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FWIW, I thought that the choice of venue for EAG Bay Area 2024 was quite good. It was largely open plan - so lots of chance encounters. A nice mixture of privacy and openness for the 1-on-1s, which (rightly, to my mind) the event focusses on. Comfortable, but not flashy. I just got normal, professional vibes from it - it felt like a solid, appropriate choice.
I agree with this. Thanks, Amy, for all the work you and your team have done/are doing on the EA Global events, which are delivered to such a high standard and which, I think, contribute to a tonne of good!
First, gut reaction, based on a quick skim: WOW, this looks like incredibly smart, thoughtful and potentially-impactful work. Kudos to the authors for doing this!
Hey Dustin,
It’s so awesome that you’re working on this important issue!
Please take the below comments in a spirt of constructive challenge, and with huge respect for your work on this topic!
From your website, it looks like you’ve chosen to go for a very “welfarist” approach, of basically accepting that insect farming will happen, and trying to make it cause a bit less suffering.
But, given the nascent/early stage of insect factory farming, isn’t there a strong case that we should try to block/delay the development of this new form of factory farming? It seems like there is so much that could be done, in relation to regulation, trying to discredit insect factory farming among policymakers/environmentalists/the public, etc. We are at the early stages of this industry and it feels like we may still have time to decisively alter the trajectory of it.
Going straight for a super “soft”, welfarist approach feels like potentially a major missed opportunity .
Given the tiny amount of resources we have to play with, getting this call right is key.
It would be great to hear whether you systematically considered and worked through the arguments in favour and against trying to actually block/slow the development of insect factory farming, before deciding on your current approach?
If so, please would you be willing to share those arguments?
If not, would you be willing to pause for a moment and think this through with folks from the community?
Imagine that we were in the 1950s/60s, and had had the opportunity to try to fundamentally alter the development trajectory of factory farming. Wouldn’t it have been better if we’d at least tried to really stop it then, rather than pivoting straight to “please be a bit kinder to the animals as you ‘farm’ them”?
Another question on a separate note:
If your org is determined to play “good cop” with the insect factory farming industry, do you think there is space for a different body to play “bad cop”?
Again - please take these comments in the spirit of constructive debate in which they are intended. Maybe, of course, your approach is right. It just feels like testing this is really important.
Wishing you all the best as we try to figure out how to do the most good here :) :)
This is really exciting - congratulations!
Amongst the EA community, some people are really excited by the prospect of humans spreading into space.
Other people are quite nervous about this happening, worrying that it could spread suffering much more widely across the universe.
- Do you have a view on this crucial consideration?
- Would you consider consulting with people from both communities to try to ensure that your actions/policy recommendations are “robust” to both sides?
Many thanks for considering this! :)
Thanks, Seth!