What is Global Ethics Day?
- This year, Global Ethics Day will take place on October 15, 2025, with the theme of #EthicsReenvisioned.
- Established by Carnegie Council in 2014, Global Ethics Day is an annual moment for individuals and organizations to explore their values and the principles that shape ethical decision-making.
- Since its inception, citizens, businesses, professional organizations, schools, governments and nonprofits from over 100 countries have planned activations to empower ethics.
Why Do We Need Ethics Today?
- We're living in a moment when the principles of humanitarianism, international cooperation, and democracy are being upended while at the same time complex ethical challenges are proliferating.
- There are more than 100 ongoing armed conflicts around the world. Climate change is accelerating faster than ever. Emerging technologies are being embedded in our daily lives unchecked. The rise of nationalism is fueling anti-immigrant sentiments . . .
- By prioritizing ethical leadership and good-faith cooperation, we can build a more equitable, just, and peaceful world.
- It's time for ethics-re-envisioned.
Let’s Dispel Some Misconceptions About Ethics
- First off, ethics is not just some abstract area of study for philosophers and academics. It is an active process that each of us can engage in to improve our lives, strengthen our communities, and build a better world.
- That all sounds great, but then we are hit with the reality that our personal values, needs, and goals often conflict with those of our neighbors, colleagues, or social media connections. However, this doesn’t mean we have to be enemies or that we can’t work collaboratively to address challenges that impact us all.
- Good ethics recognizes that personal differences are okay and that we can still work together in pursuit of a better world, even if our proposed solutions are imperfect or do not fully satisfy all involved. It really is the good-faith effort at the center of ethical reflection, engagement, and action that counts.
- Ethics is not some cure-all for the world’s problems, but it is an actual process for finding solutions in a more collaborative and respectful manner vs. the winner-take-all approach that dominates life today.
- We can use ethics to guide personal decisions, mitigate harmful outcomes, create a more respectful structure for debate, develop helpful public policy, build and deploy technologies responsibly, and address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.
- Remember that ethics is not about getting everyone to agree on one way to live or even a single set of values. It’s about how we learn to live together, celebrate our differences, and face the global challenges of both today and tomorrow.
Carnegie Ethics Newsletter
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