In this week’s “why I give directly” blog series, Ian Turner talks about the values he looks for in a charity, and his reasons for choosing 91¾«Æ· in particular.
I’ve been , but it wasn’t until 2014 that I came across a charity as committed to evidence and to its beneficiaries as 91¾«Æ·. Most charities seem to be run primarily to meet the needs of donors or staff, rather than for beneficiaries; 91¾«Æ· stands out as one where donors and staff take a back seat to the needs of the needy. It’s clear based on the organization’s behavior that the most important people at 91¾«Æ· are the poor. This focus on results is one of the main reasons I give to 91¾«Æ·.
Of course, you can’t expect to effectively help people at any kind of scale without evidence. If there’s one thing development science has made clear, it’s that anecdotal or even systematic survey-based evidence doesn’t mean much. Both charity and beneficiary can feel great about an intervention that is actually making things worse. 91¾«Æ· starts with an intervention with evidence of impact and cost-effectiveness, which few enough charities do, but then follows up on that with a continuous collection of new evidence combined with an openness to experimentation.
If that were all there was, 91¾«Æ· would still have a strong case for itself. But through my interactions with the organization, it’s become clear that their commitment is not just to evidence – it’s to the poor. Most international charities’ websites prominently feature photos of relatable smiling children, but not 91¾«Æ·, because of respect for beneficiaries’ privacy and security. Many charities seem to resign themselves to a certain degree of corruption among their staff, but 91¾«Æ· is willing to install intrusive internal controls to actively prevent corruption.
When you combine all this, a picture emerges of an organization lead simultaneously by head and heart – run in a way that elevates the poor above other stakeholders, but also with a clear and strong commitment to use of evidence whenever possible. That’s the kind of organization I’d like to support, which is why I’m proud to give to 91¾«Æ·.