156 min listen
One: Holden Karnofsky on times philanthropy transformed the world & Open Phil's plan to do the same
One: Holden Karnofsky on times philanthropy transformed the world & Open Phil's plan to do the same
ratings:
Length:
156 minutes
Released:
Apr 12, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
The Green Revolution averted mass famine during the 20th century. The contraceptive pill gave women unprecedented freedom in planning their own lives. Both are widely recognised as scientific breakthroughs that transformed the world. But few know that those breakthroughs only happened when they did because of a philanthropist willing to take a risky bet on a new idea.Holden Karnofsky has been studying philanthropy’s biggest success stories because he’s Executive Director of Open Philanthropy, a major foundation which gives away over $200 million a year — and he’s hungry for big wins.In this conversation from 2018 Holden explains the philosophy of effective altruism and how he goes about searching for giving opportunities that can do the most good possible.Full transcript, related links, and summary of this interviewThis episode first broadcast on the regular 80,000 Hours Podcast feed on February 27, 2018. Some related episodes include:• #41 – David Roodman on incarceration, geomagnetic storms, & becoming a world-class researcher• #37 – GiveWell picks top charities by estimating the unknowable. James Snowden on how they do it.• #10 – Dr Nick Beckstead on how to spend billions of dollars preventing human extinctionSeries produced by Keiran Harris.
Released:
Apr 12, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (12)
One: Holden Karnofsky on times philanthropy transformed the world & Open Phil's plan to do the same: Both the Green Revolution and the contraceptive pill are widely recognised as scientific breakthroughs that transformed the world. But few know that those breakthroughs only happened when they did because of a philanthropist willing to take a risky bet on by Effective Altruism: An Introduction – 80,000 Hours