Ethics of sustainability:
How ethics of care and co-responsibly enable ethical decision making in the complex business environment.
Research background:
This research project aims to explore the ethics of sustainability as a dynamic process that involves mutual development of individual morality and ethically appropriate systems. In conventional sustainability discussion, the relation between ethics and the three key aspects of sustainability (economic, social, and environmental) is often ambiguous, relegating ethics as a sub-heading discussion. However, ethics serves as the backbone for sustainability, and the prevalence of unsustainable practices calls for a re-evaluate of our ethical and moral foundation that shapes our lives.
The primary concern of this research plan is the marginalization of ethics in sustainability discussion. To address this issue, the project adopts a critical approach in business ethics, particularly focusing on postmodern business ethics that go beyond mere adherence to ethical rules and instructions. Postmodern business ethics challenges dominant meta-narratives, embraces diversity, critiques power structure, and reconceptualizes the human-nature relationship.
Project objective:
The purpose of this research project is to identify the inherent ethical dimension of sustainability and to highlight the complexities of ethical dilemmas that necessitate a distinct approach to ethics. It also aims to explore a new insights and approaches tackling the sustainability challenges we face.
Contribution:
Amidst unethical and unsustainable economic practice, there is a growing recognition of companies as “moral entities”, implying that they bear moral responsibility for their choices and actions. This research will contribute to demonstrate how individual morality and system design play a significant role in promoting sustainability. Moreover, the findings of this study will contribute to both business value creation for sustainability and sustainability value creation for business.
Akram Hatami DSc (Econ) Akram Hatami is assistant professor in Oulu Business School.