Applied Ethics

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

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 ...

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NOV 14, 2017 Podcast

Elizabeth Economy on China, Climate Change, and the Environment

How does climate change play into Xi Jinping's larger strategy for China's economy and its role on the global stage? Xi has a vision for ...

Detail from book cover

NOV 1, 2017 Podcast

Plutopia: Nuclear Families in Atomic Cities, with Kate Brown

Chernobyl is considered the greatest nuclear disaster of all time. But over decades America's Hanford plant and Russia's Mayak plant each issued almost four times ...

Coltan/tantalum mining, Congo. CREDIT <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/sourcingnetwork/7589135402/">Responsible Sourcing Network</a>

OCT 11, 2017 Article

Let’s Be Frank: The Impact of Dodd-Frank and International Legislation on Congolese Extractive Industry

President Trump proposes killing off elements of the Dodd-Frank Act that require energy and mineral resource companies to hold U.S. companies accountable for their ...

Bob Inglis. CREDIT: Amanda Ghanooni

OCT 5, 2017 Podcast

Free-Enterprise Solutions to Climate Change, with Bob Inglis

Republican politician Bob Inglis used to think that climate change was nonsense; but his son--and science--changed his mind. Today he advocates letting market forces do ...

OCT 3, 2017 Podcast

Fake News and Google with Daniel Sieberg

How much of a threat is fake news to the average citizen? What is Google doing to counteract its spread? Learn more with this conversation ...

SEP 29, 2017 Podcast

The Ordinary Virtues: Moral Order in a Divided World

To mark Carnegie Council's Centennial, Michael Ignatieff and team set out to discover what moral values people hold in common across nations. What he found ...

Points of light (Fireworks) CREDIT: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jdmoar/14672883116/">jdmoar</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/">CC</a>)

SEP 26, 2017 Article

Carnegie Council Fellows Respond: Making Ethics Matter, 2017

Carnegie Council has pledged to be a counter-force to the corrosive tone that frequently dominates the news; to focus on the ethical principles at stake; ...

SEP 14, 2017 Podcast

From the White House to the World: Food, Health, and Climate Change, with Chef Sam Kass

Entrepreneur Sam Kass talks about his experiences as chef and senior policy nutrition advisor in the White House, including titbits about the Obamas, initiatives to ...

SEP 12, 2017 Podcast

The Risks and Rewards of Big Data, Algorithms, and Machine Learning, with danah boyd

How do we analyze vast swaths of data and who decides what to collect? For example, big data may help us cure cancer, but the ...

Ryugyong Hotel and Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum, Pyongyang, North Korea. CREDIT: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Victorious_Fatherland_Liberation_War_Museum_and_Ryugyong_Hotel_(11342673725).jpg">Clay Gilliland (CC)</a>

SEP 8, 2017 Podcast

North Korea: A Conversation between Joel Rosenthal and Devin Stewart

Carnegie Council President Joel Rosenthal and Senior Fellow Devin Stewart discuss the tense North Korea situation. What does Kim Jong-un want? How should the United ...