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Weird conferences, being deaf, How To GiveWell, meet-up
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Weird conferences, being deaf, How To GiveWell, meet-up

I went to a great, pretty weird, intense conference, Effective Altruism Global. New podcast with Sophie Woolley,a theatre maker steeped in Deaf culture. Next meet-up at Chatham House on 28 April, Ldn.

Benjamin Yeoh
Apr 24
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I went to a great, pretty weird, intense conference, Effective Altruism Global. Also hosted a small sustainability dinner. New podcast with Sophie Woolley a theatre maker steeped in Deaf culture as well as hearing culture.  Next meet-up at Chatham House on 28 April, London, do come. (Message me or register below)

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
Meet-up at Chatham House, 28 April, 5.30 – 9p. Sustainability minded folk, or the curious do come! Topic: How can people reconnect with nature. Drinks + mingle. Register direct or DM me.
Sustainability Accelerator Speakeasy: How can people reconnect with nature?This event brings together people from different backgrounds to explore how to develop a more sustainable relationship with nature.lnkd.in

April 21st 2022

  • EAG: intense, weird, great conference

  • Sustainability Dinner: district heating; govt <-> corporate link

  • Sophie Woolley podcast: going deaf -> hearing

  • Links: Climate, Friend raising seed money for salons,

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
Listening to @willmacaskill at @Effect_Altruism conference speak on how to make the most impact.
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April 16th 2022

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I view EA (Effective Atruism) as one of a very small number of influential movements to appear in the last 20 years and of (some) global influence.  

Arguably, the Sunflower movement that lead to Audrey Tang being digital minister in Taiwan has been significant but it is only in one country.

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
I am so impressed by Audrey Tang. How Taiwan’s Unlikely Digital Minister Hacked the Pandemic | WIRED
How Taiwan’s Unlikely Digital Minister Hacked the PandemicAudrey Tang says tech can build trust, tame misinformation, and strengthen democracy. Her plan might even work in the US.wired.com

April 22nd 2022

XR / Greta / School strike for Climate, and MeToo have been broadly global (and much larger) but mostly single issue (noted this is simplified and there is intersectionality), Black Lives Matter is not, IMO, global.   

EA is multi-issue while under a framework of “doing the most good” this then encompasses suffering (animal welfare, global poverty), climate, pandemics, AI (existential risks), healthcare, economics, institutional decision making (governance, expected value, charity and policy evaluation). 

Broadly, I am “pluralist” and “syncretic”. Fancy terms for being able to hold many views, some times conflicting and appreciate they may all contain some truth and value.  And so, I’d not I an “EA” but I find some of their thinking valuable and useful.

There were a few pretty astonishing facets to EAG (the Global conference for EA). 

First, I have never (maybe with a possible exception of XR) seen such a concentration of high energy, super smart, under 40s, under 30s people really focused on doing good (1500+ people at the conference). Every interaction I had was thoughtful.  (XR suffers from many competing ideologies eg degrowth vs markets; and limited philosophical framework).

Second, there were so many people focussed on building things (ideas, projects, companies) and having those things pointed in the direction of doing good. I saw a lot of overlap with what VCs might be doing or thinking, but often without a profit motive. In fact, much of what I heard in the some of the talks would be equally valid for start-up companies. (I spoke to a founder of a charity working on family planning in Nigeria, one founder on lead pollution, another on a mental health app; people studying and writing about progress; those working on existential risk…)

A couple of other observations. EAs speak their own lingo. Some are unique like x-risks and s-risks. Some are unique but can be confused with ordinary language eg long-termism (for EA this can be 1000s or 10,000s years, which ordinary people mostly don’t consider). Some are crossed over from other disciplines: revealed preferences, bayesenian probability, probability weighting statements, expected value, “epistemic honesty” [I somehow liked this one]. The conference blurb does suggest the conference is for those with EA understanding, but I did reflect if on occasion plain English would be quicker and better understood.  I was asked what’s your probability estimate of nuclear winter / man-made pandemic / rogue AI ending human civilisation by 2100? This was expected by me, and having a view and why is a useful starting point for a conversation.

EAG was very boy heavy. Presumably as Econ, philosophy, compsci are boy heavy disciplines, and EAG had a relative underweight in arts and culture (partly I guess as hard to measure arts impact).

If you are interested in impact, this movement I view as punching heavily above its weight.

I’d also observe that certain EA aligned people have recently become billionaires. This has led to an influx of money for EA type projects. Sam Bankman-Fried followed an EA plan: make a lot of money then give it away, and the plans success (SBF being one of the richest <30s on the planet, though he is now just >30) is another point in the EA community favour (although the optics of so much money is now debated within EA).

If you’d like to know what a bunch of impactful young people are doing. Check them out. Main site is here and EA will give you a free book if you are interested - link here. I think they’ve learned that trick from religions….


I hosted a dinner with a sustainability theme. Lots to ponder. I would highlight three ideas coming out of the conversation. These brief notes (probably only of interest to specialists):

Corporate Net Zero. There is tension between growth eg revenue growth for a real world business, and a reduction in absolute emissions. Currently not compatible for several types of business.  Would shareholders / stakeholder accept crimping of growth to meet absolute emissions reductions? (Probably not).    Near term NZ has signalling impact, some real world impact. There are gold standard NZ strategies eg Microsoft, also some good in jump-starting new carbon markets (eg Stripe led initiative). Medium/LT depends…. Some Corporate NetZero might be wasteful… because at a country level - eg in UK - if power goes green / net zero in eg 2035, then corporate power use is net zero. This => corporates should focus on eg heating/cooling and EV fleet, rather than eg new wind/solar installs, if not core business.  

Twitter avatar for @stripeStripe @stripe
Introducing Frontier—a $925M advance market commitment (AMC) to accelerate carbon removal.
frontierclimate.com It’s funded by Stripe, @Google, @Shopify, @Meta, @McKinsey, and the thousands of businesses using Stripe Climate. More details. ⬇️An advance market commitment to accelerate carbon removalFrontier is an advance market commitment to buy an initial $925M of permanent carbon removal between 2022 and 2030.frontierclimate.com

April 12th 2022

619 Retweets2,829 Likes

Theory of Change.  Is govt ←→ corporate interaction more important that voter <-> government and consumer <-> corporate?  Query: Do voters and consumers have veto power, but no real influence on “overton window” / policy?  Query: influence of suppliers / regulators / employees ? Query: therefore investors (employees) who influence CEOs/management have strong influence? Perhaps this means one needs to work on “govt ←→ corporate interaction” more than voters?

Heating, also climate comms. Is district heating the solution for debcarbonising heat ? Maybe works better in rural than cities [?] Query: just build them and then connect cf. gas network in 1970s, no one was majority gas connected at time - same for heating district ? Is effective retrofit possible ? One view, cautious yes; one view, probably not.  Noting on insulation/efficiency - govt programmes on efficiency generally not been a success historically cf skills, possibly need tailored/higher skills for individual properties. Idea: focus on “jobs” rather than “green jobs” - using “green” in comms potentially offputting. Easier to focus on the core messages and let “green” be the co-benefit.


I podcast with Sophie Woolley.  What is it like to go deaf and then gain back your hearing?

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
Had an excellent podcast conversation with @Sophwoolley about her creative journey, a glimpse into Taiwan, and Deaf culture and hearing culture. Listen/Read here (also link to YT video version with captions):
thendobetter.com/arts/2022/4/10…

April 11th 2022

2 Retweets4 Likes

Sophie is a writer, performer and theatre maker.  We have been friends for a while and I have learned a lot about deaf culture and from her personal and creative journeys.

We have a meandering chat about her creative journey, how felt she had to write about her story of going deaf and then gaining hearing again via a cochlear implant. We recorded the podcast while Sophie is in Taiwan. She chats a little on her experience there and Taiwan’s COVID management. 

This is a long conversation between friends discussing the complexities of Sophie’s experience. I was particularly intrigued by her thinking on what it might mean to be a cyborg and being augmented, and being part of both Deaf culture and hearing culture.  I am still thinking about her comment about captioning AI being her friend and how we can often simply criticise AI in a way we would not critique a human. (But also there’s no need to anthropomorphize AI either).

Read/Watch here. Listen below or wherever you get podcasts.


My friend Anna Gat is raising money for her salon venture. (I am an angel investor already). (Normal caveats apply, not suitable for all etc.) Message for info or reach out to Anna direct. (Twitter).

Neurodiversity:

Twitter avatar for @SpittingyarnAnoushka @Spittingyarn
Thanks to the @allaboardclub and RATP-Dev we got a ride on a heritage Routemaster which looped through the inside of a bus garage (dreamy for transport fans) and along the perimeter road of Heathrow. So easy and refreshing for Spike to be amongst his neurodivergent peers.
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April 12th 2022

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and,

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
Work from home + neurodiverse.
wsj.com/articles/neuro…

April 13th 2022

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Falling cost of clean energy

Twitter avatar for @hausfathZeke Hausfather @hausfath
We need to do much more to tackle climate change, but there is some good news for once. In @Nature this week, @ClimateFran and I point out that falling costs of clean energy and strengthening climate policies move us away from the darkest climate futures:
nature.com/articles/d4158…
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April 13th 2022

575 Retweets1,533 Likes

a way to get to <2c

Twitter avatar for @NichollsZebZeb Nicholls @NichollsZeb
🧵 Thread on new paper: Realization of Paris Agreement pledges may limit warming just below 2°C DOI:
doi.org/10.1038/s41586… Free access: rdcu.be/cLhdT 1/n

April 14th 2022

23 Retweets60 Likes

Thr emergent properties and problems of social networks:

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
A 🧵 on social networks for a Reddit CEO: emergent properties, why they have to adjudicate, +arguments why this is a bad use of Elon’s valuable time in the world of atoms. Social networks reflect the complexity, contradictions+ugliness of humans. Unfixable. Unless we r all nice.

Yishan @yishan

I've now been asked multiple times for my take on Elon's offer for Twitter. So fine, this is what I think about that. I will assume the takeover succeeds, and he takes Twitter private. (I have little knowledge/insight into how actual takeover battles work or play out) (long 🧵)

April 16th 2022

Interesting film and talk event

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
A 🧵 on social networks for a Reddit CEO: emergent properties, why they have to adjudicate, +arguments why this is a bad use of Elon’s valuable time in the world of atoms. Social networks reflect the complexity, contradictions+ugliness of humans. Unfixable. Unless we r all nice.

Yishan @yishan

I've now been asked multiple times for my take on Elon's offer for Twitter. So fine, this is what I think about that. I will assume the takeover succeeds, and he takes Twitter private. (I have little knowledge/insight into how actual takeover battles work or play out) (long 🧵)

April 16th 2022

RI / ESG job: Bristol + flex

Twitter avatar for @BrunelPPBrunel Pension Partnership Limited @BrunelPP
A rare chance to work in RI at an RI pioneer – Brunel is seeking a RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT ANALYST. Why not help us forge better futures by investing for a world worth living in
bit.ly/3MgYWTQ
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April 20th 2022

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Review of countries sustainability strategies:

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
The Green Future Index 2022 is the comparative ranking of 76 nations... on their ability to develop a sustainable, low-carbon future via clean energy, industry, agriculture, and society through investment in renewables, innovation, and green policy.
technologyreview.com/2022/03/24/104…
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April 22nd 2022

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Do you have land for wind farms?

Twitter avatar for @James_BGJames Murray @James_BG
This is good stuff from @OctopusEnergy. Going to be fascinating to see if it works. If even a quarter of the UK's market towns said, 'you know what, we want a couple of turbines and a solar farm so we can have lower bills' it would make a big difference.
Octopus Energy launches onshore wind ‘dating agency’ to match landowners and communities‘Plots for kilowatts’ campaign aims to identify 10 new potential sites for onshore wind turbines in England by end of summer 2022businessgreen.com

April 22nd 2022

133 Retweets397 Likes

COVID estimates in UK

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
Very reasonable to estimate that c. 80% (4 out of 5 people) of the UK has been infected by COVID since the start of the pandemic until today. https://t.co/GFPioIdN6j

Paul Mainwood @PaulMainwood

Several of us twitter randoms have put together rough estimates of the proportion of people in the UK who have had COVID, using ONS statistics for most of the time period. Now ONS have put together a technical article for each of the home nations. https://t.co/tKRUBESv8p https://t.co/bqOdUmjkAL

April 22nd 2022

US VC seed money, a16z

Twitter avatar for @dhaberDavid Haber @dhaber
1/ Thrilled to finally announce @a16z Start! A program we've been running to partner with exceptional people at the earliest stages of company formation (in some cases even pre-idea). We invest up to $1M and provide a network of resources & support. 💫💫💫
a16z.com/programs-a16z-…a16z START | Andreessen HorowitzThe a16z START program fuels founders at the earliest stages of company-building.a16z.com

April 18th 2022

170 Retweets1,446 Likes

On memes:

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
The story of how a little dead pan re-rendition of a rap that Louis did >20 years ago, remixed from Amelia chicken shop date, and transformed into a viral TikTok music meme.

Amelia Dimoldenberg @ameliadimz

💅🏼👑@louistheroux https://t.co/ROUrsXY9Du

April 17th 2022

Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
My @simonpegg pegg egg
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April 17th 2022

2 Likes
Twitter avatar for @benyeohbenBenjamin Yeoh @benyeohben
From @BloombergNEF | an argument for overall under allocation to energy transition spend for EU/NA (and world?).
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April 17th 2022

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