Raising for Effective Giving

Raising for Effective Giving

Logo as of May 2016
Abbreviation	REG
Formation	3 July 2014
Founders	Liv Boeree, Igor Kurganov, Philipp Gruissem, Effective Altruism Foundation
Founded at	2014 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, United States
Type	Charity fundraiser, NGO
Parent organization	Effective Altruism Foundation
Website	reg-charity.org

Raising for Effective Giving (REG) is a charity fundraising nonprofit. Its members consist mostly of professional poker players and financial investors who pledge to donate a percentage of their income to selected charities.^[1]

Philosophy

REG was founded based on the view that in order to reduce suffering in the developing world, people in the developed world should donate to particularly effective charity organizations. REG donates to, and recommends, selected charities based on their cost-effectiveness. One criterion in the cost-effectiveness evaluations is how much money the charity requires to save a life.^[2]

REG's outreach focuses on professional poker players, because it believes that they have strong quantitative skills, making them better suited for REG's messages about cost-effectiveness.^[2][3] In addition, poker is a large industry with substantial monetary prizes.^[4]

Activities

There are 87 members of REG, who have each pledged to donate at least 2% of their income.^[5] Recipients included Against Malaria Foundation, the Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI), the Center for Applied Rationality (CFAR), GiveDirectly, GiveWell, Schistosomiasis Control Initiative, The Humane League, Mercy For Animals, the Great Ape Project, and the Nonhuman Rights Project.^[6]

REG members wear patches with the name of the organization at poker tournaments, to advertise their commitment to donate their winnings.^[2][7] Two REG members, Martin Jacobson and Jorryt van Hoof, were among the November Nine that played at the 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event final table.^[8] Jacobson placed first, earning him the title of poker world champion and winning $10,000,000, of which $250,000 was subsequently donated through REG.^[9][10]

International coverage and reception

Additional coverage within the international poker community includes Bluff Europe,^[11][12] PokerNews,^[13][14] among others.

References

1. "Raising for Effective Giving". Retrieved 8 September 2014.
2. Goldstein, Jacob (24 December 2014). "Poker Players Use Science To Effectively Give To Charities". NPR. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
3. Mittag, Sebastian (1 May 2015). "Rumprassen ist nicht mein Ding" (in German). Sport1 Germany. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
4. Mittag, Sebastian (26 August 2015). "Sie könnten versuchen zu flirten" (in German). Sport1. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
5. Zürcher, Christian (15 November 2014). "Die Robin Hood des Pokers" (in German). Tages-Anzeiger. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
6. "Poker Players Give to Charities Through "Raising for Effective Giving"". 2014-07-11. Retrieved 2017-04-05.
7. Rinkemo, Remka (8 November 2014). "Unlucky Timing for Van Hoof". ESPN. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
8. Fast, Erik. "Meet The 2014 World Series of Poker November Nine". cardplayer.com. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
9. "Martin Jacobson Wins the 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event for $10,000,000!". pokernews.com. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
10. "Martin Jacobson Donates $250,000 to Initiatives of REG". Casino News Daily. 2015-02-11. Retrieved 2017-04-05.
11. "Raising for Effective Giving". BLUFF Europe. 3 September 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
12. "Pros Make Donating +EV". www.bluffeurope.com. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
13. "EPT10 Grand Final: Giving Back to Gain More". www.pokernews.com. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
14. "PokerNews Podcast Episode #237 feat. Philipp Gruissem and Igor Kurganov". Retrieved 4 October 2014.