Has anybody changed their behaviour after the animal welfare vs global health debate week? A month or so on, I'm curious if anybody is planning to donate differently, considering a career pivot, etc. If anybody doesn't want to share publicly but would share privately, please feel free to message me.

Linking @Angelina Li's post asking how people would change their behaviour, and tagging @Toby Tremlett🔹 who might have thought about tracking this.

I've just written a blog post to summarise EA-relevant UK political news from the last ~six weeks.

The post is here: AI summit, semiconductor trade policy, and a green light for alternative proteins (substack.com)

Early November is the date for the UK’s summit on AI safety, according to leaks yesterday. Offers have been sent out for new AI Civil Service roles. British politics seems increasingly important to the AI safety world.

This is my attempt to justify the ways of Westminster to EA, and EA to Westminster. I’m spotlighting recent headlines on the AI summit, semiconductor trade policy, and alternative proteins.

I'm planning to circulate this around some EAs, but also some people working in the Civil Service, political consulting and journalism. Many might already be familiar with the stories. But I think this might be useful if I can (a) provide insightful UK political context for EAs, or (b) provide an EA perspective to curious adjacents. I'll probably continue this if I think either (a) or (b) is paying off.

(I work at Rethink Priorities, but this is entirely in my personal capacity).

EDIT 2024-06-10: We are no longer accepting applications. Thank you to all who got in touch.

The Animal Welfare Department at Rethink Priorities is recruiting volunteer researchers to support on a high-impact project!

We’re conducting a review on interventions to reduce meat consumption, and we’re seeking help checking whether academic studies meet our eligibility criteria. This will involve reviewing the full text of studies, especially methodology sections.

We’re interested in volunteers who have some experience reading empirical academic literature, especially postgraduates. The role is an unpaid volunteer opportunity. We expect this to be a ten week project, requiring approximately five hours per week. But your time commitment can be flexible, depending on your availability.

This is an exciting opportunity for graduate students and early career researchers to gain research experience, learn about an interesting topic, and directly participate in an impactful project. The Animal Welfare Department will provide support and, if desired, letters of experience for volunteers.

If you are interested in volunteering with us, contact Ben Stevenson at [email protected]. Please share either your CV, or a short statement (~4 sentences) about your experience engaging with empirical academic literature. Candidates will be invited to complete a skills assessment. We are accepting applications on a rolling basis, and will update this listing when we are no longer accepting applications.

Please reach out to Ben if you have any questions. If you know anybody who might be interested, please forward this opportunity to them!