Business Ethics

As is the case in a number of other areas a growing differentiation of approaches and perspectives can be observed in the field of business ethics. Be it the comprehensive philosophical question as to our duties towards future generations or the challenge of economic justice in national or global scale a number of specialised foci have been evolving here.

It is not at least because of the European University's main emphasis on exchange with Eastern Europe that one of the topics most important to the IZE in the field of business ethics lies in the ethical challenges of the transformation of health care systems in these countries.

A first conference focusing on this issue that was organised in co-operation with the International University Institute Zittau (IHI) (= Internationales Hochschulinstitut Zittau [IHI]) brought together participants from Poland, Russia, Switzerland and Germany (contributions published in "Market without Morals. Transformation Economies in Ethical Perspective", Peter Lang 2002 [= Markt ohne Moral. Transformationsökonomien in ethischer Perspektive, Peter Lang 2002]).

Following up these experiences the IZE prepares the establishment of a visiting scholars program focusing on questions of the economic and cultural transformation processes in the societies of Central and Eastern Europe. The program is thought to bring together young scholars from Eastern and Central Europe with Colleagues from Western Europe and the US who work on historical and present-day ethical and legal problems of the transformation societies.

In co-operation between IHI and IZE contributions to the problems of the increasing globalisation were published.

Publications

• Markt ohne Moral? Transformationsökonomien aus ethischer Perspektive,
  Studien zur Ethik in Ostmitteleuropa, Band 5, 2002

• Globalisierung - Risiko oder Chance für Osteuropa?
  Studien zur Ethik in Ostmitteleuropa, Band. 9, 2005