A fair number of this would fall into a bucket of charity's impact on larger systemic change. Seemingly cost effective activities could result in an overall negative effect, food donations destroying local agriculture as an example. While seemingly wasteful interventions, a well organised banquet with right government official, can have an absolutely outsized second order positive effect though policy change.
These are very difficult to measure, although AI may open possibilities.
Not sure also how timing features here, a "wasteful" intervention delivered on time in a crisis can have much larger positive effect then a much better organised effort later. Delivering water to freshly displaced population in a desert, even by most ineffective methods like water tracking can have the highest ratio of life's saved per dollar donated.
A fair number of this would fall into a bucket of charity's impact on larger systemic change. Seemingly cost effective activities could result in an overall negative effect, food donations destroying local agriculture as an example. While seemingly wasteful interventions, a well organised banquet with right government official, can have an absolutely outsized second order positive effect though policy change.
These are very difficult to measure, although AI may open possibilities.
Not sure also how timing features here, a "wasteful" intervention delivered on time in a crisis can have much larger positive effect then a much better organised effort later. Delivering water to freshly displaced population in a desert, even by most ineffective methods like water tracking can have the highest ratio of life's saved per dollar donated.