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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CREDIT: Amanda Ghanooni, Carnegie Council

DEC 21, 2015 Podcast

Bearing Witness to War and Injustice: Ron Haviv, Photojournalist

From the Balkan Wars to both invasions of Iraq to the current refugee crisis, photojournalist Ron Haviv has been at the center of many of ...

Detail from book cover

DEC 15, 2015 Podcast

Violence All Around

What is terrorism, and how is it different from other violence? How does technology affect rates of violence? How and when can nonviolence be effective? ...

Credit: <a href="http://www.new-harvest.org/ target="_blank">New Harvest</a>.

DEC 14, 2015 Article

Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Innovations: From Lab to Table

"New Harvest" wants to kick-start a bio-economy of animal products made without animals. Some have already called this revolution "the next .com."

François Hollande addressing world leaders at COP21. CREDIT:<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/cop21/22799169364/" target="_blank">COP 21</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(CC)</a>

DEC 4, 2015 Article

Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Commentary: Does the Legally Binding Character of the Paris Climate Change Agreement Matter and, If So, Why?

How much does the legal form of the Paris outcome matter? Opinions on these questions differ widely.

DEC 3, 2015 Podcast

Suchitra Vijayan on the Politics and Rhetoric of the Refugee Crisis

The co-founder of the Resettlement Legal Aid Project in Cairo during the Iraq War, Suchitra Vijayan discusses the refugee crisis from a legal, political, and ...

CREDIT:<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/la_bretagne_a_paris/22779585433/" target="_blank">Yann Caradec</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(CC)</a>

DEC 2, 2015 Article

Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Commentary: International Efforts to Curb Emissions: Will Paris Succeed Where Others Have Failed?

Questioning the effectiveness and capacity of the UN to solve this global problem is highly relevant.

CREDIT: <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/GVLhWdib3BU" target="_blank">Petter Rudwall</a>.

NOV 30, 2015 Article

Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Commentary: Short-term Goodies versus Long-term Harm: The Ethical Dilemmas of Climate Change

A conversation with philosopher Stephen Gardiner on how humanity should confront the climate change debate.

CREDIT: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/windwalkernld/6283815544/" target="_blank">Jeroen Mul</a>

NOV 24, 2015 Article

Report: Conference on Cultural Rights, Copenhagen, Denmark, November 2015

Can cultural rights become a global discourse for supporting inclusive social and political development, and for fostering intercultural dialogue for the mutual understanding of cultures? ...

Syrian Refugees, Turkey-Syria Border, February 2015. CREDIT: <a href="www.shutterstock.com/pic-326208443/stock-photo-sanliurfa-turkey-february-syrian-refugees-walking-on-turkey-syria-border-in-suruc-district.html">Shutterstock</a>

NOV 19, 2015 Article

Beyond Paris: The Refugee Crisis in Europe

"Closing borders in the West will not only worsen the already unimaginable human rights disaster that asylum seekers are facing, but it will also add ...

Nov 14, 2015: French Police checking vehicles on bridge between France and Germany after Paris attacks. CREDIT: <a href="http://tinyurl.com/nku4sjt">Shutterstock</a>

NOV 16, 2015 Article

Why France Should Not Close Its Borders

Since September 11, 2001, both the U.S. and Europe have merged anti-terrorism strategies with immigration policy, and with little success.