The aim of this conference is to speed the translation of interdisciplinary insights about our common humanity into breakthrough innovations that help us flourish together amid modern challenges. We invite professionals whose work contributes to the creation and sharing of new knowledge and innovations for human flourishing, regardless of discipline. This includes leading scientists, policymakers, […]

If you're feeling overwhelmed by all of the important problems in the world, and you'd like to make a difference, you're not alone. Effective Giving Day is designed to help you find causes that need the most support right now, learn how to support them and have a massive impact! You will also have the […]

The Nippon Foundation will launch the Asia Philanthropy Congress in Tokyo on November 19, 2022. It aims to leverage our extensive network to build a platform that will seek solutions to social problems through cross-sectoral collaboration. It will also provide a venue for setting agendas to address Asia’s social issues as well as facilitating dialogue […]

The Happier Lives Institute recently completed a cost-effectiveness analysis concluding that StrongMinds’ depression treatment is 9x more cost-effective than direct cash transfers for improving the life of an individual as well as their entire household. Join Dr Michael Plant, Founder and Director of the Happier Lives Institute, for a discussion about the Happier Lives Institute […]

Most people agree that happiness matters, even if they value other things too. Thanks to the growing field of subjective wellbeing research, it is now possible to work out the best ways to make people happier in a scientifically rigorous way. But such work has only just begun - it is new both to effective […]

To celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month, the Happier Lives Institute and Effective Altruism Philippines bring you Measuring Good Better, a virtual talk and Q&A about mental health and effective altruism. The main speaker will be Dr Michael Plant, Founder and Director of the Happier Lives Institute.

Join Michael Plant, the Founder and Director of the Happier Lives Institute and Sean Mayberry, StrongMinds Founder & CEO, for a discussion about HLI's recent research and how it disrupts prevailing thinking in the world of charitable giving.

Sam and Joy participated in a fireside chat discussing their work on effective mental health and wellbeing. The EA for Christians Annual Conference brings together Christians who are passionate about using reason and evidence to tackle the world’s most pressing problems.

Joel McGuire presented our comparison of the cost-effectiveness of cash transfers and psychotherapy in terms of subjective wellbeing and mental health.

Panelists: Joel McGuire, Research Analyst at Happier Lives Institute Laura B. Rawlings, Lead Economist at Human Capital Project, World Bank Prof. Frank Schilbach, Associate Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Prof. Lisa Gennetian, Associate Professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University Moderator: Renos Vakis, Lead Economist at eMBeD, […]

Joel McGuire presented our systematic review and meta-analysis on the impact of cash transfers on subjective wellbeing and mental health in low- and middle-income countries.

Michael Plant provides a brief overview of the main approaches to aggregating individual advantage - utilitarianism, egalitarianism, prioritarianism, and leximin. Social scientists are not very familiar with this literature, even though you cannot use subjective wellbeing measures without (implicitly) making a choice. The use of subjective wellbeing measures is implicitly utilitarian: the best outcome is the […]

Recordings from a two-day workshop on fundamental issues in the measurement of subjective wellbeing.

In several countries, lockdowns have reduced the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and thereby of deaths from COVID-19. Despite this, they have been controversial.  Some claim that they violate basic rights or freedoms.  This seminar will focus on a different objection: do the benefits of lockdowns outweigh the costs?  Asking that question leads to others: […]

Even though mental disorders account for a considerable burden of disease globally and appear to strongly impact individuals’ subjective well-being, the EA community has spent relatively little effort on identifying the best giving opportunities within the area of mental health. This talk provides an introduction to the Happier Lives Institute’s Mental Health Programme Evaluation Project […]