| Our November newsletter shares several updates we hope are helpful for you this giving season: – Update on past donations and operational changes – Vancouver effective giving celebration on Sunday, December 3 – New Giving What We Can Groups – Articles and reflections on effective giving – RC Forward team updates There’s a lot of info below, and we’d be delighted to answer your questions and hear your feedback. Email: [email protected] (or just reply to this email) Book a call: link |
| Thank you |
| Our work is several steps removed from the people and animals we’re all trying to help, and impact can feel abstract. Your dedication to making a meaningful difference with your donations motivates us on a daily basis. This year, we’re especially grateful for your patience and feedback as we navigate our operational changes to strengthen our partnerships and honour your donation recommendations. |
| Update on past donations and operational changes |
| This update is organized into 5 sections: Email updates based on your particular donation recommendations Updates on each RC Forward Fund High-level update on donations made October 2022 onwards Updates on our operational changes Options for new donations this giving season |
| 1. Email updates based on your particular donation recommendations |
| It has been 4 months since we informed you of RC Forward’s donation delay (in disbursing past gifts) and donation pause (for collecting new gifts). Please note that any gift made before October 1, 2022 has already been directed based on your recommendations, and has not been affected. Approximately $5 million in donations raised October 2022 to July 2023 were originally impacted by the delay and pause. This total is split across recommendations for 61 projects (5 funds, and 56 organizations). We have been working on our operational changes since we last updated you, and have also been collaborating with our partner organizations and charity evaluator partners that we’re very grateful to work with. Our goal has been to keep everyone informed and to co-create a plan to respond to the changes that is acceptable for everyone. We’ve started emailing donors updates about the current status of particular donation recommendations based on the progress we have made. Here are the emails we’ve sent so far: Past donations recommended for GiveDirectly: Read here Past donations for the RC Forward Global Health Fund: Read here Global Health Fund Impact Report: Read here These updates seem valuable to distribute but they are taking some time to pull together, and we apologize for the delay. If you haven’t heard from us yet, keep reading, as the below section titled “3. High-level update on donations made October 2022 onwards” is hopefully helpful. The situation is changing regularly, please email us or check our Donate page for the latest news. Updating your recommendations: We understand you might wish to update a past gift recommendation to instead support a project that we can direct gifts to more immediately. The projects we can support more immediately are those featured on our updated Donate page. Please reach out if you’d like to discuss. |
| 2. Updates on each RC Forward Fund |
| RC Forward has 5 Funds. We are very fortunate to collaborate with the expert evaluators that advise each Fund, without whom the Funds wouldn’t exist. Below is an update on each Fund in response to our operational changes. RC Forward Global Health Fund: Delayed This Fund is advised by GiveWell. Donations raised October 2022 onwards have not yet been directed in support of a high-impact global health project, due to the significant constraints we face that limit the projects we can currently support. We are working with GiveWell to identify a project we can support, while prioritizing cost-effectiveness and expected lives saved. An in-depth update is here. The Global Health Fund is accepting new gifts. RC Forward Human Empowerment Fund: Delayed This Fund is advised by GiveWell. Donations raised October 2022 onwards have not yet been directed in support of a high-impact global health project, due to the significant constraints we face that limit the projects we can currently support. Due to our constraints, the Human Empowerment Fund is being advised in the same way as the Global Health Fund. This means that the reasoning in the Global Health Fund update (here) applies for the Human Empowerment Fund, for which we have not published a separate update yet. The Human Empowerment Fund is not accepting new gifts. RC Forward Climate Change Fund: In progress This Fund is advised by Founders Pledge. It currently seems likely that donations raised October 2022 onwards will fund a high-impact climate change mitigation opportunity that fits within our current partnership approach and limitations. We are in discussion with Founders Pledge to finalize the recommendation and move forward. We will update you as more information becomes available. Note: We have also been eagerly waiting to update you on the impact of your donations to the Climate Change Fund from October 2021 to September 2022. Thanks to your support, a decarbonization project with high potential for significant impact was supported in collaboration with Founders Pledge Climate Change Fund and Effektiv Spenden. We will share more information as soon as we have permission to do so, and we appreciate your patience. The Climate Change Fund is not accepting new gifts. RC Forward Animal Welfare Fund: In progress This Fund is advised by Animal Charity Evaluators (ACE). This Fund update is the longest because in response to our operational changes, we are working on a new Fund strategy with ACE. Donations raised October 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023: These gifts were allocated per our former Fund strategy, whereby all gifts raised in a quarter were split equally between current ACE Top Charities. For the relevant period, ACE Top Charities were Wild Animal Initiative, Good Food Institute, The Humane League, and Faunalytics; the total raised over this period was split equally as recommendations for these 4 organizations. Each of these organizations have responded differently to our operational changes. Consequently, 50% of gifts raised in the Fund over this period have been directed, and the other 50% remain allocated per the Fund strategy, but has not been directed yet. Donations raised July 2023 onwards: We are working on a new Fund strategy with ACE. The new strategy will work within our current partnership approach, so that we can regularly direct gifts from the Fund in support of high-impact animal welfare projects based on ACE’s Recommended Charities. So far, 3 of ACE’s 11 Recommended Charities have established partnerships with CAF Canada. This is important, because it means that new donations to the Fund can be directed in support of any of these new partnerships based on ACE’s guidance and understanding of the highest impact opportunities at a particular time. We will update our Donate page as soon as we finalize this new Fund strategy with ACE. The Animal Welfare Fund is accepting new gifts. RC Forward Long-Term Future Fund: In progress This Fund is advised by an external expert evaluator in this space. We expect that the remaining Fund balance will be disbursed in 2023. We are working with the Fund’s external evaluator to finalize a recommendation and will share more info as it becomes available. The Long-Term Future Fund is not accepting new gifts. |
| 3. High-level update on donations made October 2022 onwards |
| It has been 4 months since we informed you of RC Forward’s donation delay (in disbursing past gifts) and donation pause (for collecting new gifts). Approximately $5 million in donations raised October 2022 to July 2023 were originally impacted by the delay and pause. This total is split across recommendations for 61 projects (5 funds, and 56 organizations). Progress has been different for each of the 61 projects. Our operational changes have presented challenges for projects and we respect and support each project’s preferences and response. The table below shares progress as of November 22, 2023, and the accompanying proportion of impacted donations. Progress changes weekly; check our Donate page for the latest. You’ll have an easier time viewing the table details in our public gift update spreadsheet here. |
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| 4. Updates on our operational changes |
| We have been making progress on our operational changes since we last updated you. We’ve made significant changes to how we solicit gifts, how we communicate about our work, and the structure of our partnerships. We’ve also been streamlining our operations and completing other work behind the scenes to strengthen our organization. The most significant update is that we’ve formally requested permission from the government to expand our areas of charitable work and the activities we do to achieve our mission. We expect it will still be several months until the changes are complete. The timeline depends to a significant extent on government processing timelines, though of course our team’s expediency plays a role as well. These changes remain a key priority for us and we continue to actively work on them. Our goals continue to be to launch stronger partnerships and to honour all donation recommendations, to maximize your charitable impact. |
| 5. Options for new donations this giving season |
| We’re empathetic to feelings in response to the operational changes RC Forward is still navigating, and we feel sensitive about promoting making any new donations. We share the following info about current high-impact giving options in Canada solely to keep you in the loop in case you’re wondering what your options are or are potentially planning a gift: As we shared in the above table, 6 RC Forward partner charities have so far established a partnership with CAF Canada, another Canadian charity. To recommend support to any of these new partnerships in global health, animal welfare, or climate change mitigation projects, please learn more on our updated Donate page. Against Malaria Foundation, a GiveWell Top Charity, is also a Canadian registered charity and accepts online donations here. We expect to add a few more options to our Donate page in the next few weeks. |
| Vancouver giving celebration: Sunday, Dec 3! |
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| If you’re in Vancouver, do you know about the new Giving What We Can Group? For its first event in late October, 10 attendees shared casual conversation and good company over drinks in an East Van brewery. The 2nd event is coming up soon! Hosted by Group Lead Spencer Ericson, there will be snacks, dessert, games, and conversation in a casual setting. The event is organized as a Pledge Party to celebrate folks who have taken the Giving What We Can Pledge to give 10% of their income to highly effective charities. My colleague, SK, will also be attending! Everyone is very welcome, regardless of familiarity with the Pledge, Giving What We Can, or effective giving. If you’re in the area we hope you’ll consider joining in. When: Sunday, December 3, 2-5 PM More info and RSVP link: Here |
| Consider starting a Giving What We Can Group |
| Want to meet other folks in your city interested in effective giving? Giving What We Can’s new community strategy aims to provide people with helpful and enjoyable opportunities to connect with others that are committed to making a meaningful difference with their resources. Giving What We Can is actively seeking people to launch additional groups in Canadian cities – support and guidance is available. Learn more on GWWC’s community strategy page. |
| New effective giving articles and reflections |
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| Below I share a few pieces of content on effective giving that I’ve found informative or inspiring: Dr. Neil Buddy Shah decided to take the veil of ignorance seriously while in university. In an engaging talk, the medical doctor, economist, and former GiveWell Managing Director reflects on his experience in the global health sector and his vision for how it will grow. Animal Charity Evaluators has announced its 11 2023 Recommended Charities, including 6 that are new recommendations and 5 carried over from 2022. Giving What We Can members share their personal experiences with what they’ve found difficult when discussing high-impact charity, and how they’ve navigated these challenges, including concerns around coming across as extreme, preachy, or boastful. (Giving What We Can’s in-depth guide to talking about effective altruism is also great.) In GiveWell’s new article We look at specific opportunities, not just general interventions, it explains how and why the same program implemented at different times and in different locations and contexts can vary significantly in estimated cost-effectiveness. The EA Forum has been running a Giving Season 2023 celebration, with focused activities and weekly content themes through November and December. Its curated collection of “classic” effective giving posts might be a good place to dive in. As part of Giving Season 2023, Lizka from the EA Forum team reflects on why she hasn’t taken the GWWC pledge (yet), and Alexander reflects on 10 years of earning to give. |
| RC Forward team updates |
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| The RC Forward team continues to be SoonKhen (SK) and myself, Megan. We’ve been sharing responsibility for strategic decisions and day-to-day operations for the last several months. With the support of the Board, we’ve updated each of our titles to Co-Executive Director to better reflect our staffing and operational structure. I am extremely appreciative to SK for his commitment to RC Forward since joining us in May 2022 and through the critical period that’s followed. SK’s responsibilities have significantly changed and expanded, and complement what I’m able to offer after my 3 years on the team serving across several roles. Among the traits I most appreciate in SK include his optimism, flexibility, kindness, and get-things-done attitude. It has been a pleasure and privilege to grow together as colleagues and as a team. Supporting our donors is a highlight of the job for both of us. It’s been wonderful to get to know many of you this year, and we appreciate your feedback and perspectives. If the idea of a chat appeals to you–to get your questions answered, discuss your past donations, or get any type of help we can provide–please book a time here. We’re grateful for the opportunity to support you this holiday season. We plan to reach out again with another newsletter in December. Thanks so much for your attention today. Best wishes, Megan and SK at RC Forward |
