![](https://cdn.carnegiecouncil.org/media/people/_400x400_crop_center-center_none_ns/Joel-Roesnthal-headshot-BG.jpg?v=1722357712)
Joel H. Rosenthal is president of Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. As a nonprofit leader, scholar, and teacher he works to empower ethical action, with a particular focus on U.S. foreign policy, issues of war and peace, human rights, and pluralism. At Carnegie Council, Rosenthal leads a team that identifies critical ethical issues, convenes experts, and produces agenda-setting resources to educate and activate communities globally.
Rosenthal is editor-in-chief of the Ethics & International Affairs journal published by Cambridge University Press. His first book Righteous Realists is an examination of the political realists who shaped post-WWII America in the nuclear age, including Hans Morgenthau, Reinhold Niebuhr, and George Kennan. His current writing and commentary can be found at the President’s Desk.
Rosenthal is the recipient of numerous awards including the Distinguished Scholar Award from the International Studies Association for his lifetime achievement in international studies and an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science from the University of Edinburgh. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University and BA from Harvard University.
Follow him on LinkedIn to receive future content translating ethics, analyzing democracy, and examining our increasingly interconnected world.
Subscribe to the President's Desk Newsletter for updates and analysis from Joel
Featured Work
NOV 17, 2009 • Podcast
How Rights Move: Losing and Acquiring Rights in the International Domain
David Rodin explores the logic which governs how rights may be lost, acquired and transferred--how they 'move'--and examines in particular the implications this has for ...
SEP 29, 2009 • Podcast
Leadership as Practical Ethics
If we accept leadership as goal-driven and compromise-ridden, then we see that ethics should not be a peripheral to any public policy curriculum or program ...
SEP 9, 2009 • Podcast
Realism as Pragmatic Cooperation
Remedies to global challenges are less about romantic dreams to improve the world and more about pragmatism and sustainability. The pragmatic and ethical thing to ...
SEP 9, 2009 • Podcast
Afghanistan and Japan: Joel Rosenthal on Public Television
What impact will the recent elections in Afghanistan and Japan have on U.S. interests? Joel Rosenthal is interviewed on Worldfocus, along with Carol Giacomo ...
SEP 9, 2009 • Transcript
Afghanistan and Japan: Joel Rosenthal on Public Television
What impact will the recent elections in Afghanistan and Japan have on U.S. interests? Joel Rosenthal is interviewed on Worldfocus, along with Carol Giacomo ...
![](https://cdn.carnegiecouncil.org/media/cceia/series-images/_1000x650_crop_center-center_none_ns/108725/pres-desk_thumbnail-1.jpg?v=1721236520%2C0.006%2C0.4744)
AUG 28, 2009 • Article
Realism as Pragmatic Cooperation
I would like to begin my presentation by telling you a bit about the Carnegie Council—and specifically, the word “ethics” in our title. This ...
![CREDIT: <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/jXxdtXFEjcc">Blake Guidry</a> on Unsplash](https://cdn.carnegiecouncil.org/media/cceia/import/studio/_1000x650_crop_center-center_none_ns/blake-guidry.jpg?v=1721246066)
JUL 28, 2009 • Podcast
Patriotism and Cosmopolitanism
As Americans in a globalized world, how can we define our moral responsibilities to humanity? Carnegie Council President Joel Rosenthal recommends a "cosmopolitan patriotism," rooted ...
![CREDIT: <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/jXxdtXFEjcc">Blake Guidry</a> on Unsplash](https://cdn.carnegiecouncil.org/media/cceia/import/studio/_1000x650_crop_center-center_none_ns/blake-guidry.jpg?v=1721246066)
JUL 28, 2009 • Transcript
Patriotism and Cosmopolitanism
As Americans in a globalized world, how can we define our moral responsibilities to humanity? Carnegie Council President Joel Rosenthal recommends a "cosmopolitan patriotism," rooted ...
![](https://cdn.carnegiecouncil.org/media/cceia/series-images/_1000x650_crop_center-center_none_ns/108725/pres-desk_thumbnail-1.jpg?v=1721236520%2C0.006%2C0.4744)
JUL 18, 2009 • Article
Patriotism and Cosmopolitanism
Let me begin with a simple claim. We live today in a globalized world that challenges us morally. While globalization may be a fuzzy concept, ...
![Joel Rosenthal](https://cdn.carnegiecouncil.org/media/cceia/_1000x650_crop_center-center_none_ns/feature_JoelRosenthal_2023-04-10-052440_lczf.jpg?v=1721240110)
JUL 14, 2009 • Podcast
"The Current" Interviews Joel Rosenthal
Carnegie Council president Joel Rosenthal shares his thoughts on the mission and work of the Carnegie Council, the new administration, the future of realism, and ...