Rising Star: Dr Toby Ord

Dr Toby Ord (BA/BSc(Hons) 2002 UMelb, BPhil 2005, DPhil 2009 Oxford) was awarded the 2014 Rising Start Award for Young Alumni.

Toby Ord completed a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science (Hons) majoring in Computer Science in 2002. Following the completion of his undergraduate studies at the University of Melbourne, he was accepted into Oxford University to pursue studies in Philosophy – allowing him to nurture an interest and consequently excel in the field of ethics.

The contribution Dr Ord has made to the study of ethics; particularly the ethics of global poverty and global risks is significant and has been widely recognised. He was named as a Clarendon Scholar at Oxford University, Senior Scholar at Christ Church College, British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow, and James Martin Fellow at Oxford University. He has also delivered the prestigious King's Lecture in Ethics at King's College London.

Dr Ord's knowledge and expertise has been called upon numerous times in the media including BBC World News, Sky News, The New York Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Times, The Financial Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and The Australian. He has also advised the WHO, the World Bank, and 10 Downing St on the ethics of international aid and global health.

Inspired by his work and research in the field of ethics of global poverty, Dr Ord made a public pledge to donate more than half of his income to helping people in the world's poorest countries. In 2009, he launched  'Giving What We Can',an international society whose members pledge to donate at least 10% of their income over their lives to those charities most effective in helping people in developing countries. In order to best distribute funds to those who need them  most, the charity also conducts research into finding the most effective development charities and shares its findings with the public.

Through his work with Giving What We Can, Dr Ord has helped raise more than a quarter of a billion dollars. He is currently the president and a trustee of the charity, and talks regularly to universities, schools, and the public about the ethics of global poverty and what individuals can do to help. Dr Ord is actively engaged in disseminating information and research from his area of expertise amongst governments, organisations and the general public.

The Faculty is now calling for nominations for the Arts Alumni 2015 Awards. All alumni of the Faculty of Arts are eligible to nominate candidates, so if you know a Faculty of Arts alumnus who is making an impact in their field, nominate them today!

For more information, visit the Faculty of Arts Alumni Awards webpage.