.
I’ve probably found it easier explaining the merits of malaria nets, or deworming, or even my own charity providing healthcare in remote places, where follow-up questions are often less skeptical.
“You may prefer to donate to other high-impact causes, but cash transfers are a uniquely shareable entry point for effective giving. If you are looking for an example of an effective charity to mention a tweet or a discussion with a colleague, GiveDirectly is a strong choice – the name says it all.
“It’s very simple and easy to explain,” says GiveWell’s CEO and co-founder Elie Hassenfeld. In their recent TED talk, Longview Philanthropy led with cash transfers. Last December, EA critics and allies united to raise funds for GiveDirectly.
Do you have evidence that GivedDrectly is easier to convince people about than other causes? That might make an interesting wee study actually....
For a start, I really like givedirectly.
Personally I haven’t found givedirectly the most straightforward sell, but its pretty close to anecdata as my sample size is small, n = 10ish. Sure the mechanics are easy to explain which is great, but I often get hit with more skepticism than for other charities. When I try to explain about cash, I often get some form of “teach a man to fish” or “but it doesn’t deal with the root causes of poverty”. We then get into a great discussion and by the end people are often convinced about givedirectly but I wouldn’t call it super straight forward.
I’ve probably found it easier explaining the merits of malaria nets, or deworming, or even my own charity providing healthcare in remote places, where follow-up questions are often less skeptical.
“You may prefer to donate to other high-impact causes, but cash transfers are a uniquely shareable entry point for effective giving. If you are looking for an example of an effective charity to mention a tweet or a discussion with a colleague, GiveDirectly is a strong choice – the name says it all.
“It’s very simple and easy to explain,” says GiveWell’s CEO and co-founder Elie Hassenfeld. In their recent TED talk, Longview Philanthropy led with cash transfers. Last December, EA critics and allies united to raise funds for GiveDirectly.
Do you have evidence that GivedDrectly is easier to convince people about than other causes? That might make an interesting wee study actually....