Introduction to effective altruism

What do people mean by "effective altruism"? Explore some key principles behind the philosophy and community via this essay.

Who runs this website?

Learn about the Centre for Effective Altruism (CEA).

Visit CEA's website

FAQs and common objections

Our answers to frequently asked questions like "What if I don't think a practical suggestion is effective?," "What has the community done so far?" and "How can you even compare different types of good?"

Read FAQs

Intro Course

Online

The Introductory EA Program is an eight-week seminar guided by an experienced facilitator.

Resources

EA Blog

Discover the latest news and insights from across the effective altruism ecosystem.

Read the Blog

EA Handbook

The "EA Handbook" is like the textbook you’d get in your first college course. It covers the core ideas of effective altruism and helps you identify ways you can apply them.

Read the Handbook

Conferences

EA Global and EAGx are conference series organized for people in the effective altruism community.

Learn more

Events

Join people from around the world for discussions, talks, and other events on how we can tackle the world's biggest problems.

Explore events

Online forum

The EA Forum is the central place for collaborative discussion about how to do the most good we can.

Visit the EA Forum

Community

Effective altruism is a global network involving thousands of people. Reach out and see if there's a group you might want to join.

Explore groups

Find an impactful career

You have 80,000 hours in your career, which makes it your best opportunity to have a positive impact on the world. Learn how you can make the most of it

Visit 80,000 Hours

Use charity recommendations

Everyone can do a lot of good by donating to high-impact charities. Giving What We Can is a community dedicated to finding and funding effective charities.

Find the best charities

Take action

View job listings, internships, research ideas, startup ideas and funding opportunities.

Explore opportunities

Action:

Set up an Effective Legacy

Occupation:
Student, Professional, Retired
Time commitment:
Hours
Duration:
Long-term
Familiarity with EA:
New, Familiar, Very Familiar

You can do an immense amount of good by donating to the most effective charities. Charity Science provides a free service that makes the otherwise intimidating process of securing your legacy as easy as possible. Their services will help you create a basic document that will honor commitments to GiveWell’s top charities if the unexpected happens, and you’ll always have the option to update your will.

To ensure that your money helps the world after you’re gone, learn more and create an Effective Legacy. There are also alternatives to the default legacy option for people with more complex estates.

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