My aim in this analysis is to give a philosophical clarification of the scope of corporate social responsibility within our present market economy. The issue is to what extent social responsibility of the firm is compatible with existing market structures in our present economy. In this context, I will address the conceptions of corporate social responsibility within philosophy, economic theory, and economic sociology. This analysis aims at clarifying the concept of corporate social responsibility within traditional neoclassical economic thought and confronting (...) it with the institutional theory of society. On this basis, I will look on the more fundamental philosophical issue about how it can be possible to ascribe moral personality, responsibility and intentionality to corporations. In this context, I will examine collectivist arguments for corporate responsibility in order to show the limits of a strong collectivist conception of corporate social responsibility. After this, I will look at the nominalist view of corporate social responsibility, which represents the view opposite to the collectivist position. Finally, I will put forward a third possible view on corporate intentionality, which aims at overcoming the oppositions between the collectivist and the nominalist view on corporate social responsibility. (shrink)

Business ethics, corporate social responsibility, corporate citizenship, values-driven management, corporate governance, and ethical leadership are necessary ...

L’article aborde le rôle de l’intellectuel dans la société moderne par rapport à l’engagement activiste de la recherche. Un groupe de recherche de l’Université de Roskilde au Danemark constitué par Jacob Dahl Rendtorff et Sandra Frost, en collaboration avec Reidar Due de l’Université d’Oxford, vient d’obtenir une subvention de la Fondation danoise pour la recherche indépendante afin d’effectuer des recherches sur « L’éthique et la politique de la libre pensée. Le rôle de l’intellectuel public ». Ce projet doit (...) être considéré dans un contexte de discussion croissante sur le rôle du chercheur dans la société, qui s’accompagne d’une étude approfondie de l’intellectuel public au sein des sociétés démocratiques. (shrink)

Cet article propose des principes éthiques pour renforcer la conscience éthique de la gouvernance par rapport à la prise de décision pour la protection des êtres humains dans la biopolitique du Covid-19. La pandémie représente un nouveau défi pour la durabilité à l’époque de l’Anthropocène. La bioéthique et le biodroit doivent relever ce défi afin de protéger l’humanité de la destruction par pandémie. D’une part, il existe un danger de domination biopolitique du citoyen, d’autre part, un défi qui consiste à (...) assurer la protection de la dignité humaine en temps de pandémie. À travers une analyse herméneutique, l’article montre à quel point la responsabilité éthique est importante en tant que fondement des bons soins de santé dans les domaines de la politique et de l’économie au sein de la civilisation moderne marquée par la mondialisation et le progrès technologique. Ainsi, l’éthique pandémique implique une réinterprétation des principes éthiques importants d’autonomie, de dignité, d’intégrité et de vulnérabilité de la protection de la personne humaine dans la perspective de bioéthique et de biodroit à l’époque de l’Anthropocène. (shrink)

This article summarizes some of the results of the BIOMED II project “Basic Ethical Principles in European Bioethics and Biolaw” connected to a research project of the Danish Research Councils “Bioethics and Law”. The BIOMED project was based on cooperation between 22 partners in most EU countries. The aim of the project was to identify the ethical principles of respect for autonomy, dignity, integrity and vulnerability as four important ideas or values for a European bioethics and biolaw. The research concluded (...) that the basic ethical principles cannot be understood as universal everlasting ideas or transcendental truths but they rather function reflective guidelines and important values in European culture. The method of the research was conceptual, philosophical analysis of the cultural background of the four values or normative ideas that people use and find important in their existence. Moreover, this was combined with analysis of empirical legal material and policy documents. Also, a number of qualitative interviews with relevant experts were carried out. Another important result of the BIOMED project was the partner's Policy Proposals to the European Commission, the Barcelona Declaration, unique as a philosophical and political agreement between experts in bioethics and biolaw from many different countries. The Policy Proposals are reprinted here at the end of the article. (shrink)

This article discusses Michael Porter’s paradigm of creating shared value based on the criticism of corporate social responsibility by Milton Friedman in the perspective of contemporary debates on legitimacy and good corporate citizenship. This is a development of the argument presented by Jacob Dahl Rendtorff concerning the liberal property rights paradigm of business ethics in his book Responsibility, Ethics and Legitimacy of Corporations. This article discusses the work that Michael Porter has developed together with Mark Kramer, which can (...) be presented as a strategic approach to business ethics and corporate social responsibility. This work began with Porter’s concept of Strategic Philanthropy Harvard business review on corporate social responsibility, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 2003) which became Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility :78–92, 2006) and gradually developed into the concept of Creating Shared Value :62–77, 2011). We see how Michael Porter integrates the critical perspective on CSR from Friedman in a strategic concept of philanthropy, corporate social responsibility and creating shared value. Accordingly, the concept of creating shared value should be considered as a development of the ideas of strategic philanthropy and corporate social responsibility in the perspective of capitalism and freedom. At the same time, however, the concept of creating shared value is broader and more oriented towards society and towards the idea of profit-based CSR since it integrates the values of society and business in corporate legitimacy. (shrink)

The present book comprises thirteen chapters written by Nordic scholars in the human and social sciences, and developed out of conference papers presented at regular winter and summer symposia held by two research groups emanating from the Nordic Summer University. Born within and informed by this specific milieu, the chapters address significant sociopolitical implications for contemporary societies emerging from the ethical reflections of leading 20th century thinkers (e.g. Michel Foucault and Jürgen Habermas), important procedural as well as substantive aspects of (...) democracy, and pivotal ethico-political issues arising from the abstract logic and concrete manifestations of market economies. Though by no means devoid of their own economic, cultural and political problems, the Nordic countries are still paramount examples of humane prosperity, democratic civility, environmentally sound policy, and peaceful resolution of social and industrial conflicts. Year after year, if not decade after decade, they keep topping the international charts for socio-economic indicators about sostainable development, healthcare quality and accessibility, educational levels, crime control, preceived happiness and much else. As such, the scholarly and scientific reflections orginating within the Nordic Summer University might prove to be useful sources of insight for policy-makers, intellectuals and interested persons outside the Nordic context, and not solely inside it. (shrink)

L’article se concentre sur la pandémie de covid-19 dans une tentative d’évaluer la contribution éventuelle de l’analyse philosophique à la compréhension et à la résolution des problèmes éthiques, juridiques et sociopolitiques qu’elle soulève. On aborde une série de dilemmes cruciaux qui requièrent des décisions pratiques, avant et après la production et la disponibilité des vaccins, à la lumière des théories éthiques et politiques contemporaines. Il s’avère que dans la plupart des cas les conceptions déontologiques semblent l’emporter sur les considérations conséquentialistes, (...) qui ne s’imposent à notre raisonnement que dans des situations d’urgence immédiate. La pandémie nous permet également d’apprécier le rôle important des vertus éthiques et épistémiques dans la prise des décisions critiques. (shrink)

Les géologues ont suggéré de nommer l’époque actuelle « Anthropocène » pour indiquer que les activités humaines ont atteint un impact sur l’environnement qui rivalise avec celui d’événements naturels comme l’érosion des sols, les orbites lunaires, la tectonique des plaques, etc. Il semble évident que le terme n’a de sens que s’il est possible de distinguer les événements anthropiques des événements naturels, c’est-à-dire les êtres humains de la nature. La grande influence de Bruno Latour sur le débat international autour des (...) questions environnementales est indiscutable, mais surprenante si l’on considère qu’il s’est efforcé, au fil des ans, dans ses livres, articles et interviews, de contester le sens même du terme « nature ». Par conséquent, il a minimisé la pertinence du concept pour aborder la situation désastreuse actuelle concernant l’Anthropocène. Dans cet article, l’auteur tente de reconstituer les prises de position changeantes de Latour sur le concept de nature, en s’appuyant sur une sélection de ses œuvres jusqu’à la publication de Où atterrir? Comment s’orienter en politique. Il s’avère que Latour a, dans une certaine mesure, abandonné sa première interprétation constructiviste de la nature comme « fabriquée » et a timidement commencé à accepter l’existence de la nature. Cependant, il n’a jamais défini un concept cohérent de la nature et, par conséquent, n’a pas non plus atteint une position stable sur les questions écologiques fondamentales. (shrink)

L’article se concentre sur la pandémie de covid-19 dans une tentative d’évaluer la contribution éventuelle de l’analyse philosophique à la compréhension et à la résolution des problèmes éthiques, juridiques et sociopolitiques qu’elle soulève. On aborde une série de dilemmes cruciaux qui requièrent des décisions pratiques, avant et après la production et la disponibilité des vaccins, à la lumière des théories éthiques et politiques contemporaines. Il s’avère que dans la plupart des cas les conceptions déontologiques semblent l’emporter sur les considérations conséquentialistes, (...) qui ne s’imposent à notre raisonnement que dans des situations d’urgence immédiate. La pandémie nous permet également d’apprécier le rôle important des vertus éthiques et épistémiques dans la prise des décisions critiques. (shrink)

This paper presents a theoretical and practical approach to teaching business ethics, stakeholder management and CSR within the framework of the thematic seminar on business ethics and corporate social responsibility at Roskilde University. Within our programs in English of business studies and Economics and Business Administration the author of this article is responsible for this seminar that integrates issues of CSR and the ethics of innovation into the teaching ofcorporate social responsibility, stakeholder management and business ethics. This research oriented seminar (...) provides a unique possibility for teaching CSR with an integration of methodological, theoretical and practical dimensions of business ethics. The idea is that the thematic seminar represents a tutor supported frame for extended studies of business ethics, stakeholder management and the social aspects of business and entrepreneurship. Each student shall present a paper on the basis of a collection of articles on the topic of ethics and social dimension of business. Moreover, it is required that the student is discussant of two other papers during the course. In addition, students shall prepare interactive participation in discussion of each paper. The sessions begin with a short introduction to the topic by the professor, then student presentations, after this discussant remarks, and finally general discussion followed by an evaluative assessment by the professor. During the seminar the student shall present both theory and case discussion so that we find a close interaction between theory and practice in the presentation. In the following, the paper elaborates on this development, in particular in the relation between theory presentation and case studies. (shrink)

This article presents Jean-Paul Sartre’s concept of the tension between existence and politics and the role of political commitment in existentialist philosophy. Based on Sartre’s concept of engagement, the article analyzes the transition from the personal to the political perceived as a movement from personal moral consciousness to the awareness of the importance of the individual as a social actor and citizen in society. Sartre’s concept of political engagement can be characterized as critical intellectual commitment and “Socratic Citizenship.” Accordingly, this (...) article is also an acknowledgment of the two important philosophers of ecoethica, Tomonbu Imamichi and Peter Kemp, both committed public intellectuals who said that the role of the philosopher is to contribute to the public affair of cosmopolitan society. Thus, the article presents the political engagement in four major parts: (1) From the existential to political engagement, (2) Political commitment as a struggle for human freedom, (3) The Socratic Citizenship, and (4). Conditions of authentic political action. Political engagement represents an effort to realize the respect owed to each individual as a universal singular, as well as that owed to freedom and democracy in the Kingdom of Ends. (shrink)

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss some ethical issues in the internet encounter between customer and bank. Empirical data related to the difficulties that customers have when they deal with the bank through internet technology and electronic banking. The authors discuss the difficulties that customers expressed from an ethical standpoint.Design/methodology/approachThe key problem of the paper is “how does research handle the user's lack of competence in a web‐based commercial environment?” The authors illustrate this ethical dilemma with data from (...) a Danish Bank collected in 2002. The data have been structured by an advanced text analytic method, Pertex.FindingsThe authors can conclude that the experience of lack of competency in internet banking implies a severe damage on the experience of the ethics of the good life and of the respect for the basic ethical principles of customer autonomy, dignity, integrity and vulnerability. However, increased experience of competency may imply experience of increased feeling of ethical superiority and of the good life among customers.Research limitations/implicationsThe important implication for managerial research of this study would be for banks to focus on customer competency with an ethical concern instead of only being concerned with technical solutions for effective internet operations.Practical implicationsSince more and more businesses are digitally based, the authors can foresee a potential generic problem of lack of competence for certain age groups and also of people from different social groups.Originality/valueThe paper provides an analysis of the ethics of on‐line banking on the basis of Pertex methodology and with the use of basic ethical principles of autonomy, dignity, integrity and vulnerability. (shrink)

This book demonstrates how the conceptual resources of contemporary French philosophy from the early 20thCentury to the present day can be applied to give us new perspectives on business ethics and the ethics of organizations. In providing an overview of possible applications,the book covers a wide range of philosophers, philosophical movements and perspectives, and provides detailed analyses of core materials relevant to business ethics. It explores and analyzes French philosophy, taking into account phenomenology,existentialism, French epistemology, structuralism, post-structuralism,deconstruction and postmodernism as (...) well as recent discussions of philosophy of organizations and management. Each chapter contains suggestions for further reading and educational illustrations of possible applications to the mainstream business ethics and ethics of organization literature. (shrink)

Due to the global environmental crisis and problems of climate change, but also the economic problems of neoliberalism and inequality, it is important to rethink our ideas about society, business, and economic organization in the context of a transition to a more sustainable society. Important themes of a political economy of sustainability are Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the philosophical underpinnings of governance and sustainability management. Reforming global economic and political institutions means finding new, creative, and imaginative solutions for managers, (...) administrators, and members of government critically to evaluate our political economy and management concepts and values. It is important to rethink policies and strategies in the light of challenges of the global society. We will do this in what follows by focusing on important topics such as 1) The origin of our contemporary crisis 2) The political economy of the crisis 3) The transformation of governance for lasting change. (shrink)

Using an interdisciplinary focus, this book combines the research disciplines of philosophy, business management and sustainability to aid and advance scholar and practitioner understanding of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This book presents a selection of articles with focus on the theoretical foundations of business ethics, and in particular on the philosophy of management and on human rights and business. This implies identifying and discussing conflicts as well as agreement with regard to the philosophical and other foundations of business and management. Despite the general interest in corporate social responsibility and business ethics, the contemporary discussion rarely touches upon the normative core and philosophical foundations of business. There is a need (...) to discuss the theoretical basis of business ethics and of business and human rights. Even though the actions and activities of business may be discussed from a moral perspective, not least in the media, the judgments and opinions relating to business and management often lack deeper moral reflection and consistency. Partly for this reason, business ethicists are constantly challenged to provide such moral and philosophical foundations for business ethics and for business and human rights, and to communicate them in an understandable manner. Such a challenge is also of scientific kind. Positions and opinions in the academic field need to be substantiated by thorough moral and theoretical reflection to underpin normative approaches. Far too often, business ethicists may agree on matters, which they approach from different and sometimes irreconcilable philosophical standpoints, resulting in superficial agreement but deeper-lying disagreement. In other cases, it may be of high relevance to identify philosophical standpoints that despite conflicting fundamentals may arrive at conclusions acceptable to everyone. (shrink)

This article presents the influence on Danish philosophy of the French phenomenologist and hermeneutic philosopher Paul Ricœur. Paul Ricœur’s poetic hermeneutics was an inspiration for Danish phenomenology and existentialist thought. Moreover, Ricœur had an influence on the development of poetic and narrative research in theology and the human and social sciences in Denmark. In addition, Ricœur provided a hermeneutic framework for research in the different disciplines of bioethics and biolaw, philosophy of law, philosophy of education and nursing philosophy. In particular, (...) Peter Kemp has been important for presenting and promoting Ricœur’s narrative philosophy. The article gives an overview of the influence of the different aspects of Ricœur’s philosophy in Denmark, related to different schools of thought and to individual philosophers and researchers in theology and the human and social sciences in Denmark. (shrink)

Avec et après la pandémie, notre conscience de l’espace et du temps a subi un changement radical : les individus ont expérimenté l’oisiveté forcée, les gestes barrières et la distanciation physique qui redouble l’éloignement induit par les nouvelles technologies ayant substitué la communication à l’échange. Or, les progrès techniques n’ont de progrès que le nom et ne cherchent que l’efficacité assurée par la vitesse qui fait violence aux cycles de la nature. Pourtant, seule cette dernière est capable de nous réconcilier (...) avec nous-mêmes en nous extrayant de la domination de la machine et en nous enseignant la patience de laquelle peut surgir la beauté : beauté du geste artistique qui défie le temps, accès à la transcendance à travers la contemplation du vivant. C’est dans ce rapport d’interdépendance avec la nature que nous pouvons échapper à la déshumanisation de la société moderne et renouer avec la beauté du monde. (shrink)

This article is based on an exchange between Peter Kemp and Jacob Dahl Rendtorff on the occasion of Peter Kemp’s seventieth birthday in 2007. It presents the development of Kemp’s ethical philosophy from his philosophy of technology and technology ethics to his philosophy of bioethics and biolaw. It also discusses Kemp’s relation to Existentialism, hermeneutics, phenomenology, and Marxism with the development of a critical hermeneutic philosophy of engagement. This is related to Kemp’s work on humanistic ethics of technology (...) in his book on the ethics of the irreplaceable. The article presents Kemp’s long discussion with Paul Ricœur about the ethics of the good life and about narrative ethics. Finally, it elaborates on the bioethical turn towards an ethics for the living world and discusses the role of basic ethical principles of autonomy, dignity, integrity, and vulnerability in relation to cosmopolitan and global responsibility for sustainability and humanity. (shrink)

From 1995 to 1998, the European Commission supported the “Basic Ethical Principles in European Bioethics and Biolaw” research project. The project was based on cooperation between 22 partners coming from most EU countries. Its aim was to identify the ethical principles relating to autonomy, dignity, integrity and vulnerability as four important ideas or values for a European bioethics and biolaw. An important resume of the BIOMED project was the partner’s Policy Proposals to the European Commission, the Barcelona Declaration of 1998, (...) which is unique as a philosophical and political agreement between experts in bioethics and biolaw from many different countries. In this article, we want to compare the Barcelona Declaration with some other recent international Documents on bioethics and biolaw. We will relate the Barcelona Declaration to the framework of different international documents and codes of conduct about bioethics and biolaw. In particular, we will look at the similarities and differences when compared with the Council of Europe’s Convention for the Protection on of Human Rights and Dignity of the Human Being with Regard to the Application of Biology and Medicine, adopted by the Committee of Ministers in 1996. Moreover, we will look at The UNESCO Declaration on the Humane Genome from 1997. Thus, the Barcelona Declaration does not only represent European ethical principles for bioethics and biolaw, but the document should also be conceived as a conceptual clarification and articulation of major ethical principles, which are central to international concerns for a universal bioethics and biolaw. (shrink)

Cet article explique pourquoi et comment introduire la naissance dans le canon des sujets explorés par la philosophie. Il porte sur l’épistémologie de la naissance, c’est-à-dire sur la nature, l’origine et les limites des connaissances produites par et/ou liées à l’accouchement. L’autrice offre un regard sur la philosophie de la naissance et explore une nouvelle généalogie – un nouveau logos pour le genos –, une méditation radicale sur notre origine et notre naissance.

Cet article s’appuie sur la thèse de Galien formulée dans le titre de son traité Que le meilleur médecin est aussi philosophe, afin de mieux appréhender les situations de pandémies, passées et présentes. On abordera la relation entre la philosophie antique et la médecine à la lumière des propos sarcastiques et sévères de Galien à l’égard des médecins cupides et immoraux de son temps, ainsi que dans le contexte plus large des relations socio-philosophiques de la société antique et médiévale, où (...) la théorie philosophique et la médecine comme praxis appartiennent à différents domaines aristotéliciens : le loisir ( sholé ) et le travail ( asholía ). Plus largement, c’est en adoptant une approche à la fois médicale et philosophique sur les maux auxquels l’humanité est confrontée que l’on peut espérer les surmonter avec une conscience éclairée. (shrink)

Cet article se concentre sur le contrecoup sociopolitique de la pandémie de Covid-19 et utilise le cadre de la philosophie de Hegel pour l’analyser. Premièrement, l’article étudie les protestations de principe de diverses personnes contre les mesures imposées par l’État pour contrôler la pandémie. Sur la base de l’analyse de Hegel de la double reconnaissance entre l’État et ses membres, sur laquelle reposent les démocraties modernes, on soutient que ces protestataires de principe refusent de reconnaître l’État comme l’effectivité de la (...) liberté publique, soulignant ainsi la fragilité inhérente des États modernes. Pour justifier leurs positions, les contestataires ont argué qu’ils ne se sentent pas reconnus par l’État. Comme solution à ce problème, il est suggéré que l’État doit développer de nouvelles façons d’intégrer ces personnes, non seulement à travers son cadre juridique et institutionnel, mais aussi sur le plan économique et socioculturel. Deuxièmement, l’article réfléchit à l’impact de la pandémie sur les relations interétatiques à l’aide de la thèse de Hegel selon laquelle un lien fédérant les nations européennes pourrait régler pacifiquement les conflits entre les États dans cette région du monde. On avance pour finir que l’impact mondial de la pandémie et de nombreuses autres crises (changement climatique, répartition inégale des richesses, etc.) crée un terrain d’entente, offrant une raison d’étendre l’approche européenne de résolution des crises interétatiques à d’autres parties du globe. (shrink)

Ethische Grundprinzipien in der europäischen Bioethik und im Biorecht” ist der Titel eines Forschungsprojekts, das von 1995 bis 1998 von der EU-Kommission unterstützt wurde. Das Projekt gründete sich auf die Zusammenarbeit von 22 Partnerorganisationen aus der Mehrzahl der EU-Staaten. Es sollten ethische Grundprinzipien ermittelt werden, die sich ableiten aus Autonomie, Würde, Integrität und Verwundbarkeit als den vier Ausschlag gebenden Ideen bzw. Werten, die in der Bioethik und im Biorecht in Europa zum Tragen kommen sollen. Aus dem Resümee des EU-BIOMED-Projektes wurde (...) ein Rahmenprogramm der EU-Kommission abgeleitet und 1998 in der Deklaration von Barcelona festgehalten . Bei dieser Deklaration handelt es sich um einen einzigartigen Text, der die philosophische und politische Übereinstimmung von Experten aus dem Bereich der Bioethik und des Biorechts aus vielen Staaten dokumentiert. Im vorliegenden Artikel soll die Barcelona-Deklaration mit einigen internationalen Dokumenten zu Bioethik und Biorecht jüngeren Datums verglichen werden. Die Autoren stellen die Deklaration in Zusammenhang mit den Richtlinien, die in verschiedenen anderen internationalen Dokumenten und Rechtsvorschriften zum Vorgehen im Bereich der Bioethik und des Biorechts vorgegeben sind. Besondere Aufmerksamkeit gilt dem Vergleich mit der Konvention zum Schutz der Menschenrechte und der Würde der Menschen im Hinblick auf die Bereiche Biologie und Medizin, die 1996 vom EU-Ministerrat verabschiedet wurde. Sodann wurde die UNESCO-Deklaration betreffend des menschlichen Genoms und der Menschenrechte aus dem Jahre 1997 näher untersucht. Die Barcelona-Deklaration präsentiert also nicht nur die in Europa angestrebten ethischen Grundsätze in Bioethik und Biorecht, sondern erläutert und artikuliert ethische Grundprinzipien, die sich weltweit im Mittelpunkt des Interesses für universale Bioethik und Biorecht befinden. (shrink)

Europska komisija je od 1995. do 1998. podupirala istraživački projekt »Temeljni etički principi u europskoj bioetici i biopravu« . Projekt se temeljio na suradnji 22 partnera iz većine država Europske unije. Cilj projekta bio je identificirati etičke principe povezane s autonomijom, dostojanstvom, integritetom i ranjivošću kao četirima važnim idejama ili vrijednostima za europsku bioetiku i biopravo. Važan sažetak BIOMED projekta bio je Prijedlog Smjernica Europskoj komisiji – Deklaracija iz Barcelone iz 1998. godine – koja je jedinstvena jer predstavlja filozofsku i (...) političku suglasnost stručnjaka za bioetiku i biopravo iz mnogih država. U ovome tekstu želimo usporediti Deklaraciju iz Barcelone sa nekim drugim novijim međunarodnim dokumentima o bioetici i biopravu. Povezat ćemo Deklaraciju iz Barcelone sa okvirom koji nude različiti međunarodni dokumenti i propisi o djelovanju u bioetici i biopravu. Posebno ćemo se usmjeriti na sličnosti i razlike sa Konvencijom o zaštiti ljudskih prava i dostojanstva ljudskih bića u pogledu primjene biologije i medicine, koju je prihvatilo Vijeće ministara 1996., te ćemo promotriti i UNESCOvu Deklaraciju o ljudskom genomu iz 1997. Dakle, Deklaracija iz Barcelone ne predstavlja samo europske etičke principe u bioetici i biopravu, nego ujedno pojašnjava i artikulira osnovne etičke principe koji se nalaze u središtu međunarodnog interesa za univerzalnu bioetiku i biopravo. (shrink)

La Comission européenne a soutenu, de 1995 à 1998, le programme de recherche intitulé « Les principes éthiques de base en bioéthique et en bio-droit européens ». Le projet était basé sur la collaboration de 22 partenaires issus de la plupart des pays de l’Union européenne. L’objectif du projet était d’identifier les principes éthiques d’autonomie, de dignité, d’intégrité et de vulnérabilité comme étant les quatre idées et valeurs majeures de la bioéthique et du biodroit européens. Les Propositions et les recommandations (...) à la Commission européenne – la Déclaration de Barcelone de 1998 – constitue un résumé important du projet BIOMED. Cette déclaration est unique dans son genre car elle représente l’unanimité philosophique et politique des experts en bioéthique et en biodroit de nombreux pays. Dans ce texte, nous souhaitons comparer la Déclaration de Barcelone avec quelques nouveaux documents en bioéthique et en biodroit internationaux. Nous situerons la Déclaration de Barcelone dans le cadre proposé par les différents documents internationaux et les règlements relatifs à l’action dans le domaine de la bioéthique et du biodroit. Nous examinerons tout particulièrement les similitudes et les différences par rapport à la « Convention pour la protection des droits de l’homme et la dignité de l’être humain à l’égard des applications de la biologie et de la médecine », adoptée en 1996 par le Conseil des ministres. Enfin, nous étudierons la « Déclaration sur le génome humain » de l’Unesco de 1997. Donc, la Déclaration de Barcelone ne représente pas seulement les principes éthiques européens en matière de bioéthique et de biodroit, mais éclaire et articule les principes éthiques de base se trouvant au coeur de l’intérêt international pour une bioéthique et un biodroit universels. (shrink)

I present a new argument for the repugnant conclusion. The core of the argument is a risky, intrapersonal analogue of the mere addition paradox. The argument is important for three reasons. First, some solutions to Parfit’s original puzzle do not obviously generalize to the intrapersonal puzzle in a plausible way. Second, it raises independently important questions about how to make decisions under uncertainty for the sake of people whose existence might depend on what we do. And, third, it suggests various (...) difficulties for leading views about the value of a person’s life compared to her nonexistence. (shrink)

The standard view of "believes" and other propositional attitude verbs is that such verbs express relations between agents and propositions. A sentence of the form “S believes that p” is true just in case S stands in the belief-relation to the proposition that p; this proposition is the referent of the complement clause "that p." On this view, we would expect the clausal complements of propositional attitude verbs to be freely intersubstitutable with their corresponding proposition descriptions—e.g., "the proposition that p"—as (...) they are in the case of "believes." In many cases, however, intersubstitution of that-clauses and proposition descriptions fails to preserve truth value or even grammaticality. These substitution failures lead some philosophers to reject the standard view of propositional attitude reports. Others conclude that propositional attitude verbs are systematically ambiguous. I reject both these views. On my view, the that-clause complements of propositional attitude verbs denote propositions, but proposition descriptions do not. (shrink)

Formal principles governing best practices in classification and definition have for too long been neglected in the construction of biomedical ontologies, in ways which have important negative consequences for data integration and ontology alignment. We argue that the use of such principles in ontology construction can serve as a valuable tool in error-detection and also in supporting reliable manual curation. We argue also that such principles are a prerequisite for the successful application of advanced data integration techniques such as ontology-based (...) multi-database querying, automated ontology alignment and ontology-based text-mining. These theses are illustrated by means of a case study of the Gene Ontology, a project of increasing importance within the field of biomedical data integration. (shrink)

According to asymmetric comparativism, it is worse for a person to exist with a miserable life than not to exist, but it is not better for a person to exist with a happy life than not to exist. My aim in this paper is to explain how asymmetric comparativism could possibly be true. My account of asymmetric comparativism begins with a different asymmetry, regarding the (dis)value of early death. I offer an account of this early death asymmetry, appealing to the (...) idea of conditional goods, and generalize it to explain how asymmetric comparativism could possibly be true. I also address the objection that asymmetric comparativism has unacceptably antinatalist implications. (shrink)

I defend the view that a reason for someone to do something is just a reason why she ought to do it. This simple view has been thought incompatible with the existence of reasons to do things that we may refrain from doing or even ought not to do. For it is widely assumed that there are reasons why we ought to do something only if we ought to do it. I present several counterexamples to this principle and reject some (...) ways of understanding "ought" so that the principle is compatible with my examples. I conclude with a hypothesis for when and why the principle should be expected to fail. (shrink)