Many cause areas are deeply affected by domestic and international politics. In some cases, there are debates about whether to prioritize systemic change or direct action, or how to prioritize policy interventions. In other cases, the interventions themselves involve international relations or are attempts to improve how organizations in these realms work.

A number of key questions in effective altruism depend on an understanding of political science, policy, international relations, and related fields. In this sequence, I discuss ways to think about policy and international relations, with the goal of providing enough background to help readers seek out further information for their own, detailed questions.