An Interview with Joel Rosenthal, President of Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs

30 Jun 2015

This month, we speak with Joel Rosenthal, who heads the New York City-based Carnegie Council. After first describing the Council’s mission, Dr Rosenthal then highlights the various multimedia resources his organization offers and its flagship journal, Ethics & International Affairs. Next, he explains how young people can get engaged with the Council’s activities and how social media has helped advance the discussion on global ethics. Finally, Dr Rosenthal comments on the Council’s plans for the future, which include a strong focus on interactive learning.

Last year, Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs celebrated its 100th anniversary. Could you describe the Council’s mission and how it has evolved since its creation a century ago?

Andrew Carnegie founded the Council in 1914 as a response to a specific threat. He could see the catastrophe of World War I looming on the horizon and believed that he could influence the course of history by creating institutions such as ours. Our purpose, in short, was to provide the ideas and popular support that were needed to counteract the momentum toward war.

One hundred years ago, however, the work of the Council was done almost exclusively by well-connected and influential men. Today we engage a broad public, young and old, from all walks of life around the world. Indeed, we occupy a distinct place in public life. We are an independent organization that’s free from government influence, political agendas and media bias. We are also an educational organization that’s devoted to the idea that a better educated public is, in itself, a good thing. We now have the responsibility – and opportunity – to help shape public debate on international issues of urgent concern.

Carnegie Council offers a variety of external pagemultimedia resources on its website. Can you provide us with an overview of what’s available?

Our multimedia resources are distinct for their focus on ethics. Most of them are available in video, audio and transcript formats, which make them especially useful for a variety of contexts, including classroom use. (Our external pagepodcasts are quite popular and are distributed through iTunes U, for example.)

As we see it, the option to watch, listen or read our materials gives our audience a choice in how they prefer to interact with us. Through our website and social media we are increasingly connected with a global audience of viewers, listeners and readers.

Please tell us more about the Council's flagship publication, external pageEthics & International Affairs.

Ethics & International Affairs quarterly is published by Cambridge University Press. It is well-known and widely respected by scholars throughout the world, primarily because it’s an agenda-setting publication that focuses on timely topics such as drones and targeted killing; preventing atrocities; and the ethics of immigration.

Also, the articles available in Ethics & International Affairs are used in hundreds of syllabi in colleges and universities around the world. They have helped shape generations of researchers and teachers and have made ethics an integral part of the study of international relations.

How does the Council engage students and young professionals in its work?

Students are a core constituency for the Council. Our outreach activities include but are not limited to essay contests, opportunities for engagement through our external pageGlobal Ethics Network, and our external pageEthics Fellows for the Future program. (The Fellows come from institutions around the world and are nominated and mentored by our Global Ethics Fellows.)

Additionally, external pageCarnegie New Leaders (CNLs) are young professionals who take part in Council workshops, lectures, seminars, and field trips. CNLs have their own program, which is designed to foster interaction with government, business, and community leaders who are exemplars of ethical practices in their respective professions.

In your view, how has the Internet – and especially social media – impacted today’s discussions on global ethics?

The Internet and social media enable us to be genuinely global. We can reach virtually any person anywhere. Social media also enhances our opportunities for interactivity. On our external pageFacebook page, for example, we have conversations with people from Italy, Pakistan, and many other countries. We also connect with like-minded organizations on external pageTwitter on a daily basis, including the ISN.

Since we take a global view on all issues, it’s important for us to see how our resources are viewed throughout the world, especially in places with different sets of values. Often, this entails having conversations with all kinds of people and accepting both negative and positive feedback. That has never been easier than it is today and these discussions are right there on our social media pages for everyone to see.

Needless to say, we are still exploring the frontiers of this space—our newest addition is an Instagram account—and we’re learning something new every day.

What lies ahead for Carnegie Council?

We see great opportunities for interactive learning. After all, the exploration of practical ethics depends on exchanging views and on the give-and-take of face-to-face and virtual discussions. Such approaches are also in keeping with our conviction that mutual learning is a powerful tool in implementing positive change. We will thus continue to provide access to the distinguished scholars and public figures who wish to share their ideas and experiences with a global audience.

Finally, we will use our studio work, worldwide network and digital library to explore issues of immediate concern – ranging from ethnic conflict to inequality to corruption. Since the ethical issues we face are vast and ongoing, I feel strongly that our work today remains as relevant and vital as ever.

For additional information please see:
external pageCarnegie Council President Joel H. Rosenthal
external pageCarnegie Council Multimedia Resources
external pageCarnegie Council Publications
external pageCarnegie Council Programs
external pageCarnegie Council on Twitter
external pageCarnegie Council on Facebook

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