My interest in effective altruism was ignited after a serendipitous read of Singer’s The Life You Can Save. After devoting a couple of years to studying the literature, I feel a moral obligation to help those who are not as privileged as I am. While my career (Professor of Chemistry at Virginia Tech) does not directly align with the typical career of other EAs, I am an aspiring earn-to-giver. With over $100,000 donated to effective charities in less than 2 years, I think a $1M lifetime donation goal is well within reach.
Diego Troya
Karma: 10
This year, I was able to donate 44% of my pre-tax income to effective charities. Here’s how I split the overall $77,500 I directed to help others:
GiveWell’s All Grants Fund: 30.4%
Malaria Consortium (via The Life You Can Save): 17.4%
New Incentives (via The Life You Can Save): 17.4%
GiveWell’s Top Charities Fund: 12.9%
The Life You Can Save (all recommended charities): 12.9%
Helen Keller Intl (via The Life You Can Save): 4.5%
GiveDirectly (via The Life You Can Save): 4.5 %
Notably absent from this portfolio are contributions to animal welfare. While I have abstained from eating meat, dairy, or eggs during the last 16 years, I still have not allocated any funds to organizations like the Humane League, the Good Food Institute, etc. I am highly confident that this will change in 2024, and I welcome supporting or dissenting thoughts about it.
Congratulations! 75% of your post-tax income is impressive. I am at 63%, but I don’t think I can cut much more of my living expenses (currently living at 120% of the US Federal poverty level). I guess I must be saving too much for retirement. As you, I am also debating how much to contribute to animal welfare, so your thoughts are useful.