Short Course Description
The anti-slavery movement, the eradication of smallpox, and the Green Revolution which fed more than a billion people, are all examples of efforts that vastly improved the world we live in. However, many attempts to do good have failed, and some have even caused harm. One famous example is Scared Straight - a program that aims to reduce criminal behavior in teenagers, but was found to increase incarceration rates.
The course will discuss key issues of Applied Ethics in the real world, and present practical tools to examine these issues in everyday decision-making. This includes questions such as: To what extent should global catastrophes worry us, and what can and should be done about them? Should empirical evidence influence our ethical decisions, and how? What could be done about global poverty and healthcare? Do we have a moral obligation towards others, and if so, to whom, and does it include animals? How can moral commitment be incorporated into career decisions? And more.
The course will provide useful tools in research, logic and decision making, with an emphasis on careful analysis, active participation and examination of real cases many of us encounter regularly.
Course requirements: class attendance, final paper.
Full syllabus will be available to registered students only
