Framing ethical perspectives
Applied ethics refers to the practical applications of the moral principles that govern behavior. Carnegie Council focuses on this field, mostly through the realm of international affairs, by identifying and addressing the most critical ethical issues of today and tomorrow. Our initiatives, content, and experts analyze the way that governments, institutions, and individuals interact and make choices on global issues, such as climate change, emerging technology, and governance.
Featured Applied Ethics Resources
Practical conversations, decision analysis, and more
MAY 10, 2022 • Podcast
Making Decisions When Values Conflict or Are Prioritized Differently, with Paul Root Wolpe
JUL 5, 2023 • Article
A Framework for the International Governance of AI
Carnegie Council, in collaboration with IEEE, proposes a five-part AI governance framework to enable the constructive use of AI.
APR 12, 2022 • Podcast
Surveillance Tech's Infinite Loop of Harms, with Chris Gilliard
In this discussion with Senior Fellow Arthur Holland Michel, Chris Gilliard explains why the arc of surveillance technology and novel AI bends toward failures that ...
Related Initiatives
Carnegie Ethics Accelerator
The Carnegie Ethics Accelerator is a new kind of incubator designed to empower ethics in the face of swiftly evolving challenges in technology and public policies.
Ethics & International Affairs Journal
Ethics & International Affairs is the quarterly journal of Carnegie Council. It aims to close the gap between the theory and practice of ethics.
Carnegie Ethics Fellows
The Carnegie Ethics Fellows program (CEF) seeks to cultivate the next generation of ethical global leaders across business, policy, technology, NGOs, and academia.
Explore Our Applied Ethics Resources
MAY 17, 2018 • Podcast
Climate Change and the Power to Act: An Ethical Approach for Practical Progress
We are already living with climate change; and although countries have pledged to limit global warming to 2 °C, success seems highly unlikely. This panel explores ...
MAY 17, 2018 • Podcast
Greed, Movies, and Capitalism with Ethicist John Paul Rollert
Every capitalist economy struggles with how to come to terms with greed, says John Paul Rollert, an expert on the intellectual history of capitalism. He ...
MAY 17, 2018 • Transcript
What Robots Represent and Why it Matters, with Robert Sparrow
Robots are not neutral. People attach social meanings to them. Robert Sparrow discusses the politics of sex and race in the robots that humans create, ...
MAY 17, 2018 • Transcript
Virtual Emotion for Robot - Towards Human Support Robot
Robots do not have volition (free will) yet, so they are subject to human ethics as they are controlled by humans. But once they have ...
MAY 17, 2018 • Transcript
AI and Safety, with Kush Varshney
When it comes to machine learning, are safety and ethics the same thing?
MAY 17, 2018 • Transcript
AI, Public Policy, and Aging Society, with Yoshinori Hiroi
"The issues of aging are a common agenda for the industrialized countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, and Japan. AI technology can be beneficial ...
MAY 17, 2018 • Transcript
Designing the Workplace with AI and Robots, with Arisa Ema
In Japan we used to hear the phrase "AI and robots will solve our social problems." But AI and robots also create other new social ...
MAY 17, 2018 • Transcript
Moral Machines, with Wendell Wallach
Can artificial agents make moral decisions? Do we want them to make moral decisions? When? For what? If so, whose ethics, whose values, are going ...
MAY 8, 2018 • Article
Engagement: What Do Voters Think
Ali Wyne notes that there is a disconnect between how Americans view U.S. foreign policy and whether or not it supports and sustains their ...
MAY 8, 2018 • Podcast
Army of None: Autonomous Weapons and the Future of War, with Paul Scharre
"What happens when a predator drone has as much as autonomy as a self-driving car, moving to something that is able to do all of ...