Emily Allen ‘22
Guest Writer
One for the World was founded in 2014 by two Wharton MBAs, Kate Epstein and Josh McCann, who wanted to find a way to make charitable giving more effective. Kate and Josh wanted to make sure that when they donated to a charity fighting extreme poverty abroad, their donation was being used to help others in the most efficient way possible. With more than one and a half million nonprofits in the United States alone, it can be incredibly difficult to identify the organizations that create the most impact for those in need. One for the World is here to alleviate that problem by changing the way people participate in charitable giving in order to end extreme poverty around the world. Luke Versweyveld ’22 and Emily Allen ’22 started the One for the World–UVA Law chapter to bring the organization’s mission to the UVA Law community in the hopes of encouraging fellow law students to factor in charitable giving to their future legal careers.
We accomplish this mission by educating students and young professionals about charities that channel donations into real results that help fight extreme poverty. One for the World encourages students to take the 1 percent pledge: agreeing to donate 1 percent of their post-grad income to One for the World’s charities. Since the organization’s founding in 2014, student-led chapters of One for the World on campuses nationwide have donated $750,000 and counting to effective charities. In the 2018-19 academic year alone, One for the World chapters motivated more than 1,550 students across the country to take the 1 percent pledge.
To find the most effective charities, One for the World partners with GiveWell, a charity evaluator that uses a data-driven approach to identify the world’s most effective charities, specifically where charitable dollars go the farthest. The selection process for the One for the World charitable portfolio has three main stages. First, GiveWell makes yearly revisions to their Sixteen Top and Standout Charities list based on evidence of effectiveness, room for more funding, cost-effectiveness, and transparency. Second, One for the World researches university campuses to determine the relative appeal of GiveWell’s Top Charities to potential donors. Third, GiveWell and One for the World collaborate to decide their final charitable portfolio.
One for the World charities span numerous countries and regions, with frontline work being done in local and on-the-ground operations. Our charities and their evaluators go to great lengths to ensure that treatments and interventions are as beneficial as possible to the communities they serve. Additionally, One for the World charities work in close partnership with local governments, NGOs, and communities. Some charitable organizations that One for the World backs include the Against Malaria Foundation, Helen Keller International, and the Food Fortification Initiative. All One for the World-sponsored charities have been selected as the most effective in fighting extreme poverty based on extensive research and analysis, so donors can feel confident that their charitable giving will make a difference.
When it comes to charitable giving and fighting extreme poverty worldwide, One for the World takes the guesswork out of philanthropy by helping students and young professionals direct their charitable giving to the nonprofits with the highest proven ROI. You can become involved by taking the pledge: Join the significant giving movement by donating 1 percent of your post-grad salary to One for the World. You can make the pledge at https://www.1fortheworld.org/donate. If you would like to learn more, we will be hosting “Giving Lunches” where you can hear about our mission over lunch—on us! Feel free to reach out to Emily Allen (eha3ye@virginia.edu) or Luke Versweyveld (ljv3hq@virginia.edu) for more information.
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eha3ye@virginia.edu