Your comment (at least how it’s read as, maybe different from your intentions) reads as “that’s a particularly problematic location, just go to a different one”.
That doesn’t solve the problem. That doesn’t hold the Bay * or any community accountable or push for change in a positive direction. I think that sort of logic is a common response to what Maya writes about and doesn’t help or make anything better.
*and this is coming from an ex-Berkeley community builder
I agree that would be an unhelpful takeaway from this post/these experiences
I have only been to the bay area once, and I felt a culture shock from the degree of materialism and individualism that I experienced in the community. On one occasion, I tried to call it out publicly and got rebuffed by a group.
However, I do think it’s unfair that the bay area is presented as representative of the wider EA movement, in a way that, for example, ea berlin—wouldn’t be.
What is it about the Bay area that makes these issues more prevalent or severe, if they are? Seems worth finding out if we want to push for change in a positive direction.
My thesis here revolves around the overlap between tech and EA culture and how this shapes the demographics. We should expect higher rates of youth, whiteness, maleness, and willingness to move for high pay in the Bay Area because of the influx of people moving for tech jobs in the past 10 years. There could also be some kind of weird sexual competition exacerbated by scarcity.
Here are some other unusual things about the Bay Area which may contribute to the “vibes” mentioned:
Founder effects: Bay Area EA organizations tend to be more focused on AI and therefore look to hire tech-types, growing the presence of people who fit this demographic (these orgs also could have been founded in the Bay because of these demographics, it’s unclear to me which came first)
Extremely high wealth inequality and the correlation of wealth with other things EAs select for (e.g. educational attainment) likely means EA in the Bay selects much harder for wealth than in other places
Racism has a profound influence US society. In my experience, people who are unfamiliar with both the history and modern day effects of race in America (or are from more homogenous countries) are worse at creating welcoming spaces and seem to underappreciate the value of creating diverse groups
There is a high prevalence and acceptance of hookup culture and casual sex
There’s high tolerance for non-traditional relationships by broader society
The US is one of the most individualistic cultures in the world according to cultural psychology measures
Overall, the Bay Area is much unlike the rest of the world according to most demographic criteria, and it’s plausible that different outreach strategies are needed there in order to find driven and altruistic people from with a diversity of ideas and approaches to doing good.
My guess is that it’s because the bay area has a lot of professional power entangled in it such that power dynamics emerge much more easily in the bay than elsewhere.
Your comment (at least how it’s read as, maybe different from your intentions) reads as “that’s a particularly problematic location, just go to a different one”.
That doesn’t solve the problem. That doesn’t hold the Bay * or any community accountable or push for change in a positive direction. I think that sort of logic is a common response to what Maya writes about and doesn’t help or make anything better.
*and this is coming from an ex-Berkeley community builder
I agree that would be an unhelpful takeaway from this post/these experiences
I have only been to the bay area once, and I felt a culture shock from the degree of materialism and individualism that I experienced in the community. On one occasion, I tried to call it out publicly and got rebuffed by a group.
However, I do think it’s unfair that the bay area is presented as representative of the wider EA movement, in a way that, for example, ea berlin—wouldn’t be.
I haven’t really spent time with the community there, so I’m curious about the individualist & materialist point. Could you expand on that a bit more?
What is it about the Bay area that makes these issues more prevalent or severe, if they are? Seems worth finding out if we want to push for change in a positive direction.
My thesis here revolves around the overlap between tech and EA culture and how this shapes the demographics. We should expect higher rates of youth, whiteness, maleness, and willingness to move for high pay in the Bay Area because of the influx of people moving for tech jobs in the past 10 years. There could also be some kind of weird sexual competition exacerbated by scarcity.
Here are some other unusual things about the Bay Area which may contribute to the “vibes” mentioned:
Founder effects: Bay Area EA organizations tend to be more focused on AI and therefore look to hire tech-types, growing the presence of people who fit this demographic (these orgs also could have been founded in the Bay because of these demographics, it’s unclear to me which came first)
Extremely high wealth inequality and the correlation of wealth with other things EAs select for (e.g. educational attainment) likely means EA in the Bay selects much harder for wealth than in other places
Racism has a profound influence US society. In my experience, people who are unfamiliar with both the history and modern day effects of race in America (or are from more homogenous countries) are worse at creating welcoming spaces and seem to underappreciate the value of creating diverse groups
There is a high prevalence and acceptance of hookup culture and casual sex
There’s high tolerance for non-traditional relationships by broader society
The US is one of the most individualistic cultures in the world according to cultural psychology measures
Overall, the Bay Area is much unlike the rest of the world according to most demographic criteria, and it’s plausible that different outreach strategies are needed there in order to find driven and altruistic people from with a diversity of ideas and approaches to doing good.
Really appreciated this comment and found it interesting, thanks!
My guess is that it’s because the bay area has a lot of professional power entangled in it such that power dynamics emerge much more easily in the bay than elsewhere.