Helping Donors Give Directly to Recipients

For nearly 60 years, donors have been partaking in a less-than-fantastic donation system. Traditionally, donors will give money to an international organization that manages money, which delivers economic relief to developing nations. However, this takes the relationship out of donating - donors can’t explicitly tell where their money is going or what their money is doing. For this reason, Paul Niehaus founded Give Directly - a nonprofit on a mission to simplify the donation process. At the core of Give Directly’s beliefs is that of the poor having an “enviable track record” of using capital to improve their lives. Paul describes studies in this podcast that have proved the poor are able to use donations extremely effectively - whether it be increasing nutrition, decreasing child labor, increasing education, or improving other sectors of life. Therefore, Give Directly offers a simpler, more personal route of donation - connecting donor to recipient. In this podcast, Paul discusses how technology, a commitment to efficiency, and dedication to improving the donation process on both ends, has made Give Directly a success.

Paul Niehaus is a director and President of GiveDirectly. He is also Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of California, San Diego; a Junior Affiliate at the Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (BREAD); an Affiliate of the Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL); and an Affiliate at the Center for Effective Global Action (CEGA). His research examines the design of welfare programs in developing countries, and in particular how to control corruption. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University.