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Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

EAGxBerlin 2022

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Running order

5m Welcome

20m Talk

25m Q&A (make a note of any questions during the talk!)

5m Endnotes

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Preface

  • Who’s in the room?
  • This is an EAG-first!
  • Intentions for the session

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What is branding?

Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

EAGxBerlin 2022

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Does Effective Altruism have a brand?

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EAGxBerlin 2022

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Earning to give

Existential risk

Bay area

images of space because I can’t think how else to visualise the topic I’m writing about

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The history �of design and branding in EA

Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

EAGxBerlin 2022

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The term ‘effective altruism’ was coined

2011

Giving What We Can and 80,000 Hours needed to hire staff. The ‘Centre for Effective Altruism’ was the umbrella organisation founded to fulfil this purpose.

The name was decided after lengthy deliberation.

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2013

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2014

Origins unknown

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2015

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2015

Designed by Matt Fallshaw (unverified)

Origins unknown

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2017

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Summary

  • The brand has evolved quite organically, with few key decision points
  • The visual identity as it is today was defined ~2015, and has evolved little since then
  • There has never been a systematic, in-depth attempt to define a visual identity or style guide for EA

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The current state of design and branding in EA

Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

EAGxBerlin 2022

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2015

Designed by Matt Fallshaw (unverified)

Origins unknown

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Local groups

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Local groups visual identity

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UserFriendly scoping survey

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Recent developments

Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

EAGxBerlin 2022

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Recent developments

  • UserFriendly launched
  • All In Awe scaling up
  • GWWC created new visual identity
  • CEA hiring Shakeel Hashim (The Economist) as Head of Communications
  • Recent marketing campaign for WWOTF
  • ‘EA is about to get lots more attention’ EA Forum post
  • EA Creatives & Communicators slack channel
  • EA Agencies slack channel
  • Should We Studio formed with $2.3m grant from OpenPhilanthropy

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Does it matter?

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EAGxBerlin 2022

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What action can/should we take?

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EAGxBerlin 2022

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What action can/should we take?

  • Increase supply of high-quality creative + strategic services available for EA orgs to hire.
  • Educate EA orgs on the impact of design + branding, and how to solicit this kind of work.
  • Produce resources and infrastructure to support people and orgs working on design + branding work.
  • Convene and encourage creatives in EA to invest in their skills and offer their services to EA orgs.
  • Create a scalable EA creative agency.
  • Create a centralised EA-wide brand strategy.
  • Allow the brand to continue to evolve organically - it’s best that way!

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FAQs

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EAGxBerlin 2022

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FAQs

  • How did you discover EA?
  • What is your background?
  • How did you get work as a freelancer?
  • How can I leverage my creative skills to make a positive impact?
  • Why aren’t there many jobs for creatives in EA?
  • How can I hire somebody to help my project / organisation with our design / marketing / communications needs?

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Q&A

Design and Branding in Effective Altruism

EAGxBerlin 2022

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Key takeaways

  • Look around you… many others interested in these topics! We should convene and discuss more often.
  • There is a high demand for quality creative services in EA - but low supply.
  • The EA brand, and the brands of many EA orgs and local groups, suffer due to poor design + strategy.
  • The design and branding of EA will need to mature significantly in order to command the authority it deserves.
  • The potential for impact through design and branding in EA is great, due to their powerful multiplier effects.

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Endnotes

What’s next?

  • In this room @ 11:30�What Do We Owe The Future? - Michael Plant
  • Want to talk more?
    • Office Hours @ 11:30-12:30 in Pasteur Room
    • Connect with me on Swapcard

Take action

  • Resources for designers (eadesigner.co.uk)
    • People / agencies offering design work
    • Meetups and forums for EA designers
    • Resources
    • Slides for this talk!
  • Opportunities:
    • CEA interested in designers
    • 80k Full-stack web developer
    • UserFriendly looking for creative generalist
    • Should We Studio hiring for animators
    • Many orgs are eager to hire freelancers - they just don’t always know what to ask for!