Global Ethics: An Introduction

Syllabus

• Week 1

  Global ethics Now

  • What on Earth is global ethics?

    What do we mean by global ethics?

  • Issues in, and approaches to, global ethics

    What are the issues in global ethics? What approaches do different people take to them? These are the questions we look at here.

  • Global ethics, justice and human rights

    Here we introduce some basic concepts when thinking about key issues in global ethics.

  • Global ethics and moral theory

    Here we briefly introduce two moral theories that are discussed in more detail later in the course.

• Week 2

  Global inequality

  • Introducing global inequality

    According to the World Bank, 3.4 billion people, nearly half the world’s population, struggle to meet basic needs. So, while the world faces challenges looking to the future, there is nothing to be complacent about in the present.

  • Utilitarianism as a moral theory

    Utilitarianism is a moral theory that we look at using an example from Peter Singer.

  • The example of Hardin’s raft

    Does aid work? Can we really help without imperilling ourselves?

  • Common-sense morality: positive and negative duties

    We explore common-sense morality as a series of positive and negative duties.

  • Complicity or benefit?

    Are those who design, sustain and benefit from the global economic order to blame for harming the world's poor?

• Week 3

  Migration: Are controlled borders unethical?

  • Introducing migration

    Every year, millions of people leave their home country and settle elsewhere. But why do people migrate?

  • The ethics of migration

    Most countries control their borders. But, if all you want is to provide a more secure life for your family by migrating, this can seem very unfair. Is it ethical for countries to control their borders?

  • Utilitarianism and migration

    According to utilitarianism, a policy is ethical only insofar as it has good consequences. So which has the better consequences: open borders or controlled borders?

  • Deontology and migration

    According to deontology, whether something is ethical depends not on its consequences, but only on the rights and duties of those involved. Do countries have the right to control immigration?

  • Tax, benefits and migration

    Having examined utilitarian and deontological arguments, we now turn to a more general, final argument.

• Week 4

  Climate change: Should we care for future generations?

  • Introducing the ethics of climate change

    We have all heard that climate change is an important issue. But what exactly does it mean? And who or what is most affected by it? We examine some major ethical questions that confront us when we think about climate change.

  • Climate change: The facts and how we know them

    What do we know about the effects and the causes of climate change? And how do we know that they are anthropogenic? We’ll first look at climate science and then ask what can be done about it.

  • Climate change as a ‘tragedy of the commons’

    If we agree we are causing climate change, what stops us from addressing it effectively? Is it a ‘tragedy of the commons’ when rational, self-interested people fail to cooperate and lose out, as in the famous ‘prisoner’s dilemma’?

  • Should we really care about future generations?

    Here we analyse two arguments: ‘non-existence’ and ‘non-identity’. Who gets affected by how present generations behave? Do we have ethical obligations to non-existing people? Do actions today affect future generations’ identity?

  • Who should pay for climate change, and the ‘afterlife’?

    Following the arguments on our obligations to future generations, we discuss who should pay for climate change. We then consider one final argument to motivate those alive today to care more about the continuation of humanity.

  • Global ethical challenges

    Having thought about different global ethical challenges, within this activity we will now explore the global challenges that you are most interested in.

Who will you learn with?