Effective Altruism in Canada

A Merry Christmas! call out to savvy donors everywhere. Have you heard of “effective altruism,” yet? It’s a movement coming out of the UK. It is a generous invitation to give thoughtfully, efficiently, mindfully. A joyful challenge at this giving time of year.

Effective altruism | Fancy words for heart works

Donate a Car Canada is a small staff running on a conservative budget. We want to see every penny sent off to your chosen charity possible, and we make giving a personal way of life, too. We partner everything from local kids’ charities to veterans to global outreach efforts. Our team seeks to make a difference with our own dollars as well as with yours.

William MacAskill, the cofounder of the “effective altruism” movement asks that we consider giving outside of the fancy package. Certainly, presents can help to spread Christmas cheer (and we love to spread Christmas cheer!)! As can looking beyond our own homes out to the needs of the 700 million people in the world. Some of our fellows make their living on less than $2.00 per day.

In the TIME magazine, December 14, 2015 column, “The View | Spotlight” (page 37) , Mr. MacAskill says, “I’m…passionate about people giving smarter, because where you give can make a huge difference on the impact you’ll have. Even average earners in the West are incredibly rich compared with the global poor, so a sum of money considered moderate for some could make a huge difference in the poorest countries.”

How Rich Are You?

Curious about how my own family income compares globally, I visited the effective altruism website. “Giving What we Can,” asked and I responded. I submitted our approximate family income, number of adults/children living in our home, and our home country, Canada. You’ll be fascinated to see how your family compares — just scroll down from the top of the page to the caption, “How Rich Are You?” to see where you are in the overall scope of world riches.

I was surprised by the statistics that popped up in answer to my particulars. My family can give well. Wisely. Generously. We can make a difference!

As we look ahead to 2016 and our hoped-for impact on Canada’s charities, personally, and as a company, we wish you all a hear-felt merry Christmas, and we thank you for the opportunity to partner with you, Canada’s vehicle donors, as you seek to be effectively altruistic every day of the year!

Christmas Tree mage courtesy of jscreationzs at FreeDigitalPhotos.net