Joel H. Rosenthal

President, Carnegie Council

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.

Featured Work

FEB 4, 2020 Podcast

Do Morals Matter? Presidents & Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump, with Joseph Nye

How much do morals matter for U.S. presidents when it comes to international affairs? What are the ethics of "America First" or 2003 invasion of ...

FEB 25, 2019 Podcast

How to Think about War: An Ancient Guide to Foreign Policy, with Johanna Hanink

Why has there been a sudden interest in Thucydides, especially in the U.S.? Johanna Hanink discusses her new book of translations and introductions to ...

L to R: David Roscoe, Bart Selman, Francesca Rossi, Stuart Russell, Wendell Wallach. CREDIT: Amanda Ghanooni

DEC 7, 2018 Podcast

Control and Responsible Innovation of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence's potential for doing good and creating benefits is almost boundless, but equally there is a potential for doing great harm. This panel discusses ...

<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Protest_against_U.S._military_attacks_in_Syria_(33919232325).jpg">Protest against U.S. military attacks on Syria, April 2017</a>. CREDIT: Fibonacci Blue via Wikimedia Commons

DEC 5, 2018 Article

Misconnecting with the U.S. Public: Narrative Collapse and U.S. Foreign Policy

For the past year, the U.S. Global Engagement program has focused its attention on the continuing strengths and weaknesses of the narratives that can ...

OCT 22, 2018 Podcast

Wellbeing in Northern Ireland, 20 Years After the Good Friday Agreement, with Senator George J. Mitchell

"Much has been said and written about the long and difficult road that led us to the Agreement in April of 1998. Many have deservedly received ...

OCT 22, 2018 Transcript

An Introduction to "Wellbeing in Northern Ireland" with Carnegie UK Trust's Martyn Evans

When Andrew Carnegie set up the Carnegie UK Trust, his mandate was short and to the point: Its mission is improve the wellbeing of the ...

OCT 22, 2018 Transcript

Where is Northern Ireland Now? with Peter Weir & Máirtín Ó Muilleoir

Peter Weir of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Máirtín Ó Muilleoir of Sinn Féin give their views on the situation in Northern ...

SEP 13, 2018 Podcast

Global Ethics Weekly: Expertise in the Era of Trump, with Joel Rosenthal

Responding to excerpts from U.S. Naval War College's Professor Tom Nichols and best-selling author and economist Dambisa Moyo--and the hostile anti-expert tone of the ...

AUG 2, 2018 Podcast

Global Ethics Weekly: The Assault on Ethics, with Joel Rosenthal

Carnegie Council President Joel Rosenthal and host Alex Woodson discuss the ethical failures of the first 18 months of Trump's presidency, but also why they both ...

JUL 24, 2018 Article

The Assault on Ethics

A year and a half into the Trump presidency, its most consequential feature thus far is its assault on ethics. What began as a curiosity ...