Update: Voting has closed, and the results are in!

SCI was the top vote getter, receiving an average allocation of 49%, and a donation of £121.  AMF averaged 41% of the vote, earning £103.  GiveDirectly had an average allocation of 10%, and received £26.

Celebrate giving season by learning about great charitable opportunities

To celebrate a time of year when giving is common, you're warmly invited to help decide which charities can do the most good.  Participants in this contest have the opportunity to allocate a £250 (~$400) to allocate among the top recommended charities of GiveWell.org, a highly respected independent charity evaluator.  There will be a £100 bonus if more than 250 people participate, and another £500 bonus if more than 500 people do.  This means the total donation could reach £850 (~$1350)!

The money will be donated based on the average responses of all participants.  Voting will close on Jan 15, 2013, and the results will be posted on APathThatsClear.com.

Charity Descriptions

GiveWell.org has recently updated it's charity recommendations.  GiveWell's top recommended charities are:

1. Against Malaria Foundation - Preventing deaths from malaria in sub-Saharan Africa

2. GiveDirectly - Distributing cash to extremely poor individuals in Kenya

3. Schistosomiasis Control Initiative - Treating children for parasite infections in sub-Saharan Africa

GiveWell has written a blog post about their recommendations, including strengths and weaknesses for each organization, and suggestions for donors trying to determine which of these charities best match their values. 

    Voting

    Each participant will get to decide an equal portion of the total donation.  As you choose where to give your share, please allocate between the charities in the same way you would ideally like to see the total donation allocated.  If everybody follows this principle, we’ll end up with an overall allocation that reflects the average community opinions of the appropriate allocation.  

    If you would like the entire donation to go to one charity, enter “100%” for that charity and “0%” for the other two charities.  If want the donation to be shared, please enter allocations that sum to 100% across the three charities.

    In the comment boxes below, please tell us more about the charity which you think deserves the largest allocation.  If multiple charities earned your largest allocation, please tell us your opinions on each, and be specific in your comments.