Jan 2023: Effects, Revolution and Social Coding

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Effects, Revolution and Social Coding

People first

We’d like to introduce Verena, the newest addition to Social Income’s team. She is a crazily skilled mobile developer not afraid to share her knowledge during live-coding sessions or by writing the official Flutter for Dummies book (in German).

Richer than you think

It's easy to overlook our own wealth: According to the World Bank, the top 1% of the global population, by income, earns more than $42,240 every year. The global top 1% rose for a second year running to reach 46% of global wealth in 2021.

Changing lives

Numbers released by the UN show that in 2023, a record 339 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection. This is a significant increase from last year (274 million people). The number of people in need of aid is reduced thanks to your generosity and compassion through programs like ours.

Effects of cash transfers

A report by ODI analyzed 201 different studies that looked at the impact of direct cash transfers. In a nutshell, these transfers decrease monetary poverty; increase school attendance; improve health and nutrition; positively impact savings; and reduce physical abuse.

Revolutionary shift

Rapid progress is being made in AI and machine learning. It’s only a matter of time before computers write their own programs. Developers will no longer need to understand the technical details of programming. This change might bring about a major disruption in the field of computer science. We are excited for the future (but also a bit scared)!

Drowning Child

The Shallow Pond thought experiment by the ethical philosopher Peter Singer illustrates the gap between our moral values and our actions. The experiment highlights the need to reflect on our priorities and question our guiding principles.

Social Coding Weekend

Earlier this month, twelve developers and a great chef camped out in the highest city in Europe for four days to work on Social Income. We can’t count the lines of code written over these days, but we can assure you that each one is open source and will help Social Income expand its reach and impact.

Newsworthy

• The International Rescue Committee just released their new Watchlist, which provides an alarming snapshot of current major crises. (Watchlist)
• In her TED Talk, Esther Duflo explains how randomized trials can help distinguish between effective and ineffective humanitarian aid efforts. (TED)
• Oxfam warns of growing inequality and urges tax increases on the wealthy as a solution. (Oxfam)
• Community learning centers in Sierra Leone help reintegrate young mothers into the school system after they give birth. (Aljazeera)
• The government of Sierra Leone passed a law that introduces a job quota, reserving 30% of public and private jobs for women. (BBC)

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