How would you spend $10M altruistically?

[Greg Bernhardt]

Call me a goof, but when I day dream about having a ton of money I usually think about what good things I could do with it.

I'd donate half of it right off the bat. $1M to an animal rescue, $1M to feed homeless, $1M for STEM promotion and $2M to create a new urban park. Then with the other $5M I'd start various scholarships and grants.

What would you do?

 

[Borek]

Interesting, my first thought was about George Best quote: " I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered."

More seriously ATM the best thing I can think of is something that would help change the situation here, in Poland. Either through education about state, law and society (apparently people don't understand why these things matter), or through independent journalism/media (which, I admit, even to me sounds naive). Not that I have a clear idea about details, just more or less general direction.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

independent journalism/media

No doubt, my billionaire day dreams are to buy a big newspaper company like Chicago Tribune or LA Times and make it a force in great journalism!

 

[Charles Link]

If that were to happen, e.g. if I ever won the Lotto, I wouldn't know what to do with it. The phone would be ringing off the hook, and I'd be hearing from people that I didn't hear from in years. It would be nice to have a much smaller amount to work with=I do think I would probably donate a substantial amount to charities like the Salvation Army, and I would also be able to eat at fancy restaurants on occasion, and maybe even take in some local sporting events, where ticket costs are much higher than they were years ago.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

I would also be able to eat at fancy restaurants on occasion, and maybe even take in some local sporting events,

You must spend it altruistically! :)

 

[Posy McPostface]

Micro-loans for developing nations?

I don't know if you always get a return on your loan through.

 

[DS2C]

$5 million to various animal services.
$3 million in scholarships to kids of deceased first responders and veterans.
$2 million in clothes, food, school supplies for kids in low income families

 

[PetSounds]

I would set up an online STEM-focused high school for bright students who, because of location or finances, don't have access to a school that will bring out their full potential. With $10M? Free tuition

 

[ISamson]

I would boost my education and go to a very good high school and then university.
With the rest, (~$4-5M) fund a highly promising STEM research.
$10M is a lot of money and can be life-changing!

 

[Ethan Singer]

I'm just going to assume two scenarios:

1) -We have 10 million, and can use it however we please. (Because everyone else is doing that)

and

2)- We'll be given 10 million, but we're not allowed to keep ANY of it (Hence altruism)

First and foremost, If I could keep the money, I'd probably just drop my aspirations of becoming any particular scientist, and just be independent. Live my life as a scholar, and performing research in all sorts of different fields. Maybe one year I'll feel like delving into the development of QFT, and the next I'll join immunology research. With 60 years of my life, and 10 million to live off of, It would allow me to focus all of my attention to research. In addition, I would donate to a myriad of research institutions I'm interested in.

In the second case- If I had to donate all of it, I probably would allocate the money to research institutions, involved in AIDs, Cancer, and Multiple Sclerosis Treatment (Or other auto-immune disorders).

I'm more concerned with hitting the root of problems, than alleviating current symptoms. Why donate a million to the hungry (where corporations keep a large amount of the dough) , when we could invest that same amount of money into agriculture pursuits to improve crop yield, and feed people like so? In the long run, the latter option seems much more useful, because we're tackling the problem at it's source.

 

[russ_watters]

Call me a goof, but when I day dream about having a ton of money I usually think about what good things I could do with it...

What would you do?

I do too...

Besides giving a bunch to my friends, I was thinking about creating a charity where people would send me an email or letter telling me of a specific need that I could fill for them with a small amount of that money (say, $1,000-10,000). I suspect there are a lot of people for whom a gift of that magnitude would be a game changer and you could help potentially a thousand people that way.

Otherwise, I think the biggest problem facing our country (primary cause of poverty) is low educational attainment. I've heard stories indicating that hanging a big carrot in front of people - free college, offered when in elementary school - is an effective motivator.

 

[newjerseyrunner]

I'd try to invest it into something that would turn a 10 million lump value into a continuous stream of money. Then I'd give that stream away, likely to technologies that attack root problems, not symptoms. I'd never buy poor people 10 million dollars worth of fish, but I may spend 10 million teaching them how to fish or genetically engineering bigger fish.

 

[BillTre]

I would try to take a long term view of the money as an investment in things I am interested in, perhaps something like the following:

Funding an aspect of STEM research I am interested in would be appealing, but $10M could be rapidly eaten up by interesting research.
A better investment might be setting up a endowment using half of the interest to grow the endowment and half to fund the interesting research or maybe fellowships for researchers. (I like the Human Frontier Science Program).

My favorite areas of research would be Evolution, Developmental Biology, or Neuroscience, however, I actually think there are more important areas in need of research support, so I would seriously consider Climate Change/Climate Change Mitigation.

If I felt like shooting the whole load quickly I might consider funding a satellite for some kind of climate change research (but that might be too expensive; so I might have solicit additional funds from additional PF'ers with an extra $10M). (It is my understanding that climate watching satellites are in need of replacement and more would be useful, but this would have to be reviewed before implemented).

 

[Psinter]

Renewable energy for different towns across my country. The most needed ones that have constant downtimes in the water system because of lack of good electric service. Though because renewable energy is so expensive, the 10M will probably power very little. But yes.

 

[Vanadium 50]

A better investment might be setting up a endowment using half of the interest to grow the endowment and half to fund the interesting research or maybe fellowships for researchers. (I like the Human Frontier Science Program).

That works out to about $260,000 this year. That's just over half a HFSP grant. In experimental HEP, that's about what a typical (single) tenured university professor gets.

The interest on $10M ain't what it used to be.

 

[mfb]

Spend $1 million on studies how much impact spending $8.99 million has for different options.

Contributing to the polio eradication efforts has well-measured effects already. The economic benefit aline is much larger than the eradication cost, and it lasts much longer as well. And it means people don’t get polio any more. The situation is similar for Malaria, just on a much larger scale (costs more to eradicate, but the benefit would be immense).
Various studies evaluating other existing programs could be analyzed as well, but I wouldn’t be surprised if polio or malaria eradication “wins”.

Influencing the politics of countries would be an interesting item (can you induce more than x dollars spent on good causes by spending x dollars?), but 10 millions are probably not enough to have a measurable effect.

A study of the viability of some proposed alternatives to get to space (instead of rockets) would be interesting as well. $10 millions are not even close to the full development or construction costs of any of these ideas, but getting a better estimate how feasible and how expensive these systems would be would help a lot already. If you wonder how this is altruistic: Cheap rocket launches would allow cheap internet access everywhere. Easy access to information would help third world countries a lot. We would also get better weather forecasts, monitoring of various hazards on Earth, potentially cheap space-based solar power, resources from asteroids and various other applications.

The remaining $0.01 millions? Give it away to local charities. Let’s face it, transferring millions to a good cause is a great thing, but the feeling of personally handing out help is nice as well.

You must spend it altruistically! :)

Eating at fancy restaurants helps fancy restaurants!

 

[jtbell]

Eating at fancy restaurants helps fancy restaurants!

Or if you eat at non-fancy restaurants like my local pizza parlor, you can help the staff by leaving hundred-dollar tips!

 

[Vanadium 50]

Contributing to the polio eradication efforts has well-measured effects already.

And interestingly, when its mission had completed, the March of Dimes didn't go away.

 

[mfb]

What do you mean by “had completed”?

 

[Vanadium 50]

March of Dimes was formed to eradicate polio. When that happened, March of Dimes had two options: dissolve, or change its mission. They chose the latter.

 

[mfb]

Polio is not eradicated globally yet. It is gone in some parts of the world, but the fight is still ongoing.
How is all that relevant for this thread?

 

[Vanadium 50]

You were the one who brought it up. I just pointed out that when it was effectively eradicated (there used to be half a million cases per year, and there were 37 in 2016) the major organization charged with its erradication repurposed itself rather than dissolved.

 

[mfb]

the major organization charged with its erradication repurposed itself rather than dissolved.

I don't see how this would be relevant here in any way.

The number of cases is low - but that means it is even more critical to keep working against it. Only when it is fully eradicated the efforts can stop.

 

[WWGD]

Design a program for school and otherwise credit requiring people with opposing views to work together in some non-trivial longish-term project ( say, for a semester). Say Liberal and Conservative, Pro- Con abortion, etc. They would be required to publish a paper on the topic they disagree. This would force them to meet regularly and learn to deal with each other peacefully and reasonably. It seems nowadays too many choose to live in their respective bubbles and are unable to deal with anyone outside of their respective bubbles in any substantial way.. If the project is completed , they get credit, otherwise, no credit.

 

[nitsuj]

I'd use the money to help people from various "troubled" countries get into Canada.

 

[StatGuy2000]

The unfortunately thing is that $10M is not a lot of money to have any real impact for the kinds of things I'm interested in that would have real-world impact (e.g. providing an alternative source from governments for basic scientific research, given how many governments from around the world have been retreating from its funding). A real impact would be something in the order of magnitude of $10 billion US.

 

[wolram]

Cancer is on the verge of being treatable, I would give the 9 million to cancer research it may be the tip of the ice berg that comes to a treatment.
Or I might spend it on the defence against hackers and research into face recognition programs
Or I could spend some on re opening the Bishops Itchington post office, that would save old people having to go to the nearest town.

 

[nitsuj]

The unfortunately thing is that $10M is not a lot of money to have any real impact for the kinds of things I'm interested in that would have real-world impact (e.g. providing an alternative source from governments for basic scientific research, given how many governments from around the world have been retreating from its funding). A real impact would be something in the order of magnitude of $10 billion US.

lol I've never heard of this measure, "Real World Impact"; not to mention altruism being post "what I'm interested in." Juxtaposition

That said I shared your concern of the amount and how it would be most valued. It was between a lumber farm in Haiti or just bringing people/families into Canada from "troubled countries". Land ownership in Haiti is difficult (impossible for most locals) so thought lumber maybe moot if in the end it gets "appropriated".

I can tell you with certainty that a $2.00 cholera vaccine can save a life; and depending on perspective (the world or the human) that is the pinnacle of "real impact".

American Red Cross gave the Canadian Red Cross 10m of it's Haiti '10 Eq monies to build a hospital. I think the total was around 20m when "completed", which includes some stock, training and equipment.

 

[StatGuy2000]

lol I've never heard of this measure, "Real World Impact"; not to mention altruism being post "what I'm interested in." Juxtaposition

That said I shared your concern of the amount and how it would be most valued. It was between a lumber farm in Haiti or just bringing people/families into Canada from "troubled countries". Land ownership in Haiti is difficult (impossible for most locals) so thought lumber maybe moot if in the end it gets "appropriated".

I can tell you with certainty that a $2.00 cholera vaccine can save a life; and depending on perspective (the world or the human) that is the pinnacle of "real impact".

American Red Cross gave the Canadian Red Cross 10m of it's Haiti '10 Eq monies to build a hospital. I think the total was around 20m when "completed", which includes some stock, training and equipment.

Perhaps I should clarify. When people talk about giving altruistically, most of the ideas discussed involved some form of charity donation (like the example you gave of a $2 cholera vaccine). As someone who works within the health care field as a biostatistician, I am well aware of how vaccines can save lives, and I fully acknowledge that saving lives have "real world impact".

My point (such as it is), is my belief in how such vaccines (or any other discovery) is made. My interest is in basic science, which is the bedrock of all other scientific and technological developments, including those that could directly benefit all of humanity. The primary source of funding for basic science comes primarily from governments -- and many governments across the world have been under pressure to reduce such funding as part of overall fiscal pressures on to keep control of their budget, or have cut them to fulfill a political agenda (most recent example, the tax bill that has passed the US Senate).

To me, if I had somehow won a large amount of money, say, through a lottery, I would want to create or fund an alternative source for basic scientific research that is accessible to all scientists. But $10 million is simply not enough to do so (as @Vanadium 50 has already indicated here on this thread). An order of magnitude of $10 billion might be more meaningful.

 

[BillTre]

Another possibility I find intriguing would be to give a bunch of money to Jimmie Carter's fight to make the Guinea Worm extinct.
This is a nasty painful infectious worm which was very widespread, but is now almost eliminated.
10M$ might be an appropriate amount of money to help finish it off and eliminate it for ever.

Edit:
To me, this is the big game hunting in Africa.
Killing off this worm would be like plunging a sword into a dragon that has been terrorizing your town.

 

[stephenkohnle53]

I would give the money to some of my friends and acquaintances who have monetary issues. I would also put money into creating scholarships and to revamp my town since we have very little industry and a not so good education system. I would also use the money I donate to try to get my school to care about STEM since they currently do not. I would also put money into real estate to help fund all of this.

 

[dipole]

I think education is the number one way to make a difference in the world. If everyone were as educated as the typical people who frequent this forum, I think many of the problems people face would simply evaporate.

So I'd somehow like to use that money to promote education - possibly in poor countries were $10M can be stretched much further than in America.

 

[lekh2003]

I would invest it in the stock market, cryptocurrencies, real estate, etc. I would open a fund in which all profits from these investments would end up. When I come of age to attend university, I will use some money for my education and living expenses.

I will try and get a well-paying job and continue to send small amounts of money to investment. Eventually, I hope my money triples or quadruples. When I die, I will donate 50% to UNICEF, UNHCR, and other UN subsidiaries. 25%, I will put towards research funding for STEM, space exploration and whatever medical advancements are needed by then. Final 25%, I will open orphanages which offer learning in the STEM field for all children.

 

[mathwonk]

I agree that education is the best way to change lives, and like Russ, I also like the results from efforts I have read of to promise college tuition to elementary schoolers. $10M is only about 40 full 4-yr scholarships to schools like Harvard, so I would provide something like that to a few dozen talented kids who would otherwise not go to such destinations, trying to accompany it with guidance that would help them succeed. Experience (mine) and studies show that even bright students from poor quality high schools often do not know how to survive at elite colleges without significant coaching and support.

 

[Vanadium 50]

But $10 million is simply not enough to do so (as @Vanadium 50 has already indicated here on this thread).

You could endow one or two university professorships. Or a few hundred grad school fellowships. But $10M is a drop in the bucket - less than 0.02% of US annual nondefense R&D.