Effective Altruism as an Ethical Lens on Research Priorities

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Science
• Ecology
• Ethics

Background:

• Effective altruism provides a framework for optimizing investment benefits.
• Applying this framework to research can enhance positive outcomes.
• Prioritization is key to maximizing research impact in diverse fields.

Purpose of the Study:

• To apply effective altruism principles to maximize research benefits.
• To identify priority stakeholders, pathosystems, and research questions/technologies.
• To guide researchers and funders in making altruism-driven research more effective.

Main Methods:

• Prioritizing stakeholders like smallholder farmers for crop disease management.
• Identifying pathosystems based on yield loss and research uniqueness (e.g., orphan crops).
• Evaluating the "value of information" in epidemic networks and landscapes.

Main Results:

• Research benefits can be maximized by focusing on tractable problems for vulnerable populations.
• Prioritizing research in wildlands involves protecting keystone species and ecosystem services.
• Addressing low-likelihood, high-damage scenarios (e.g., doomsday pathogens) and managing the "tragedy of the microbiome commons" are crucial.

Conclusions:

• Effective altruism offers a robust approach to optimizing research investments for maximum societal benefit.
• Strategic prioritization of stakeholders, pathosystems, and research areas is essential.
• Shifting research products towards public goods can help manage shared resources like regional microbiomes.