Doing Good Effectively Program

Hello,

Applications are now open for the Doing Good Effectively Program.

The Doing Good Effectively Program will focus on how to help others and benefit the world as effectively as possible. The program will examine issues such as poverty, animal welfare, global catastrophic risks, artificial intelligence, and intergenerational injustice. It will be held in person at Postane in Galata, Istanbul, every Saturday between 6 January and 27 January 2024, from 17:00 to 19:30. The application deadline is December 10.

The program will seek answers to the following questions:

• What does “doing good effectively” mean, and what does it look like in the real world? What consequences follow from the “expanding moral circle” and “radical empathy”?
• What are our responsibilities towards social inequalities? Is donating to charities an effective way to eliminate poverty? How to tell if a charity is effective? What is the “earn to donate” method?
• What is industrial animal husbandry and what are its harms? What is the relationship between practices such as veganism and vegetarianism and animal welfare? What can be done about animals in the wild? How should animal rights and animal welfare advocacy be done in terms of public communication?
• What is “long-termism”, which says that future generations should be taken into account in all political, economic and social decisions? How does intergenerational injustice arise?
• What are the problems that could create a risk of global disaster? What are the existential risks that could lead our civilization to extinction? What can be done at the level of institutions and states against these problems?
• Is artificial intelligence a danger to our world? What is AI governance? What are the current discussions in the field of artificial intelligence?
• Is it possible to put doing good effectively at the center of career choice? How do we choose careers that benefit the world?

The program will be led by Dr. Fırat Akova, a lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at Koç University. Although applications are open to everyone, university students are given priority. The program is free.

Hope to see you at Postane…