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Julian Hazell

You, yes you, can make a difference. It’s more achievable than you might think to change the lives of thousands of people in your lifetime. 

You can make a difference (yes, you!)

If I told you to imagine a member of the top 1 percent in your head, what would they look like?

Perhaps you’d think of a famous movie star decked out in a fancy dress or tuxedo on the red carpet. Maybe you’d picture your favourite athlete who just signed a lucrative contract. Or, for those readers who prefer specifics, maybe you’d think of a famous billionaire like Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, or Elon Musk.

But, in the midst of our thought experiment, did you ever think of yourself?

That’s right. If you’re reading this right now, I reckon there is a decent chance that you’re in the top 1% — especially if you live in the United States and work a full-time job.

if you earn more than $58,000 per year after tax, you'd be in the top 1 percent globally

. Even if you cut that by half to just $29,000 per year (about $14 per hour), you’d still find yourself in the 

You might find this shocking. You almost certainly don’t feel as rich as Bezos and his contemporaries. Unfortunately, I’m not here to tell you that you’re actually a billionaire. I am here to tell you, however, that whether or not you feel rich, you are rich — at least 

 speaking. This statistical reality is due to the stark income gap between rich and poor countries. In fact, 

 — more than twice the population of the US — earn less than $1.90 per day (adjusted for purchasing power).

In making this point, I don’t intend to sneer at you or claim that you are oblivious to your 

. Rather, I’m trying to illuminate how 

 others around the world have. And, as I will show, this has interesting implications. It means that you — 

yes you, the individual reading this right now

 — can make a tremendous impact on the lives of the less fortunate, even if you aren’t Jeff Bezos.

I think that is an exciting opportunity, and I hope by the end of this article you will feel the same way.

Charity is not just for the ultra-wealthy

It is common to think that our ability to help the needy is inadequate when we compare ourselves to the ultra-rich, especially when we consider issues that seem too big to solve — like global health challenges, stagnant economic development, and insufficient access to education. It is easy to think that real charitable impact is solely reserved for the kinds of people who go to fancy fundraisers, buy avant-garde artwork, and have university buildings named in their honour.

Thankfully, that isn’t the case. Let me show you the how, and then the why.

The impact created by regular people can be tremendous, so long as we donate to the most effective charities, not ones that are merely good. I say tremendous without hyperbole because 

the very best charities are often much better than average ones

 and thus give a much higher return on investment with every dollar donated.

We can extend this idea by considering charities that operate outside of our local communities, cities, and countries. Due to the fact that a dollar goes much further in developing countries — for example, Burundi, which had a 

 in 2019 — than in developed ones, our potential for impact can be monumental.

, explains this idea brilliantly. It goes as follows:

Imagine a happy hour where you could either buy yourself a beer for five dollars or buy someone else a beer for five cents. If that were the case, we’d probably be pretty generous—next round’s on me!

Will goes on to call this idea the “100x Multiplier”, where those of us who live in rich countries can expect to do at least one hundred times as much to benefit others in developing countries as we can do to ourselves with each dollar we spend. That $58,000 salary I mentioned earlier ends up closer to $5 million when we consider our ability to help the poorest, so long as we donate it to the right places.

Let’s say you’ve found everything I’ve mentioned thus far to be convincing. A question might still linger: Why should we do anything about it? Billionaires and governments have a much greater potential for impact than we do, and we already pay taxes that go to foreign aid. That is a logical and mathematical reality that I will not attempt to refute.

But the fact remains that it is important for us to think about what we can do regardless of what others do. We can’t wait for billionaires to solve the 

, nor should we. Even if they decide to donate, we should not allow them to monopolize charity. We can lead by example and take action to show governments and the ultra-wealthy what our values are.

To add to this, many of us still feel an urge to be altruistic beyond the money we pay in taxes each year. This is especially true for Americans, who 

. That number — which is roughly equal to 

 that same year — is enough to make Bezos blush. For readers who contributed to that $400 billion figure, ask yourself where you’ve historically donated, and if you are aware of the impact your donations have made. If you have no idea what your donations have actually done, or you’ve primarily donated to those around you, there’s a good chance your donations can go much further, and that you can significantly improve the lives of thousands of people in other parts of the world.

If you take one thing away from this article, I hope it is a sense of excitement at how much potential you have to make a tangible and widespread impact. While it is exceedingly unlikely you’ll have a library named after you, you can still change the lives of thousands of people globally over the course of your life. And if you were to ask me, I’d say having a library named after you is overrated in comparison.

 in the US puts someone in the top 1% globally

Our ability to help the poorest people in the world is tremendous, and that is a very exciting prospect

, so we should be more mindful as to where we donate

Donating to charities in poorer countries can magnify our impact even further

Charity should not be reserved solely for the mega-rich or for the government

If you’re someone who already donates regularly, it might be a good idea to take some time to evaluate the effectiveness of the charities you donate to

Over the course of our lives, we can impact the lives of thousands of others around the world

Take a pledge to give more, and more effectively

See how your donation can change someone's life

Get involved with the Giving What We Can community

Luke Freeman

Companies pledge at least 10% of profits to effective charities

Companies pledge to give at least ten percent of their profits to effective charities, following the lead of the Giving What We Can community.

The following article is reprinted from the 

press release announcing Giving What We Can's Company Pledge

Giving What We Can, a community of people who have pledged to give a significant portion of their income to improving the lives of others, today announced the founding members of its Company Pledge. These companies have each pledged to give at least 10% of profits to effective charities.

There are four companies who have taken the Company Pledge: Australian trade services provider 

, and Australian technology research & venture builder 

“It seems a simple concept, but the results are undeniable,” says Calvin Baker, co-founder of Give Industries. “By pledging our company profits in support of evidence-based global top performers in promoting human and animal well-being, we're enabling an amount of good that would be otherwise unachievable by a small business. This purpose has helped us to grow a passionate and motivated workforce.”

“Our mission is to use the power of capitalism as an engine for good,” adds Ida Josefiina of Studio-1X. “We’re advocating for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) business community to use their resources and platforms to drive social impact both in terms of awareness, and financial contributions.”

These companies are joining over 5,000 individuals from more than 80 countries who are all united by a commitment to helping others. Together the members of Giving What We Can have donated at least $195 million, and have pledged a further $1.8 billion.

According to Giving What We Can co-founder, Dr. Toby Ord, “Research shows that the 

 can have at least ten times the social impact of the typical charity, and hundreds of times as much as less effective charities. By finding outstanding giving opportunities we can make a significant difference to many more lives than we otherwise would.”

“It's about living a better life in the world and this requires that one be integrated with society in a way that produces good effects not just for oneself and one's family and friends but for people one may never meet. I want to help inspire other businesses to do the same. There's no question that discussing these things in public can help inspire others to rethink their relationship to money and to give more of it to the worthy causes.” Sam Harris, founder of the Waking Up meditation app

Josefiina emphasises that there is a lot of opportunity for small and medium-sized enterprises to make an impact: “SMEs make up roughly 90% of the global business economy. Activating this segment to participate in solving global problems would have a major impact in the world, and therefore should be seen as a priority.”

These businesses are pushing for change beyond just donating. Give Industries, which is donating 100% of their profits, states: “We’re pretty serious about creating change, both globally and right under our noses. We’re committed to making sure our business is carbon neutral, gender equitable, and employs people often overlooked by the job market.”

"Our aim is to apply advanced technology to important social problems. To maximise our impact, and ensure that no matter what we’re working on we can make a difference, we will be donating to effective charities from day one. We hope to show others that donating even at an early-stage can be commercially viable,." says Casey Lickfold, co-founder of ISOLABS.

Giving What We Can seeks to normalise giving more and giving more effectively – to inspire a culture of generosity and a world full of flourishing.

The Company Pledge is still in its infancy, if your company would like to pledge and you would like to be involved in shaping this please 

 which is aimed at the founders of high growth startups who anticipate a liquidity event. Founders Pledge is an excellent organisation and they provide a pledge which we still enthusiastically recommend for founders for whom the pledge is suitable.

Heather Heckman

 Dominika Krupocin

"I like the idea that people will give together. I hope the pledge will start to build that social norm"

Member Profile: Catherine Thomas

What keeps you busy? What makes you tick?

I'm a PhD student in social and cultural psychology. I have been working in global health and international development for 11 years now. I started this work in poverty and inequality because in Mississippi, where I'm from, inequalities are extreme. As I did work in the nonprofit space, I realized that I wanted to make sure any work I did would actually be impactful and that it wouldn’t be doing harm. It’s important to ensure you aren’t wasting money, especially when you're working with people in precarious positions who need effective support in meeting basic needs.

I started working with development economists. I worked on the long-term follow-up for a 

 randomized controlled trial (RCT) in Kenya for a few years. But I realized I had a few ethical concerns in addition to those about effectiveness. I questioned Westerners coming in and guiding development. That is partly why I decided to pursue a PhD in cultural psychology in particular. It lets me look at the values that are being imported by development programs. I wanted to ask, how can we make development programs more responsive to the realities of recipients? More responsive to their preferences? That's what I do now. I work broadly in the cash space, including universal basic income in the US, as well as unconditional cash transfers and other anti-poverty programs with the World Bank and in East and West Africa.

I just think that I, as a middle-class white person in the US, have been given more advantages than 99% of the world. A lot of those advantages have been economic. I should be redistributing more of my wealth, which was not necessarily earned.

Also, we used to have institutions for redistribution (like tithing or Zakat, which some groups still have) and there’s historical precedent for that being 10% of your income. I think we need some kind of social or cultural norms to reinstate that tradition among a more secular generation. I support taxes as a means to redistribute wealth, but since our safety net, at least in the US, is still insufficient I want to give directly to basic needs.

I like the idea that people will give together. I hope the 

 will start to build that social norm toward redistribution, specifically for basic needs and effective charities. I came to Giving What We Can through the 

Logistically, I also like Giving What We Can because it helps me track my giving. I just add my donations there, so when the time comes for my taxes, I can see what I gave.

Giving What We Can is public and accountable, and I feel like I'm a small part of what is hopefully a growing movement. I especially hope it will grow among middle-class white people in the US to counter income inequality.

I appreciate that there's this mechanism that facilitates the giving process really easily. It makes me feel more whole — less divided — as an individual because it aligns my values with my actions.

What are the issues in the world that you care most deeply about?

I care about inclusion — about deep poverty and inclusion. I work on universal basic income (UBI) because it can provide a cash-based safety net. And I also work on universal basic income because it has the potential to create more inclusive narratives about people who live in poverty. Here in the US, we have very individualizing, victim-blaming narratives about people who receive aid. I think that in part undergirds our dwindling support for redistribution. So I care about changing these narratives from a moral perspective. And then I also care about it from a practical perspective, because our current narrative is a barrier to societal safety nets.

 – that's kind of my base given the strength of evidence supporting it. This election season, this year, I've also given to a lot of other things, including local racial justice organizations. One thing that I think is a nice alignment of these two giving areas is Magnolia Mother’s Trust (MMT). It’s an organization in Jackson, Mississippi, where I'm from, that gives universal basic income to low-income black mothers. It's kind of seen as a modern-day manifestation of Dr. Martin Luther King's guaranteed income proposal. It's local, it deals with racial justice as well as economic justice. It's place-based plus evidence-based, which I think is kind of increasingly a sweet spot in terms of giving for me.

In terms of giving, I’ve recently been thinking a lot more about accountability, especially after reading Giridharadas’ book Winners Take All. One reason I’m moving more towards place-based giving is because I suspect it can, in some cases, allow for greater accountability and more democratic processes. When you're with a community that you can be accountable to, maybe the community you're from, then I think you could actually better understand the impacts of your donations, whether they're good or bad, wanted or unwanted. Winners Take All discusses the problematic trend of the global elite deciding unilaterally what is important to prioritize in the world through their private foundations and donations. Giridharadas argues that this is an anti-democratic trend. I’m thinking that place-based giving might have more democratic potential and less of a problematic power dynamic. Relatedly, you could get closer to a justice framework rather than a charity framework, which I think is a critical transition the philanthropic community needs to make.

I'm not sure that's all true or likely, but that's what I’ve been pondering over these past few months.

I do. It was especially hard in the first years living in the Bay Area and having a grad student salary. But that's why I liked the 1% commitment for students, which was very achievable. It’s getting easier now, but it was challenging in the beginning for that reason. I'm sure it will be harder again once I have children and such, but right now, it’s doable.

Do you have any effective giving tips you would like to share, or any suggestions for other people considering taking the Pledge?

I’ve found it helpful to use it as an accounting device.

 a lot. I read this article many years ago about her living with her parents and thinking about whether she wanted to have kids and all the trade-offs that she makes in her life. And that made me reflect about my rent costs in particular. The reason I try to live in the least expensive housing I can find is because I want to be able to meet that Pledge. So, I think about rent a lot and oftentimes I think about small expenses, like whether to get a cappuccino versus drip coffee, too, but that's probably a marginal saving.

For society, I really hope that we'll have a minimum income floor and that we can just do away with deep poverty. There's no reason that deep poverty should be increasing in the US, as it has been since the 90s. I would hope that we're able to eliminate housing and food insecurity, and lower health care costs. I also hope that greed and hoarding become immoral again. Greed and hoarding have lost their moral sanctioning and I hope that we can recover that. Then, I hope that there will be more parity between high- and low-income countries.

I want reparations to happen, both within countries and between countries. It's obviously a very hard policy to implement. Who gets reparations? How much? Over what time period? One reason I like universal basic income is because it could achieve some of the goals of reparations, though not all by any means, in a straightforward way. It would disproportionately benefit black and brown communities, and I think that’s a start.

Are there any books, movies, or papers that significantly changed the way you see giving, and that you want to share with others?

Poor Economics by Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo

 – those have definitely been very influential to me. The thing that changed my life, or how I got to giving and to my research trajectory, was Esther Duflo’s Tanner Lecture at Harvard in 2012. All of Esther Duflo’s work has hugely influenced me.

Then, there’s this documentary that I’d want to share with others called 

 which just came out. It’s about universal basic income in the South, and the Magnolia Mother’s Trust organization that I donate to.

Have you found anything to be helpful when talking to other people about effective giving, or giving in general?

Well, I do study how to reduce partisanship in views of UBI. I find that framing giving in terms of financial freedom, basically the way that Milton Friedman did, is surprisingly effective at increasing conservative support for universal basic income. That framing also reduces stigmatizing narratives. You would think that maybe it would increase stigmatizing narratives because it is all about this neoliberal, individualistic approach, but it actually makes conservatives see recipients of UBI as more hardworking, more competent, more moral -- all these good, humanizing things. I think that when you can bring people’s overarching ideas and values into the act of giving and situate giving as a means to realize their values, that can be an effective way to engage them. We need to recognize that different cultures, different groups have different values.

What else are you passionate about? What do you do for fun in life?

I read articles about income inequality [laughs]. What am I passionate about? Over the last 8 years, I've gotten more politically engaged. I've been doing canvassing and organizing work with friends. Other than that, I would say it's traveling. I move around a lot and I like adventures and hiking and trying new things. Recently, I've been hiking in the Tetons and in the Wind River Range. And right after that I got married on a fourteener [mountain above 14,000 ft] in Colorado in Leadville. We thought -- if our wedding was going to be canceled because of COVID, we might as well go get married in the mountains.

" series which profiles a selection of the Giving What We Can community. The Giving What We Can is a community of people from all walks of life, with different perspectives and motivations for giving – all united by their desire to make a significant commitment to use their income to effectively helping others. Read more 

 to help inspire others to give more, and more effectively.

For more information about Giving What We Can we recommend you check out our 

Yesterday we reached 5,000 members who have pledged to give at least 10% of their lifetime earnings! Read more about this milestone, watch the video message from our founders & members, and join us this weekend to celebrate!

This edition includes information about our 5,000 member celebration events; updates from Giving What We Can, EA Funds, Open Philanthropy, GiveWell and Charity Entrepreneurship; a selection of interesting articles; upcoming events you can join; and some ways you can help.

September 2020 Newsletter

Yesterday we reached 5,000 members who have pledged to give at least 10% of their lifetime earnings!

This is the online edition of our September 2020 email newsletter (

This edition includes information about our 5,000 member celebration events; updates from Giving What We Can, EA Funds, Open Philanthropy, GiveWell and Charity Entrepreneurship; a selection of interesting articles; upcoming events you can join; and some ways you can help.

To celebrate reaching 5,000 members who have taken The Pledge we are organising a huge global hangout day (in person and online) 

5,000 People Have Pledge To Give At Least 10% Of Lifetime Income

More than 5,000 people have pledged to give at least ten percent of their lifetime earnings to effective charities. We're hosting events to celebrate and many of our members have submitted messages about this milestone.

GWWC has been in the news around the world lately

'The global financial elite? You are that!'

'What worms can teach us about the AI apocalypse'

'The Giving What We Can Pledge encourages you to donate 10% of your income'

 featured our member Tom Bry-Chevalier in the French 

We've made significant updates to our giving recommendations page, including tips for giving as a community, picking an individual charity, and where to find local regranting organisations.

Giving What We Can member and Swedish singer-songwriter José González did a live streaming performance in partnership with The Life You Can Save to raise funds to help people living in extreme poverty.

Moral Uncertainty by Will MacAskill and Toby Ord

The two founders of Giving What We Can, Will MacAskill and Toby Ord, have released a new academic book "Moral Uncertainty" which looks at how we should make decisions in the face of moral uncertainty.

Blog

You can make a difference (yes, you!)

Companies pledge at least 10% of profits to effective charities

Member Profile: Catherine Thomas

September 2020 Newsletter

5,000 people have pledged to give at least 10% of their lifetime incomes to effective charities

Member Profile: Pablo Ollier

5,000 Member Milestone Celebration Events

Online Meetups: 5th or 6th September, 2020

Visualizing Donations

Member Profile: Heather McLaughlin