Giving in 2020
I thought it would be interesting to graph my charitable giving last year, proportionally, by organization and category. This year, those categories were health, civil rights, food & housing security, education, and other.
Health
Last year, I learned about the organization GiveWell. Their mission is simple: identify charitable or humanitarian organizations that save or improve the most lives per dollar. The rigor and transparency of GiveWell is really impressive (a section dedicated to Our Mistakes is included in their main navigation). This persuaded me to allocate the largest portion of my charitable giving to the Malaria Consortium, which distributes antimalarial drugs to children in countries like Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and Chad. In fact, nearly all of GiveWell's top-rated charities work with populations outside the United States, where dollars tend to go further.
Other health-oriented organizations I gave to in 2020 were Doctors Without Borders, and my employer, the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.
Civil Rights
It's increasingly apparent that the legal system is often a faster and more effective route to redress than waiting for Congress to pass legislation that fixes past wrongs. The Native American Rights Fund takes this approach, and I was happy to learn about them and support them for the first time this year.
The Marshall Project exposes injustice in the justice system through journalism, and I'm always impressed with the quality, depth, and perspective of what they produce. This is the third or fourth year I've contributed.
Finally, I'd like to dedicate this year's contribution to the ACLU to the Notorious RBG, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Food & Housing Security
I volunteered at (CT) Foodshare years ago, sorting discarded produce to save what was edible for distribution. Not only does the organization reduce food waste, but they route it to those in need. I am happy to keep supporting their work.
Homelessness is a major issue in Washington, DC, and Pathways to Housing has a strong record of getting those in need into housing as a first step to addressing underlying issues with physical health, mental health, and substance abuse.
Education
In addition to PTOs/SHAs, I gave this year to Communities in Schools and 826DC.
Other
Finally, I'm always happy to make my annual contribution to the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA), which I've worked with in the past on several projects.
It's always a pleasure to support these wonderful organizations. I'm looking forward to expanding the depth and breadth of my knowledge of charities doing good work in 2021.