One of the first major activity of the EA Values Project (an initiative dedicated to promoting, developing, and integrating the core values of Effective Altruism across our community, workplaces, and individual commitments) is to document human values especially EA core values from members of the EA community during EA Global and EAGx.

Why This Activity?

As EA continues to grow, especially in a world rapidly evolving with technological advancement and AI, maintaining alignment on our core values is more important than ever. The goal of the activity is to document and understand the values that drive individuals, organizations, and regions within the EA community, starting with participants at EAG and EAGx conferences. We believe that the EAG and EAGx conferences will be a great venue to get people who are either new to Effective Altruism or have been in the movement for a long time. 

What Will This Activity Involve?

We will be gathering insights on the core values that people and organizations uphold in their work and decision-making processes. This will include:

• Conducting 1on1 with attendees who are:
  • New to Effective Altruism
  • Member of an EA group(s)
  • Founders or working in an EA affiliated organization
• Sending a short survey after the conference.
• Identifying regional variations on the core values.
• Exploring how EA organizations and individuals integrate values into their missions and operations.
• Collecting personal stories on how EA core values and principles shape decisions and actions.

How This Helps the EA Movement

By systematically documenting the values in different regions and EA communities, we aim to:

• Foster deeper community engagement around our shared core values and principles.
• Provide resources for individuals and organizations:
  • that can help align their actions with EA core values and principles.
  • improve and develop EAG and EAGx conferences.
  • improve and develop their own organization core values and principles.
• Strengthen the cohesion and identity of the global EA movement.
• Encourage reflection and development on how EA values evolve over time, across regions and contexts.

How You Can Participate

• Share Your Insights: If you’re attending any of the EAG or EAGx conferences:
  • we would love to hear your stories on how EA core values and principles influence your decisions, work and life in a 1on1 or even just a short chat.
  • participate in our surveys.
  • email us of any resources, information or story you believe we should include in this project.
• Volunteer: Help us:
  • meet more people in 1on1 at EAGx especially for people who speak the language of the region.
  • by sharing photos or videos of EA core values.

Let’s work together to document and reinforce the values that make EA a powerful force for good. We look forward to your thoughts, help and contributions. Feel free to comment or email us of any additional tasks, information or factor that we should consider, change or improve.