When I was 17, a friend sent me Peter Singer's TED talk, and it changed my life. It opened my eyes to the immense privilege of ‘normal’ people in high-income countries compared to the rest of the world. Coming from a family where both my parents were part-time primary school teachers, I never thought of us as among the wealthiest globally—yet, with a median household income in the UK, to my astonishment—we were. The talk also emphasised that our donations could have an enormous, and measurable, impact—you don’t just have to give and hope it does something. This resonated deeply with me, and I took the 10% Pledge that same day.
I wasn’t yet earning any income as I was still in high-school and then at university, so initially, I donated £10 a month to the Against Malaria Foundation. (When you take the 10% Pledge as a student, you’re committing to give 1% of your spending money. The 10% kicks in once you start earning a stable income). For me, 1% of spending money was roughly £100 a year—less than the cost of a couple of pints each month.
As a student, I found giving incredibly manageable and was able to increase my donations to £50 a month in my final years as I started earning a small amount tutoring. It wasn’t hard and, honestly, it felt really rewarding to be able to make an impact, even on a small student budget. Living in alignment with my values gave my life a real sense of purpose.
Getting into the habit of giving early on has been great. Giving has become a core part of my identity, something I feel really proud of. Once I got my first proper job and was working full-time, starting to give 10% of my income was easy. I just set it aside each month and hardly noticed it was gone. Since I had never gotten used to the extra 10%, I didn’t feel like I was sacrificing anything—which is part of why I think pledging while still a student is actually a really great idea. Of course, major life changes—like buying a house, getting married, or starting a family—might cause some changes in my giving. But the 10% Pledge is a lifelong commitment, and I plan to donate more now in order to give myself some wiggle room if I end up needing it; I also know I can (and will) make up for any lower year by giving more in the next (or the next few).
So, what have my donations actually done?
I’m proud to say that my giving has so far protected about 100 families from malaria, prevented around 700 tons of CO2eq from entering the atmosphere (roughly equivalent to the individual carbon footprint of taking about 700 transatlantic flights) and doubled the annual income of 12 families living in extreme poverty in the global south through direct cash transfers. I’ve also supported alternative protein research, initiatives to reduce (and I hope end) factory-farming, and projects to address risks that threaten the future of our life on Earth.
My giving has also so far saved the life of at least one child under the age of five.
In some ways, this is just a drop in the ocean given how unequal and unfair the disparities in health outcomes are between people living in the world today. But while I acknowledge these inequalities and do my best to also campaign and vote in ways which I hope and believe will bring about a world where giving 10% is no longer necessary, I also want to celebrate the meaning of the individual life that now gets to be lived by another person who I will never know or meet, but whose life I can imagine. And imagining the whole life of this person—the highs, the lows, and all the ordinary days in between—reminds me how alike we all are, bound together by the same hopes, joys, and experiences that make us human.
To me though, the Pledge is not just about what I can do with my donations. I believe that the cumulative effect of each of us giving effectively and significantly can lead to monumental change on a global level. By taking the 10% Pledge and joining this global movement, I feel that I’ve been able to play a role in a larger narrative of hope and progress. Now almost 10,000 people, from more than 100 countries, have taken the 10% Pledge (and hundreds more have taken a Trial Pledge) to donate a portion of their income to effective charities. Together, our giving can transform lives, uplift communities, and address the most pressing challenges of our time.
So since it’s Pledge Week – here’s a quick plug (and honestly, I would say this any week of the year because it’s always a good time to pledge!):
If you’re considering taking the 🔸10% Pledge, as a student or otherwise, my advice is simple: just do it! Taking the 10% Pledge has been one of the best decisions of my life – each month, the ten percent I spend on donations is, by far, the use of money that brings me the most happiness. Sure, it can feel daunting, but the sense of purpose and joy that comes from giving is unparalleled. That said, I don’t think that giving is or should be about us, I think it’s about the huge positive impact that can be achieved by strategically giving away a relatively small portion of the resources that we have by virtue of nothing other than the blind luck of birth. If you're hesitant, consider starting with the 🔹Trial Pledge and see how it feels! And who knows? This could be the start of one of the most meaningful commitments you'll ever make.
TAKE THE PLEDGE
I also took my pledge before I earned a stable income, and am really glad I did. This way, donating 10% never felt like I was missing out on anything, since I never got used to that extra cash. I can highly recommend getting into this habit early on!
Same. I looked at my expected salary once I was done studying and thought "would I feel poor if I was earning 10% less than that?" and as a student the answer was obviously "of course not". If it was today I'm sure I would have thought differently about it.