Comments
Effective Alternatives to Street Protests in Russia
The War in Ukraine has led many people to protest in the streets. In the west, this slightly affects the world by showing support for the war. But within Russia and Belarus, protesters are often arrested, and it's not clear that they affect public opinion very much.Â
This seems like a lost opportunity, because people living in Russia need to be involved in any successful liberalization of the country's government, which affects the rest of the world through the threat of nuclear war.Â
It's clear that there's a large number of people who live under a repressive government, who want to change it, and who have gotten the message that marching in the streets with a sign is a good way to do that. They're willing to risk arrest and imprisonment to do it.Â
Assuming that there are more impactful things that those people can do, it would be good if someone figured out what those were and wrote them down clearly, ideally in Russian.Â
I don't know what the answer is, which is why this is filed under Shortform. I don't have the background to answer a social question like this well.Â
EA ideas suggest that most people who go to street protests on the weekend could better serve their goals by pursuing an impactful career, and street dissidents in Russia are probably no exception.Â
Question: Should I serve on the board of a non-EA charity?Â
I have an opportunity through work to help guide a charity doing work on children's education and entertainment in the UK and US. It has an endowment in the tens of millions of pounds.Â
Has anyone else had experience serving on the board or guiding committee of a non-EA charity? Did you feel like you were able to have a positive influence? Do you have any advice?
Am a charity Trustee. (of a much smaller charity)
I would say: go for it! Try to learn a lot from your experience. It's a huge development opportunity for you.
I would ask myself something like these questions to figure this out, I'm assuming by the picture you paint that you don't think their current work is necessarily wildly impactful?
1. Do I have the time and headspace to take this on? Will it negatively affect other things I do
2. Do I like the other board members (at least in theory), and will I work well with them?
3. Will this be something energy giving and enjoyable for me? Some work (even if not that impactful) can almost paridoxically give us more energy for the more impactful stuff. I've noticed this more and more over the years.
4. Is there perhaps an opportunity for me to shape the charity's work towards something more impactful? Influencing the thought world of children has potential. There's a saying attributed to the Jesuits which goes something like "Give us a child till they are 7 and we'll have them for life", so those years are importantly formative.