Soren Dawody on effective altruism and how it helps small countries develop through crisis

The Coronavirus pandemic is expected to stretch through a good part of 2021 as well, and small economies are the ones struggling most to cope with its impacts.

The countries that seem most affected are small regions such as Grenada, Dominica, St. Lucia and St. Kitts in the Caribbean, which rely a lot on tourism to move the economy. During times of financial turmoil such as the one we experience now, these countries will watch their economies collapse if something is not done soon.

Vulnerable populations are the ones who need the most help to battle the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is why entrepreneurs in the area are looking for ways to diversify the economy of these states and help them rely on something other than tourism for economic growth.

Soren Dawody and effective altruism

Soren Dawody is a sustainable development entrepreneur looking to use effective altruism to drive economic growth.

What is effective altruism, you will ask? As Dawody puts it, effective altruism is an approach that relies on “investing resources and effort to maximize the amount of good that can be achieved”. This means using your reasoning and knowledge to identify if a project you plan on supporting does indeed address the root cause of a bigger problem – in this case, economic diversity and growth.

One of the initiatives Soren Dawody is working on is Akros Global, which is, at its core, an immigration consultancy agency. This agency aims to take advantage of the recently-developed programs in Caribbean countries, known as Citizenship by Investment. CBI is an initiative that offers foreign investors citizenship in exchange for investing in the said country.

Through Akros Global, Dawody hopes to convince investors to invest a minimum amount of money in specific businesses in exchange for citizenship.

Soren Dawordy is not new to such initiatives, as he led several similar ventures in other small economies.

is not new to such initiatives, as he led several similar ventures in other small economies.

One such initiative is the Grenada Sustainable Aquaculture initiative, which is a sustainable aquaculture farm that produces tons of shrimp and fish products every year.

Rational decision-making, the key to effective altruism

Altruism is, by definition, an act of unselfish concern, but altruism done for the sake of altruism will only have short-term effects. For a person’s acts of altruism to pay off, rational decision-making is a must. We can’t go on doing good just because we were told it’s good to help others.

As Dawody explains, some of these rational decisions can be difficult to make, as they may also mean having to close branches or dismiss an employee. However, these decisions are paramount if entrepreneurs want their initiatives to remain financially healthy and continue to bring contribution to their surroundings.

Effective altruism is about finding a balance between compassion and rational thinking and managing to use both our intellect and heart to make informed choices. This way, the community does not receive momentarily help, but rather investments that will continue to support them now, as well as their children and grandchildren in the years to come.