How do you choose which charities to list?

We list the charities that independent evaluators (GiveWell and the Happier Lives Institute) give their top or promising designation, in the same order as our cause pages. We don't re-score them, and no one can pay to appear or to move up.

Why is only one charity listed?

Because it's the only charity we track for lead poisoning that an evaluator has given its top or promising designation. We would rather list one well-evidenced option than pad the list.

Should I give to one charity or a fund?

Both are reasonable. A fund run by an evaluator lets them direct your gift to where they judge the need is greatest; giving to one charity lets you choose the program yourself.

Donor question · Lead poisoning

What's the best charity for lead poisoning?

What the independent evaluator that rates charities working on lead exposure has published, with every figure linked to its source.

The short answer

Pure Earth is a Happier Lives Institute Promising Charity.

It's the only charity we track for lead poisoning with an evaluator's top or promising rating.

Happier Lives Institute Promising Charity
Pure Earth
Works to cut people's exposure to lead, a poison that harms children's development; the evaluator's analysis looks at lead in cosmetics in Ghana.
Evidence No published rating we can quote
Happier Lives Institute's estimate
105.43 WELLBYs per $1,000 donated
Happier Lives Institute, published table (opens in a new tab)
Full profile: Pure Earth Donate to Pure Earth (opens in a new tab)

A WELLBY is the Happier Lives Institute's unit of wellbeing: one point of life satisfaction, on a scale from 0 to 10, for one person for one year.

Modeled, not guaranteed. This is the evaluator's best estimate of the average, built from studies and assumptions. Your gift could do more or less. How to read these figures

If you can’t decide

Let the evaluator decide

Happier Lives Fund

Pools donations for the Happier Lives Institute's recommended wellbeing charities, with a smaller share supporting the Institute's research.

It covers all of the Happier Lives Institute's recommended charities, not only those working on lead poisoning.

About the fund: Happier Lives Fund

What to weigh before you give

Strength of evidence. Evaluators also rate how sure they are. It’s shown next to each charity above when they publish a rating.
Whether more money helps now. Each charity’s profile shows the evaluator’s funding-gap figure when one is published.
Estimates, not prices. Each figure is an average from the evaluator’s model. A modest gap between two estimates may not reflect a real difference.

Our guide to giving well

Everything we track for lead poisoning

The full picture, including the approaches that work and other organizations in this area: Lead poisoning.

Questions donors ask

What's the best charity for lead poisoning?: Pure Earth is a Happier Lives Institute Promising Charity. It's the only charity we track for lead poisoning with an evaluator's top or promising rating. Each charity's page shows the figures, the source and how strong the evidence is.
How do you choose which charities to list?: We list the charities that independent evaluators (GiveWell and the Happier Lives Institute) give their top or promising designation, in the same order as our cause pages. We don't re-score them, and no one can pay to appear or to move up.
Why is only one charity listed?: Because it's the only charity we track for lead poisoning that an evaluator has given its top or promising designation. We would rather list one well-evidenced option than pad the list.
Should I give to one charity or a fund?: Both are reasonable. A fund run by an evaluator lets them direct your gift to where they judge the need is greatest; giving to one charity lets you choose the program yourself.
Are these figures guaranteed?: No. They are modeled, not guaranteed: the evaluator's best estimate of the average, built from studies and assumptions. Your gift could do more or less.