Daily Blog Day 21 -- Giving What We Can

 
Hey people! Good news: yesterday was another productive day! My focus and determination wavered a bit in the afternoon but I was able to give myself a break which helped me end the day on a high. My high didn't come from a bong or bottle, rather from a benefaction (yes, I googled synonyms of donation to find one that started with a 'b').

As many of you may know, yesterday was Earth Day, and since I've been buried in work I couldn't exactly celebrate it with a hike. I'm more than pleased, however, with the way I did celebrate -- through a donation to the Good Food Institute, a company working to create and promote plant-based meat/protein alternatives. If you're wondering what this has to do with the Earth, I'll tell ya! The science is clear that animal agriculture (raising animals like cows, pigs, chickens, and fish for food) is a massive burden on our planet. Although estimates vary, the 2006 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report determined that 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from animal agriculture. Moreover, animal ag emits 68% of the anthropogenic nitrous oxide which has 296 times the global warming potential of CO2. Beyond this, the industry occupies one-third of all land on Earth -- that's more than North and South America combined! Before I get too deep into the weeds, I'll just spit out a few more estimates: animal ag uses 55% of all water in the U.S., produces 116,000lbs of waste per second, and is responsible for the majority of tropical deforestation. So, those are a few reasons for why I chose to donate to the Good Food Institute on Earth Day :)

Perhaps more exciting than my one-time donation is the pledge that I took with Giving What We Can to donate at least 10% of my income (once I have an income) to effective organizations for the rest of my life. I've already spoken about effective altruism and my pledge to donate 1% of my income through The Life You Can Save and I'm stoked to take another step in my commitment to do good. Last night I spent quite a while debating where to donate, and thanks to resources like GiveWell, Giving What We Can, and Giving Green, I'm confident that my $50 will be used effectively.  I've also been exploring 80,000 Hours to learn more and more about finding a fulfilling career in which I can be most effective in my work and charitable donations.

Sorry if all the links are a bit much today but I hope you check out a few that have piqued your interest. I'd  especially love to see some of y'all take the pledge with me :)

If I make $25,000/year (hopefully I'll make more than this) for the next 10 years, my pledge could distribute 5,000+ life-saving mosquito nets or treat ≥12,500 people with neglected tropical diseases, among other great things!