Is the concern more with how it’s spent? Paying people fairly to work on outreach seems good. Paying for food at some outreach events just to bring people in for the first time seems good. Spending much more this way seems good, as long as it actually contributes to the overall good done.
However, if we’re spending on things that seem “luxurious”, this could encourage careless spending, corruption and putting your own pleasure, status or material wealth over doing good for others, and could attract grifters and selfish individuals to EA. I’m not sure exactly where that bar would be met. Maybe paying for food for regulars at every EA meet-up, especially more expensive food. Maybe paying for people who aren’t yet working on any EA-related things to attend conferences like EAG without specific expectations of work in return (even local organizing or volunteering at EAG) might also carry such risks, but
I’m not sure to what extent that’s really happening.
Those risks would exist even if we expected work in return or only let in people already working on EA things. People may volunteer abroad for the experience and to check off boxes, instead of actually doing good, so the same could happen in EA.
Our screening for EA potential for EAGs might be good enough, anyway.
Maybe it’s fine if people are a little selfish, as long as they would contribute overall.
Is the concern more with how it’s spent? Paying people fairly to work on outreach seems good. Paying for food at some outreach events just to bring people in for the first time seems good. Spending much more this way seems good, as long as it actually contributes to the overall good done.
However, if we’re spending on things that seem “luxurious”, this could encourage careless spending, corruption and putting your own pleasure, status or material wealth over doing good for others, and could attract grifters and selfish individuals to EA. I’m not sure exactly where that bar would be met. Maybe paying for food for regulars at every EA meet-up, especially more expensive food. Maybe paying for people who aren’t yet working on any EA-related things to attend conferences like EAG without specific expectations of work in return (even local organizing or volunteering at EAG) might also carry such risks, but
I’m not sure to what extent that’s really happening.
Those risks would exist even if we expected work in return or only let in people already working on EA things. People may volunteer abroad for the experience and to check off boxes, instead of actually doing good, so the same could happen in EA.
Our screening for EA potential for EAGs might be good enough, anyway.
Maybe it’s fine if people are a little selfish, as long as they would contribute overall.