I also strongly agree! I think this an important topic that needs to be discussed more frequently within this community. I’m curious whether most EA participants are on the same page that the lack of demographic diversity is harmful to effectiveness.
The EA events I have attended have been much whiter (and more predominantly male) than the general population of my area, and many conversations have had an exclusive, elitist vibe to them. (This is obviously subjective but to me this manifested as people immediately asking people about their credentials, and folks initiating group conversations with narrow intellectual topics that are not inclusive.)
I enjoyed reading this post! It is well-written. I agree with the general sentiment that future prediction is increasingly difficult the longer the horizon. Though my reasons are slightly different, like you, I still remain to be convinced that humanity can do anything in the present day to reduce risk from AGI. I was looking forward to seeing other’s responses but so far this topic hasn’t gotten much attention.
I’m fairly new to EA, but I imagine this is not the first time such a topic has come up. Maybe that’s the reason nobody has responded yet? If any veterans to this forum are aware of previous iterations of similar questions and their responses, please share!