Effective Altruism

In the book, The Most Good You Can Do: How Effective Altruism Is Changing Ideas About Living Ethically, by Peter Singer, the author introduces readers to a new movement called “Effective Altruism”. As stated in his book, effective altruism is “a philosophy and social movement which applies evidence and reason to working out the most effective ways to improve the world.” (Singer, 4-5) To be able to practice effective altruism, the book offers several ideas to become an effective altruist such as living modestly to give more, earning to give, giving organs, donating to the most effective charities, and by viewing everyone’s suffering as equal including animals. While many of these strategies are beneficial to the greater good, some may also present …show more content…
For example, Singer states that an individual who has the option of working for an effective charity or for an investment bank with a $200,000 yearly income, the individual should clearly accept the offer with the investment bank since it’d be more effective, “Working in finance, however, you earn much more than you need and give half of your earnings to the charity, which can use that money to employ two extra workers…” (Singer, …show more content…
Volunteering should be viewed as equal to donating since not everyone is able to donate depending on their cost of living and income. These individuals use their paychecks to support their family’s basic necessities to survive and volunteering may be the only good they can do. On another note, individuals can also pursue a career they enjoy with an average income rather than an unhappy, well-paid career and still be able to donate along with volunteering to maximize their impact which will benefit them along with the charities they donate and volunteer their time