Worldview Investigations
The Worldview Investigations Team (WIT) tackles high-impact, philosophical, and empirical problems, transforming them into actionable insights that guide philanthropic resource allocation and strategic decision-making.
WIT focuses on high-priority questions that impact philanthropic priorities by transforming complex issues into practical solutions. Our work includes developing tools for cost-effectiveness analysis, addressing moral uncertainty, and investigating human-animal tradeoffs. Through both commissioned consultancy and independent research, we aim to provide decision-makers with clear, actionable information to optimize their resource allocation strategies.
Cost-Effectiveness
Tools
Maximizing philanthropic impact through smart investments.
WIT develops models and tools to estimate the cost-effectiveness of philanthropic projects, empowering stakeholders to transparently assess and prioritize opportunities for the greatest social impact.
Moral
Uncertainty
Navigating ethical dilemmas with clarity.
Our research explores how uncertainty around moral values, such as human-animal tradeoffs or risk attitudes, affects philanthropic decisions. We provide structured frameworks to guide stakeholders through these complex choices.
Decision
Relevance
Delivering insights tailored to real-world challenges.
We reverse-engineer solutions based on the kinds of decisions stakeholders must make, applying first-principles reasoning to ensure our insights are directly actionable and strategically effective.
Influence
& Impact
Shaping the conversation on ethics and strategy.
WIT’s work has been featured in prestigious academic journals and popular media outlets, reaching diverse audiences including governmental agencies, universities, and advocacy groups. Our findings have shaped conversations around ethics and strategic priorities in various sectors.
The Worldview Investigations Team (WIT) is dedicated to solving complex, high-impact problems that influence philanthropic priorities and resource allocation. Whether working on commissioned projects or pursuing independent research, WIT transforms philosophical and empirical issues into manageable, modellable problems. By focusing on decision relevance, we ensure that our insights are directly applicable to the choices faced by stakeholders, helping them optimize their strategies in areas like moral uncertainty and cost-effectiveness analysis.
WIT’s research outputs include tools that allow decision-makers to assess the cost-effectiveness of philanthropic projects, as well as frameworks for understanding the tradeoffs between human and animal welfare. Our work has been recognized in both academic and popular contexts, with mentions in prominent outlets like Ethics and Oxford University Press, as well as podcasts and public discussions. By providing transparent, data-driven insights, we empower organizations to engage in more informed, strategic deliberations.
Our work has also been featured in popular contexts, including:
- “Can We Compare Pain Across Species?” by Peter Singer
- 80,000 Hours Podcast, hosted by Luisa Rodriguez
- How I Learned to Love Shrimp Podcast, hosted by Amy Odene and James Ozden
Cross-Cause Effectiveness Model
How can donors compare the effectiveness of projects across cause areas.
Giving Portfolio Builder
How might your empirical assumptions and risk attitudes imapct your donations?
Moral Parliament Builder
How should you allocate philanthropic resources in the face of moral uncertainty?
“Never, in the fifty years in which I have been writing about ethics and animals, have I seen a project as philosophically and empirically daring as this attempt to develop a method for comparing welfare across species. Impressive and truly ground-breaking, what Fischer and his team have done has huge implications for our treatment of animals. Others will follow the trail they have blazed.”
— Peter Singer
Moral philosopher and author of Animal Liberation Now!
Meet the team
Latest Research Highlights
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