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 4, 2016 • Podcast
Us and Them? Bridget Anderson on Migrants and Nation-States
Underlying people's economic fears about migrants taking their jobs are much deeper anxieties about nationality, culture, and race, says Bridget Anderson, professor of migration and ...
APR 22, 2016 • Podcast
New Paradigms for Refugee Camps and for Humanitarian Aid Itself
Kilian Kleinschmidt describes how he, together with the refugees themselves, transformed the Zaatari refugee camp from what the media called a "hellhole of humanitarian aid" ...
APR 21, 2016 • Article
In Search of a Global Ethic
Research in 25 cities in eight countries on five continents shows that norms across cultures may not be so different after all.
APR 15, 2016 • Podcast
A Conversation with Krista Tippett on Becoming Wise
What does it mean to be human, and how do we want to live? "We possess intelligence. We possess consciousness. And we have this capacity ...
APR 14, 2016 • Article
Legacies and Prospects of Joint Criminal Enterprises in Europe
In March 2016, former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Of course, this is a positive step. ...
FEB 29, 2016 • Article
Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Innovations: From the Forest to the Health Clinic
Dr. Kinari Webb and her team are saving lives and forests in Indonesia through a very unusual incentives program.
FEB 22, 2016 • Article
Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Innovations: Claire Nouvian, Guardian of the Deep
French environmentalist Claire Nouvian has devoted her life to protecting a resource that is largely a mystery to most of us: the deep sea.
FEB 22, 2016 • Article
Ethics in Online Activism: False Senses of Social Action or Effective Source of Change?
"There is a growing skepticism of whether or not sectors of online activism are more self-interested than socially interested," writes Rimah Jaber. When and how ...
FEB 16, 2016 • Article
Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Commentary: Reprivatized Womanhood: Changing Gender Discourse in Contemporary Urban China
Urban Chinese women face mounting challenges in the contemporary era of "reprivatized womanhood." But it was not always that way.
FEB 11, 2016 • Article
The Need for Ethical Grounding in Social Activism: A Banker's Perspective of the Occupy Movement
Why did the Occupy Movement, that should have resonated with 99 percent of the population, lack the support to achieve the changes that it sought?