This is fantastic news! This has been a huge gap. I know that Charity Entrepreneurship (now AIM) has highlighted Belgium as a top priority for their effective giving incubator; hopefully Effectief Geven will meet their needs. The collaboration with the Dutch group is a great step so you don't have to reinvent the wheel.
The tax-deductibility question is tough, but I'm sure there will be a way if enough people support it. I had hoped that there would be a way to make a charity like Effectief Geven itself a registered charity, but presumably you've already checked this.
In addition to the Roi Baudouin method to donate to AMF, I have found a way to donate to an effective direct-giving charity, Eight, based in the Netherlands and receive a fiscal attestation which works in Belgium. Might be interesting to add if you think they meet your criteria.
But I like the way the site is set up today, where you suggest that people can both support a tax-deductible charity and support an effective charity.
I live in Brussels, and if there's some way I can help, let me know. Full disclosure, I had applied to the CE Incubator, and my vision was to set up something like Effectief Geven and investigate making it a registered charity - but I much rather the idea of it being set up by (I'm guessing from your names) native Belgians!
Really thrilled by this post, this news has literally made my day. I am sure this will be an amazingly effective organisation.
Setting Effectief Geven up as a registered charity and working on the tax-deductability is indeed in the works, but we predict it to be quite likely that this will be such a long term process, that we don't want those plans to slow us down to get the main message out.
Eight is actually a Belgian organisation I think! They do amazing work, but I am not aware if they are/were in the process of being evaluated by a charity evaluator?
If charity registration in Belgium is likely to be a long term process, have you tried reaching out to the King Bedouin Foundation? It looks like they are already providing the direct disbursal of donor funds to the AMF and are broadly aligned in cause areas, so they might be willing to consider similar for the other overseas-registered charities you are prioritising.
Yes, that is a path that we are exploring, and we have a connection to them! However, the KBF (King Bedouin Foundation) main focus at the moment is to facilitate Belgian non-profit organizations or collaborate with similar national organizations within the EEA (European Economic Area) that also have their own national scope. AMF is approved in one of the countries in the EEA and therefor is supported by KBF.
Donations through KBF will make it tax-deductible for Belgians, but KBF will keep 5% as a transaction fee, which isn't ideal yet.
KBF is also the public-facing organization that sticks to the list of recognized Belgian non-profits, but they don't have direct authority of changing who is on the list of those entities, I believe. So we still have some further exploration to do on that front! :)
This is the third in a sequence of posts taken from my recent report: Why Did Environmentalism Become Partisan?
Summary
Rising partisanship did not make environmentalism more popular or politically effective. Instead, it saw flat or falling overall public opinion, fewer major legislative achievements, and fluctuating executive actions.
Public Opinion...
I think right now EAs might be making a significant mistake by paying insufficient attention to the political realm. As EAs we tend to figure out what’s most impactful for us to work on and focus hard. That’s great! But there are various actions that are ‘non-delegatable’ - the extent to which an individual can do the action is limited (like voting, going to a protest, making hard money contributions to particular campaigns). It might be useful if we were all more in the habit of doing variou...
New Video from AI in Context: The Fall and Rise of Sam Altman
If you want to skip straight to the video, here it is!
AI in Context is excited to be back with our fourth video! For those just hearing from us, we make videos for 80,000 Hours, telling stories about transformative AI...
We are thrilled to announce the launch of EffectiefGeven.be, the Belgian chapter of the global movement towards more effective giving. After 5 months of diligent work, crafting our vision, strategy, and both short- and long-term plans, we are ready to introduce our platform to the world.
What We're Bringing to the Table
Website & Newsletter: Our newly launched website serves as a central hub for all things related to effective giving in Belgium, offering an initial summary of insights, with plans on expanding with more relevant information. Accompanying the website, our newsletter will provide regular updates on our progress, along with communication about events.
Helpdesk & LinkedIn Presence: We understand the importance of accessible support and networking opportunities. Our helpdesk is here to provide guidance, answer any questions a donor might face. Additionally, our LinkedIn presence allows us to connect with a broader audience, facilitating professional networking and collaboration opportunities within the effective giving community.
Curated Cause Areas: A list of charities has been selected based on the recommendations of GiveWell, Founders Pledge, and Animal Charity Evaluators. In the first version, this list is identical to Doneer Effectief in the Netherlands, as we will start off by using their donation platform.
Short-term plans
Public Lectures & Networking Events: We are planning a series of public lectures and networking events designed to engage, inform, inspire, and promote donating behavior. These events will bring together individuals passionate about making a difference. From seasoned philanthropists to those new to the concept of effective giving, our events aim to foster a vibrant community united by a common goal of maximizing impact.
Tax Optimization: We understand that tax deductibility is important for many donors. The charities we offer on our website are not yet tax-deductible in Belgium. Belgium is a complex country, with an even more complex fiscal system… EA Belgium has undertaken quite some effort trying to solve this, but has, as of this moment, not been successful. There are currently some in-between solutions that we explain on our website (in Dutch). Our plan is to keep pushing this tax optimization forward, and to put some extra pressure on government departments by gathering public support for the idea of effective giving. The end goal is to make donations to Effectief Geven and its charities, tax-deductible.
A hybrid donation platform: In collaboration with Doneer Effectief, the Dutch effective giving initiative, we will be creating a different theme on top of the preexisting platform of Effectief Geven. This means that we don't need to create our own platform in the first stages.
We would also like to extend our gratitude to all the national Effective Giving organizations that we contacted to get us up to speed and who helped brainstorm with us (Brazil, Canada, Spain, Denmark, Germany, Estonia and Norway). Special thanks to GWWC, the 10% club in the Netherlands, and especially Doneer Effectief in the Netherlands.
Get Involved
As we embark on this journey, we recognize the importance of community support and collaboration. Whether you're looking to contribute financially, partner with us, or participate in events, there are several ways you can get involved and make a real difference in the way we approach philanthropy in Belgium:
Funding: Securing our first round of funding is critical to laying an initial, solid foundation for our operations and creating some decent runway. We are currently looking to raise our first funds to be able to rely on a full-time director, who can keep pushing us forward for the next year, from developing our platform to community outreach. Whether you're an individual passionate about making a difference or a (local) organization looking to support impactful causes, your contribution can make a huge impact. Other Effective Giving Initiatives have multiplied their funding by a factor of 15 to 30 (in the case of Effektiv Spenden in Germany and in the case of GWWC, respectively).
Collaboration: We are eager to connect with local non-profit organizations and potential ambassadors. If you have connections to individuals, organizations, or communities that have an potential overlap with our mission, we would be grateful for introductions.
Local non-profit organizations: Our goal is to explore collaborative opportunities with organizations that partly align with our mission of effective giving. If you know relevant local organizations, feel free to connect us with them.
Ambassadors: This involves identifying well-known figures in Belgium who align with the values, goals, and target audience of our initiative and inviting them to represent or endorse our organization and mission.
Events: Events will be our experiment to see if we can build up a local grass-roots audience. Our target audience is people who already donate to a good cause and who are open to rational empathy. We will try this approach on a city-level first, starting in Ghent, and see if growing a local community is possible and valuable, both for the community and for us as an organization. We would do this on two levels:
Piggy-backing on already existing events: As this would require the least resources. By reaching out to other non-profit organizations, we are aiming to expand our network and reach our target audience in a cost-effective way.
Self-hosted events: Again, in collaboration with other non-profit organizations, we would host panel discussions with non-profit leaders. In order to introduce ourselves to their target audience, as other non-profits have a very similar target audience.
Volunteering: Passionate about making a difference and have some time to spare? We're looking for volunteers to help with a variety of tasks, from administrative support to event organization, content creation, analysis, and more.
Just a Chat: Sometimes, a simple conversation can spark great ideas or forge meaningful connections. If you're interested in what we do, have questions, or just want to get to know us, we're all ears!
This is fantastic news! This has been a huge gap. I know that Charity Entrepreneurship (now AIM) has highlighted Belgium as a top priority for their effective giving incubator; hopefully Effectief Geven will meet their needs. The collaboration with the Dutch group is a great step so you don't have to reinvent the wheel.
The tax-deductibility question is tough, but I'm sure there will be a way if enough people support it. I had hoped that there would be a way to make a charity like Effectief Geven itself a registered charity, but presumably you've already checked this.
In addition to the Roi Baudouin method to donate to AMF, I have found a way to donate to an effective direct-giving charity, Eight, based in the Netherlands and receive a fiscal attestation which works in Belgium. Might be interesting to add if you think they meet your criteria.
But I like the way the site is set up today, where you suggest that people can both support a tax-deductible charity and support an effective charity.
I live in Brussels, and if there's some way I can help, let me know. Full disclosure, I had applied to the CE Incubator, and my vision was to set up something like Effectief Geven and investigate making it a registered charity - but I much rather the idea of it being set up by (I'm guessing from your names) native Belgians!
Really thrilled by this post, this news has literally made my day. I am sure this will be an amazingly effective organisation.
Veel succes!
Ey Denis,
Loving the enthusiasm!
Setting Effectief Geven up as a registered charity and working on the tax-deductability is indeed in the works, but we predict it to be quite likely that this will be such a long term process, that we don't want those plans to slow us down to get the main message out.
Eight is actually a Belgian organisation I think! They do amazing work, but I am not aware if they are/were in the process of being evaluated by a charity evaluator?
Drop us a line on [email protected] will ya? Would love a chat!
If charity registration in Belgium is likely to be a long term process, have you tried reaching out to the King Bedouin Foundation? It looks like they are already providing the direct disbursal of donor funds to the AMF and are broadly aligned in cause areas, so they might be willing to consider similar for the other overseas-registered charities you are prioritising.
Hey David!
Yes, that is a path that we are exploring, and we have a connection to them! However, the KBF (King Bedouin Foundation) main focus at the moment is to facilitate Belgian non-profit organizations or collaborate with similar national organizations within the EEA (European Economic Area) that also have their own national scope. AMF is approved in one of the countries in the EEA and therefor is supported by KBF.
Donations through KBF will make it tax-deductible for Belgians, but KBF will keep 5% as a transaction fee, which isn't ideal yet.
KBF is also the public-facing organization that sticks to the list of recognized Belgian non-profits, but they don't have direct authority of changing who is on the list of those entities, I believe. So we still have some further exploration to do on that front! :)