Planned Pilot Project: Curated Video-Based EA Learning Platform

By Erik Jentzen @ 2025-04-10T14:15 (+8)

TL;DR: I (Erik, Community Builder at EA Switzerland) plan to launch a pilot project to create a structured, curated, video-based Effective Altruism learning platform. Putting together the curriculum and resources will start in two weeks, aiming for a launch in around two months. I'm seeking collaborators or pointers to existing projects — please comment here or reach out to me at erik@effectivealtruism.ch.

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As others have stated before and as I've experienced as a community builder in Switzerland, newcomers often face hurdles when exploring EA:

To address these issues efficiently (80/20 approach), I aim to create a simple, structured platform that curates existing high-quality resources (like Kurzgesagt videos, EAG talks, etc.) into clear, engaging learning paths.

I plan to:

I've checked with the CEA Online Content team, the Community Building Grant Programme network (covering 14 countries/cities), and looked for existing platforms. Currently, I'm not aware of a similar structured, video-focused platform being actively developed.

If you're interested in joining this effort or aware of similar existing initiatives, please comment below or email me directly at erik@effectivealtruism.ch.

For some further thoughts/drafts (not polished), please see this document.

Thanks for your input!

Jamie_Harris @ 2025-04-13T08:15 (+4)

Sounds very cool! I think video courses is a great idea, since I expect that a lot of people (myself included) at least sometimes find it a lot easier and more fun to watch videos than to read things.

Quite intrigued which videos you intend to use; when I've created EA-relevant online courses in the past, a dearth of high-quality, relevant videos has been a bottleneck. I ended up creating my own content/videos. (There are sometimes things like EA Global talks, but they often aren't sufficiently introductory and broad, e.g. they'll be about a specific intervention, org, or argument rather than about a cause area or topic.)

What uncertainties are you testing with the pilot? Is it mainly about demand/sign ups/views?

Erik Jentzen @ 2025-04-14T11:24 (+3)

Hi Jamie,

Thanks for your comment!

Regarding the pilot:
It’s really about exploring what kinds of hurdles might come up in this 80/20 approach — for example, getting a clearer picture of where enough high-quality videos already exist and where important content is still missing. But also more generally: what else might turn out to be more complicated than expected?

The other key question is: do people like and actually use the platform? And ideally, does it help move people from ambition to action — for example, by inspiring them to donate, explore new career paths, or volunteer their time to help solve the problems discussed?

Happy to keep you in the loop on which videos I find or plan to include — I’d really appreciate your thoughts or suggestions at that stage! And also: if you’ve created any content yourself that might be a good fit, feel free to share!
 

Jamie_Harris @ 2025-04-15T09:06 (+4)

Sounds exciting!

It’s really about exploring what kinds of hurdles might come up in this 80/20 approach — for example, getting a clearer picture of where enough high-quality videos already exist and where important content is still missing. But also more generally: what else might turn out to be more complicated than expected? The other key question is: do people like and actually use the platform?

Makes sense to me. But this one...

And ideally, does it help move people from ambition to action — for example, by inspiring them to donate, explore new career paths, or volunteer their time to help solve the problems discussed?

...seems very hard to notice/track in a pilot. (I'd be very interested if you have ideas how to do this!)

Happy to keep you in the loop on which videos I find or plan to include — I’d really appreciate your thoughts or suggestions at that stage!

Sounds great, thank you! Feel free to DM me on the EA Forum or email jamie.a.harris94 [at] gmail.com

And also: if you’ve created any content yourself that might be a good fit, feel free to share!

I'm afraid it's a bit too bespoke to the exact narrative/experience of the course to be worth sharing more widely. (Usually 2-8 minute videos summarising key concepts or insights and explaining them in the context of a subject-specific course for 15-18 year olds, e.g. this one.)

Erik Jentzen @ 2025-04-15T15:25 (+3)

Hi Jamie, 

I agree that tracking the impact of the pilot won't be easy/tricky. So far I just have some loose thoughts and will publish them, when I start focusing on this in two weeks. 

I will keep you in the loop via email. 

Karla Still 🔸 @ 2025-04-15T12:28 (+3)

Nice idea! I'll share this with the Finnish EA community to ask if someone wants to volunteer. 

Erik Jentzen @ 2025-04-15T15:20 (+1)

Thanks a lot!