Work and self-development: a philosophical reappraisal. Many Australians are worried about work, perhaps in more complex ways than ever before. Young people entering work lack the orientation once provided by established career paths, mid-life workers are often subject to disorienting shifts in role and difficulties finding the right 'work-life' balance, and many people leaving work find their lives suddenly bereft of meaning. This project will shed light on these anxieties by framing work withi ....Work and self-development: a philosophical reappraisal. Many Australians are worried about work, perhaps in more complex ways than ever before. Young people entering work lack the orientation once provided by established career paths, mid-life workers are often subject to disorienting shifts in role and difficulties finding the right 'work-life' balance, and many people leaving work find their lives suddenly bereft of meaning. This project will shed light on these anxieties by framing work within an image of the human that does justice to the depth and complexity of contemporary work experience. It promises a deeper understanding of work that would help promote good health and strengthen Australia's social and economic fabric.Read moreRead less
Applying the Ethics of Recognition: Work and the Social Bond. Work matters to most Australians. It is not just of instrumental value, worth it just for the money: a good, fulfilling job is integral to a fulfilled life. Our sense of well-being is inseparably bound up with how things are going at work. But how is this well-being sustained? What moral expectations do we bring to work and what happens when they are not met? This project will develop new answers to these questions by focusing on clai ....Applying the Ethics of Recognition: Work and the Social Bond. Work matters to most Australians. It is not just of instrumental value, worth it just for the money: a good, fulfilling job is integral to a fulfilled life. Our sense of well-being is inseparably bound up with how things are going at work. But how is this well-being sustained? What moral expectations do we bring to work and what happens when they are not met? This project will develop new answers to these questions by focusing on claims for recognition arising out of work. Experiences of misrecognition at work, we propose, seriously damage one's capacity to lead a fulfilling life. By identifying ways in which recognition can be given or denied at work, the project will be of great community benefit.Read moreRead less
Collective Obligations and Partial Compliance. The research I would conduct is likely to have considerable impact at both the national and international level. Despite the lack of systematic work on the issues my projects tackles, the importance of those issues is now widely recognized, and so work on them is likely to be widely noted and discussed. In addition, the research will have important implications for a number of the most prominent issues in contemporary life in Australia, such as issu ....Collective Obligations and Partial Compliance. The research I would conduct is likely to have considerable impact at both the national and international level. Despite the lack of systematic work on the issues my projects tackles, the importance of those issues is now widely recognized, and so work on them is likely to be widely noted and discussed. In addition, the research will have important implications for a number of the most prominent issues in contemporary life in Australia, such as issues concerning refugees, relations with the aboriginal community, and international aid.Read moreRead less
Egalitarian Responses to Climate Change. The project will offer significant insights into the effects of climate change and adaptation policy on the disadvantaged at a time when there is significant policy change in this area. The project will develop a philosophical framework for assessing whether current and proposed carbon trading schemes are just. In addition, the project will also consider the important political issue of whether democratic participation in the formation of climate policy i ....Egalitarian Responses to Climate Change. The project will offer significant insights into the effects of climate change and adaptation policy on the disadvantaged at a time when there is significant policy change in this area. The project will develop a philosophical framework for assessing whether current and proposed carbon trading schemes are just. In addition, the project will also consider the important political issue of whether democratic participation in the formation of climate policy is required and in what ways. Read moreRead less
Big-Picture Bioethics: policy-making and liberal democracy. We live an era of rapid growth in biotechnology generating new and difficult ethical questions that need to be tackled by bioethicists and politicians. This project goes beyond typical approaches in bioethics to explore the "big picture": how policies are generated in ethically-contentious domains. It is important to examine how the values of different stakeholders are reflected in such processes to ensure that they are in accordance wi ....Big-Picture Bioethics: policy-making and liberal democracy. We live an era of rapid growth in biotechnology generating new and difficult ethical questions that need to be tackled by bioethicists and politicians. This project goes beyond typical approaches in bioethics to explore the "big picture": how policies are generated in ethically-contentious domains. It is important to examine how the values of different stakeholders are reflected in such processes to ensure that they are in accordance with Australia's commitment to fostering a multicultural, pluralistic, democratic society. This project will produce practical recommendations for refining public consultation in healthcare policy-making through an examination of three relevant contentious case studies in Australia with comparison to Canada.Read moreRead less
On-Line Identity, Interpersonal Relationships And Society. This project will provide a thoroughgoing account of the implications of the communication context provided by the Internet for the development of our identity as persons and as a society. Its significance is grounded in the fact that the context of our communication with others significantly affects the kind of relationships we develop and so the sort of person and society we become. The Internet has now emerged as a central communicati ....On-Line Identity, Interpersonal Relationships And Society. This project will provide a thoroughgoing account of the implications of the communication context provided by the Internet for the development of our identity as persons and as a society. Its significance is grounded in the fact that the context of our communication with others significantly affects the kind of relationships we develop and so the sort of person and society we become. The Internet has now emerged as a central communication context through which our professional, business and personal lives are pursued.Read moreRead less
Addiction, moral identity and moral agency: Integrating theoretical and empirical approaches. By clarifying and evaluating scientific claims about the moral impacts of addiction on the judgment and practices of drug addicted persons and by investigating the perspectives of users and treatment professionals, our project will contribute to the development of ethical and effective public policy, treatment and education programs in the addictions area, thus helping to address the causes and reduce t ....Addiction, moral identity and moral agency: Integrating theoretical and empirical approaches. By clarifying and evaluating scientific claims about the moral impacts of addiction on the judgment and practices of drug addicted persons and by investigating the perspectives of users and treatment professionals, our project will contribute to the development of ethical and effective public policy, treatment and education programs in the addictions area, thus helping to address the causes and reduce the impact of biological, social and environmental factors which diminish life potential in drug addicted persons. The innovative features of this project will enhance Australia's international reputation in bioethics and moral psychology, extend the reach of experimental philosophy, and facilitate future interdisciplinary work.Read moreRead less
Constructivism and Conceptual Mobility in Political Philosophy. This analysis of the theory of political concepts is important in contemporary Australian debates over the meaning of justice, democracy and sovereignty. This project will enhance the increasing self-awareness and theoretical sophistication of Australian public culture. Case studies of justice, democracy and sovereignty will directly engage with issues at the forefront of international debates in political philosophy. They will cont ....Constructivism and Conceptual Mobility in Political Philosophy. This analysis of the theory of political concepts is important in contemporary Australian debates over the meaning of justice, democracy and sovereignty. This project will enhance the increasing self-awareness and theoretical sophistication of Australian public culture. Case studies of justice, democracy and sovereignty will directly engage with issues at the forefront of international debates in political philosophy. They will contribute to the international renown of Australian philosophical research and improve the quality of the local research environment for graduate students in philosophy and political theory.Read moreRead less
Spinoza, Kant and Deleuze on freedom and ethical difference: an immanent approach. Transcendent moral philosophies, such as those in the Kantian tradition, have significant disadvantages when it comes to developing ethical and political tools for multicultural communities such as Australia, as they lack the flexibility to negotiate between moral and religious groupings adhering to competing moral absolutes. In using Deleuze's thought to develop a non-transcendent or immanent approach to ethics, ....Spinoza, Kant and Deleuze on freedom and ethical difference: an immanent approach. Transcendent moral philosophies, such as those in the Kantian tradition, have significant disadvantages when it comes to developing ethical and political tools for multicultural communities such as Australia, as they lack the flexibility to negotiate between moral and religious groupings adhering to competing moral absolutes. In using Deleuze's thought to develop a non-transcendent or immanent approach to ethics, the project seeks to address this problem. It will provide a means of negotiating this plurality of beliefs without recourse to transcendent or universal values, or to any one dominant moral code. This approach aims to have a marked impact on national debate over the philosophical and practical possibilities of such an ethics.Read moreRead less
The Responsibilities of the Affluent to Address Global Poverty. Australia is a wealthy country surrounded by less developed countries. This project will serve as a guide to a morally defensible Australian foreign policy and in particular as an aid for policy makers working on foreign assistance, international trade, and environmental policy. It is important to observe that in order to safeguard Australian national security it is prudent to address the issue of global poverty. Although terrorists ....The Responsibilities of the Affluent to Address Global Poverty. Australia is a wealthy country surrounded by less developed countries. This project will serve as a guide to a morally defensible Australian foreign policy and in particular as an aid for policy makers working on foreign assistance, international trade, and environmental policy. It is important to observe that in order to safeguard Australian national security it is prudent to address the issue of global poverty. Although terrorists and other threats seem seldom to be motivated by considerations of fairness, sympathy with and support for their actions seems often rooted in the perception that they are acting on behalf of the poor and impoverished.Read moreRead less