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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Backstory: Inside the Business of News by Ken Auletta

JAN 14, 2004 Podcast

Backstory: Inside the Business of News

Auletta explores four of "the deadliest sins of journalism": synergy, the clash of business culture and news culture, hubris, and bias.

SEP 3, 2003 Transcript

Teaching Environmental Values

How do you incorporate the environment into a curriculum on ethics and international affairs?

SEP 3, 2003 Podcast

Teaching Environmental Values

How do you incorporate the environment into a curriculum on ethics and international affairs?

Reverence

NOV 1, 2002 Article

"To Be Read" Book Review Column: Paul Woodruff, "Reverence"

Woodruff doesn't lament the absence of reverence in our life; he asks us to discover it where it already is. We could not live ...

book cover image Sources of the Self

JUL 1, 2002 Article

"To Be Read" Book Review Column: Charles Taylor, "Sources of Self", Ruth Abbey, "Charles Taylor"

"Abbey's book is an excellent introduction for those who have not read Taylor and a fine retrospective for those who have been following his thought ...

JUN 1, 2002 Article

Perceptions of the Legitimacy of Women's Human Rights in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa

"While the government has adopted women's rights as an important component of the transformation of South Africa, this does not seem to be a common ...

Book "Our Posthuman Future: Consequences of the Biotechnology Revolution" by Francis Fukuyama

MAY 10, 2002 Transcript

Our Posthuman Future: Consequences of the Biotechnology Revolution

"We need to steer technology towards aims that are clearly therapeutic and away from ones that involve essentially human redesign, trying to improve our human ...

APR 21, 2002 Article

Globalization and the Emergence of Cosmopolitan Memories

Debates over political expressions of regret, apology, reparations, and historical injustice have become increasingly important around the world. Do we share a common framework and ...

JAN 7, 2002 Transcript

Ethics and Military Force: The Jus in Bello

Professor Schmitt of the German-American Marshall Center discusses the intersection of law and ethics in the use of military force. He explores some important "stressors" ...

JAN 7, 2002 Podcast

Ethics and Military Force: The Jus in Bello

Professor Schmitt of the German-American Marshall Center discusses the intersection of law and ethics in the use of military force. He explores some important "stressors" ...