Goals & Background
At Effective Giving, we all share a deep commitment to do the most good we can. We believe that doing the most good isn’t just about relentlessly attempting to make the right resource allocation decisions, but it is also about the values with which those decisions processes are conducted. Our core values are:
- Altruism – Selfless concern for the wellbeing of others
- Impartiality – Openness in who is deserving of our altruism and how they are deserving of our altruism
- Conscientiousness – Carefulness and diligence in our work and actions
- Self-Love – Loving concern for our own wellbeing
Our Code of Conduct
This Code of Conduct outlines the standards that flow from these values, to which we aspire to hold ourselves, our advisees, our grantees, and all our partners accountable (in the below, “we” means everyone we collaborate with). This code of conduct is not meant to be exhaustive, but rather serves to illustrate our philosophy. The elements of the code of conduct are:
- Impartial Altruism and Humility – First and foremost, we aim to make impartial decisions for the benefit of others, not for ourselves. Given the moral and empirical uncertainty under which we operate, we deeply interrogate our personal biases, preferences, and the downside risks of our decisions.
- Integrity – We don’t do anything we couldn’t defend if it was made public. We do not tolerate abuse, corruption, fraud, discrimination, dishonesty, or favoritism, and avoid any behavior that could be viewed as such. We seek to minimize conflicts of interest. If in doubt, we raise integrity issues proactively.
- Ownership – In our personal and professional dealings, we safeguard EG’s and our stakeholders’ resources and reputation as if they were our own. We are trustworthy and reliable, and hold each other accountable.
- Blameless Truth-seeking – We communicate openly and humbly without prejudice or malice, with a focus on solving problems over placing blame. We act as transparently as possible and don’t hide our mistakes.
- Confidentiality – We treat the sensitive topics and private information with which we are entrusted with the utmost discretion.
- Loving Professionalism – We treat ourselves and others with dignity, respect, care, and kindness. We are thoughtful about hierarchical power imbalances. We start from a place of trust in others, assuming people’s best intentions.
- Good Judgement – Notwithstanding the above, we apply our experience, wisdom, intellectual honesty, and due care when making decisions.
This code of conduct may be refined and updated over time to meet evolving circumstances and challenges of our ever-changing world.
Code of Conduct Violations
Violations of these standards will result in a variety of actions, at the discretion of our leadership, up to and including ending our working relationship with the violator, whether an employee, an external expert/consultant/partner, a contractor, an advisee, or a grantee. Some actions we may take include, but are not limited to:
- Requiring for the situation to be remedied
- Asking for a private statement explaining the situation and what will be done
- Asking for a public apology or explanation
- Pausing our relationship for an unspecified amount of time
- Asking for resignations and/or demotions
- Taking legal action
- Permanently severing ties or termination of working relationships