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EA is elitist. Should it stay that way?
michaeljohnston08y3
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Reading this discussion a month or two ago prompted me to, a couple of times, consider whether there were very wealthy people I know and could talk to about EA (not really) or people I'm connected with in some way (quite certainly). One of those people, some weeks later, let's say something like a 3rd or 4th degree connection (but with a publicly known penchant for meritocracy and preference for intelligent discourse on all things) made a plan to give away a huge sum of wealth (arguably too big for GiveWell's existing processes). Because of this discussi... (read more)

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Accomplishments Open Thread
michaeljohnston08y1
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How can I live up to that?! I give up!

Jk :D

Fully embracing the awkward: how can I be more like you?

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EA is elitist. Should it stay that way?
michaeljohnston08y2
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Side thought:

If we simplify our language it might help. I think I read that second grade reading level is ideal for business communication. It's what the New York Times is at, too, right? And this forum is some post-grad level stuff, sometimes!

Y'all are way smart. And that's who we should have figuring out complicated problems, for sure. But, like, even the words "Effective Altruism" just have so many syllables it blows my mind!

:D

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Linch
8y
The New York Times has a 10th grade reading level, as does the New Yorker. http://www.impact-information.com/impactinfo/newsletter/plwork15.htm
No, CS majors didn't delude themselves that the best way to save the world is to do CS research
michaeljohnston08y0
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When experts say the fate of the world lies in the hands of their field...it's not an indication they're wrong. It's just not really strong evidence they're right either. In any field, we can reasonably expect researchers to believe their field has great significance. From the outside, they sort of all sound the same. When I read this quip, that's what is think of.

Unfortunately, with nuclear weapons, it was virtually impossible to convince officials of their feasibility right up until the months leading to Hiroshima, and then, really only with demos, n... (read more)

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EA is elitist. Should it stay that way?
michaeljohnston08y0
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I don't think it's even that fine a line. Don't exclude people actively. If you want to talk to your rich friends about EA first, that makes sense, but there should be virtually no reason to keep someone out.

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xccf
8y
(If it does make sense to exclude people actively it might make sense to use a vehicle that society has decided is acceptable for this--for example, it's considered relatively acceptable for a university to reject a student applying to it, a business or organization to reject someone applying for a job, etc.)
Pitfalls in Diversity Outreach
michaeljohnston09y0
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Hi Evan, I'd like to do this in Philadelphia. I've just started working with the local GWWC out of Penn and will be focused on non-academic community outreach and partnerships (someone else doing academic). I just looked read this post and thought "hey, that's what I want to do."

Wondering if you got any traction elsewhere and if so who I can talk to about what others are doing. As a relatively new person to the EA community, any ideas or contacts would help!

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Evan_Gaensbauer
9y
So, Peter Hurford ran a proto-EA club of sorts at his alma mater, I think called the "Venture Philanthropy Club". The goal was for the club to spend the semester assessing different local charities and then make a large donation at the end to whatever charity they assessed as the most effective. That's different than what you're doing, and I wouldn't even necessarily suggest doing the same thing as Peter's Venture Philanthropy Club did. However, Peter does have experience, I'm guessing, in reaching out to local organizations like that, so he may have so advice on what to look for in orgnaizations to calloaborate with, and how to approach them. Peter's name is right there under "Top Contributors" in the sidebar to the right of the screen. Just send him an email and he'll be happy to exchange emails. Jon Courtney is the Community Director of Giving What We Can. It's his job description to help you do exactly what you're trying to do. You can find his email on the GWWC website. Tom Ash is my friend who, with Jon, has started the Local Effective Altruism Network. Their goal is to help start as many EA chapters as there are people willing to launch them. Tom himself might be busy, but I think he'd know who among lots of people it's best for you to approach with further questions.
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Evan_Gaensbauer
9y
I don't have time right this instant, but when I get home tonight, I will let you know how you can go forward with this. To start this up as soon as possible, contact Jon Courtney of Giving What We Can for support, Peter Hurford for ideas since he did something similar with an EA-style club he ran during his undergraduate degree, and Tom Ash of .impact and the Local Effective Altruism Network for any other needs or ideas you have in general. If you're on Faqcebook, you can find any of them there, and they're also all users on the EA Forum, so just look up their names, and you can send them a PM linking them to my above comment for context, and then letting them know you want to go forward with such a project in Philadelphia. I know a couple effective altruists in Pennsylvania as well, but I can't think of who off the top of my head, and I don't know if they're in Philly or PIttsburgh or what.