I am the president of the EA group at BYU-Idaho, which has been ranked by some sources as the #1 most conservative school in America. With that being said, nearly all of our 21 members are conservative, including myself. Our university is likewise a private religious institution, with the vast majority of students (~98%) professing devotion to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Naturally, the tenets of Effective Altruism are seen more as a useful tool that empowers us as Christians to fulfill Jesus Christ’s commandment to “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matthew 22:39). The EA model for global health and poverty is therefor of especial interest to our members.
Due to the nature of our conviction, EAs within our circle typically do not attach much weight to x-risk causes that would vastly reduce the human population and stifle the likelihood of intelligent life reforming (e.g., asteroids or super-volcanic eruptions).
Additionally, though our faith demands the proper treatment of animals and contains a health code which limits our consumption of meat, few members from both our uni-group and the Church at large adhere to this precept. Surprisingly, we have seen several members of our EA group adopt a vegan or plant based lifestyle proceeding our discussions on animal rights/factory farming and how it relates to our belief.
For sake of time, I’m afraid I cannot offer more information. If you would be interested in talking in person, possibly at an EAG conference or virtually, I would be happy to oblige.
I am the president of the EA group at BYU-Idaho, which has been ranked by some sources as the #1 most conservative school in America. With that being said, nearly all of our 21 members are conservative, including myself. Our university is likewise a private religious institution, with the vast majority of students (~98%) professing devotion to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Naturally, the tenets of Effective Altruism are seen more as a useful tool that empowers us as Christians to fulfill Jesus Christ’s commandment to “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matthew 22:39). The EA model for global health and poverty is therefor of especial interest to our members.
Due to the nature of our conviction, EAs within our circle typically do not attach much weight to x-risk causes that would vastly reduce the human population and stifle the likelihood of intelligent life reforming (e.g., asteroids or super-volcanic eruptions).
Additionally, though our faith demands the proper treatment of animals and contains a health code which limits our consumption of meat, few members from both our uni-group and the Church at large adhere to this precept. Surprisingly, we have seen several members of our EA group adopt a vegan or plant based lifestyle proceeding our discussions on animal rights/factory farming and how it relates to our belief.
For sake of time, I’m afraid I cannot offer more information. If you would be interested in talking in person, possibly at an EAG conference or virtually, I would be happy to oblige.