Welcome to The Practical Altruism Project
This website is designed to shine a spotlight on inspiring volunteers using
their career expertise to help other people. The site consists of
an introductory essay and profiles of these volunteers - the practical altruists -
who are doing important and essential work in fields across the spectrum: from law to medicine to art to helping feed and house the poor to helping those following disaster and tragedy.
Sam Davis and Aimee Joyaux, a nonprofit business consultant and an artist, respectively, are applying their years of expertise as volunteers at a bold art nonprofit in Virginia, helping folks in a small town find their artistic mojo. To read their profile, please click …
When you hear Nancy Reiner recount how she questioned the status quo as a young person and then followed that up with important, headline-grabbing work as an attorney, it's not surprising to learn that she ended up starting a nonprofit that offers profound benefits to our society. To read her profile, please click ...
Dr. Alec Cecil is one of my oldest and dearest friends, and I am thrilled that I was able to profile him for The Practical Altruism Project. Alec has been doing valuable work for the Red Cross for years as a disaster mental health manager and counselor - always as a volunteer, applying the skills he honed in decades of work as a psychologist at nonprofit mental health centers in the New York area. During his work for the Red Cross, Alec has responded to disasters all across the country, from hurricanes, floods and wildfires to mass casualty shootings. To read his profile, please click ...
When we first met Sharon Bannister on a cold winter day in 2023 at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, we had no idea who she was or what she was about. At first glance, she appeared to be merely a friendly volunteer helping out, wearing a matching yellow coat and cap. Then we began talking to her. To read her profile, please click ...
At first blush, Kathryn Graybill and Assaf Rutenberg have nothing in common: Kathryn is a Shakespearian actress who flourished in Texas. Assaf is an IT junkie who found his mojo in the mountains of Ecuador. Yet now, they both are instrumental in using their practical altruistic skills to help a soup kitchen and homeless shelter in New York City. To read their profile, please click ...
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Founder and Editor: Peter Aronson
paronson@practicalaltruism.com
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