Read on Twitter
Inundated with emails & solicitations for #GivingTuesday? Me too! Here's 
tips I've found helpful:
------ GIVE MORE then GIVE BETTER ------
Read more below
then RT if you think it's useful.
tips I've found helpful: ------ GIVE MORE then GIVE BETTER ------
Read more below
then RT if you think it's useful.
GIVE MORE. For those of you (like me) that are in a lucky enough position with the ability to give charitably. Do so and try to do more (if you can) year after year.
This advice is *so* important because average giving in US is at roughly 2%. https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=42
Middle-class households generally give *more* as % of income, suggesting that high-income households *could* give more.
Middle-class households generally give *more* as % of income, suggesting that high-income households *could* give more.
These stylized facts obscure *your* reality, so take a serious look at your finances and ask if you can give this year.
If you can give, ask if you can give more this year than last.
If you can give, ask if you can give more this year than last.
Consider picking a % of your income to give each year. I gave ~5% last year & am hoping to make it to 10% this year. Some of my friends are giving 20% or more.
Do what makes sense for your situation.
Do what makes sense for your situation.
Picking a % of your income also changed the nature of giving for me. It helped me move from one-off donations (often in response to solicitations) to setting aside a pot each year and allocating it at end of year. It became a fun exercise I now look forward to!!
GIVE BETTER. Once you've decided to give more, try to give better. If you want a simple way to give confidently and effectively, consider @GiveWell. http://www.givewell.org
GiveWell spends 10s of thousands of hours each year finding outstanding giving opportunities & publishing the full details of the analysis to help donors decide where to give. I joined the team this year & love the thoughtfulness and rigor of their work.
But @GiveWell's recommendations have important limitations. One of them is @GiveWell's focus on NGOs delivering direct interventions w/ easily measurable outcomes. GiveWell is likely missing a whole lot of good things out there in the world. https://blog.givewell.org/2019/02/07/how-givewells-research-is-evolving/
For that and other reasons, compare GiveWell's research to other ways to inform your giving.
Start by asking yourself, what's the "good" you care about in the world (improving incomes & health? addressing structural inequality? Expanding basic human rights or civil liberties?); and *then* figure out the best way to think about how to stretch your dollar the furthest.
Ask (& read up) on how others give. For example, I changed my giving quite dramatically after reading @cblatts useful blog. I started to give to free services I find valuable (e.g. @Wikimedia) & did more giving to address basic civil liberties & rights: https://chrisblattman.com/2017/01/07/10-things-guide-give-charity/
. I started to give to free services I find valuable (e.g. @Wikimedia) & did more giving to address basic civil liberties & rights: https://chrisblattman.com/2017/01/07/10-things-guide-give-charity/
And, importantly, don't *ever* apologize for giving that's not perfect. No ones is. I donate to things that make me feel good even though I know they're probably not a good use of my resources. *It's okay!*
Start by donating; then donate more; then donate better.
Start by donating; then donate more; then donate better.
