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The Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at �鶹��ý offers programs each semester. All events are free and open to the public. Check back often for updates.

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Current events

October 5 - Lives Well Lived – Screening of documentary . 1-4 p.m. in the Van Deusen Room on the 2nd floor of the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Central Location, 315 South Rose Street. Kickoff event for series co-organized with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI at WMU) and the Kalamazoo Lyceum. 

October 24 - "Debates, Dilemmas, and Decisions in AI Governance," Daniel Schiff, Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science and Co-Director of the Governance and Responsible AI Lab at Purdue University. 1:30-2:30 p.m. on Webex. Host: Department of Philosophy. Co-Sponsor: WMUx. Part of WMUx’s AI@WMU events series. .

October 25 – "Building an Ethics Ecosystem for AI:  What, Why, and How?” John Basl, Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Northeastern University. Keynote speaker for the 14th Annual Midwestern Medical Humanities Conference. 11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m. on Microsoft Teams. Host: �鶹��ý (WMU) Medical Humanities Workgroup. Co-Sponsor: WMU Department of Philosophy. To be added to Teams, contact Dominic Aishe (@email).

November 8 – “A New Argument for Pacifism,” Blake Hereth, Assistant Professor in the Department of Medical Ethics, Humanities, and Law at �鶹��ý Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine. 4-5 p.m. in 3014 Moore Hall. Host: Department of Philosophy. 

December 12 - KalaSalon conversation: "A Life Well Lived - Kalamazoo," Sandra Borden, director of the WMU Ethics Center; Matthew Miller, director of the Kalamazoo Lyceum; and Toni Woolfork-Barnes, director of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI at WMU). 6:30 p.m. at Erbelli's Pizza, 6214 Stadium Drive. Part of series co-organized with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI at WMU) and the Kalamazoo Lyceum. .

Past events

2024

February 2 – “Loving Strangers,” 3:15 p.m. 1021 Adrian Trimpe Building. Meghan Sullivan, Wilsey Family Collegiate Professor of Philosophy and Director of Notre Dame Institute of Advanced Study at the University of Notre Dame. Keynote speaker the 17th Annual Graduate Student Philosophy Conference. Hosted by the Department of Philosophy. .

February 3 – “It Is Impossible to be Morally Responsible for Irrationality: An Epistemic Regress Argument,” 3:30 p.m., 2211 Student Center. Chandra Sripada, Theophile Raphael Research Professor and professor in the Departments of Philosophy and Psychiatry, University of Michigan. Keynote speaker for the 17th Annual Graduate Student Philosophy Conference. Hosted by the Department of Philosophy. Co-sponsors: Western Student Association, Graduate Student Association. .

February 26 - “Nature’s Best Hope,” Doug Tallamy, University of Delaware, 4 p.m. on . Part of The WMU Climate Change Working Group’s . Hosted by the WMU Climate Change Working Group.  

March 14 – “The Ethics of ‘Necessity’ and the 1781 Zong Massacre,” 6 p.m., Clifford Center, 2026 Brown Hall. Cynthia Klekar-Cunningham, director of the WMU School of Communication. Co-Sponsors: School of Communication, Department of English, Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations. . Download flier.

March 21 – “Yellowface Through an Ethics Lens,” 6:30 p.m., Kirsch Auditorium, Fetzer Center. Panelists: Chien-Juh Gu, professor of sociology; Jil Larson, associate professor of English; and Michael Redinger, associate professor and co-chair of the Department of Medical Ethics, Humanities and Law at the �鶹��ý Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine. Co-Moderators: Paul Pancella, professor of physics, and Victoria Vuletich, founder of Ethics Squared based in Grand Rapids. Part of the Kalamazoo Public Library’s . Co-sponsors: Kalamazoo Public Library, WMU Libraries. Download flier. 

April 2 – “The First Political Order: How Sex Shapes Governance and National Security Worldwide,” 2024 Winnie Veenstra Peace Lecture, 6 p.m., 2213 Student Center. Valerie Hudson, George H.W. Bush Chair and professor of international affairs in the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. Co-sponsors: Department of Sociology, Department of Political Science, College of Arts and Science Women's Caucus. . Download flier. The Women's Caucus is hosting a brown bag with Dr. Hudson on the topic of women in academia 12-1:30 p.m. on April 2 at the Center for the Humanities. See details and RSVP by March 22 through .

April 11 – “Looking Through a Policy Window with Tinted Glasses: Agenda-Setting Dynamics in U.S. AI Policy,” 5:30 p.m., 2209 Student Center. Daniel S. Schiff, assistant professor of technology policy at Purdue University’s Department of Political Science and co-director of the Governance and Responsible AI Lab (GRAIL). Co-sponsors: Department of Philosophy, WMUx, Department of Political Science, Communication and Social Robotics Labs. . Download flier.

Click here for previous lectures and events.