The University of Sydney has joined with the Ethics Centre and the University of New South Wales to propose a new national institute: the Australian Institute of Applied Ethics.
The institute would be the first of its kind anywhere in the world – an independent body to advise on the profound ethical questions that face the nation. It would work with existing initiatives and institutions to strengthen and reinforce ethical infrastructure and decision-making in all sectors of life and work across Australia.
An improvement in ethics and the resulting increase in trust in institutions would have social and economic benefits, boosting the profitability of businesses of all sizes. Research from Deloitte Access Economics indicates that a 10 percent improvement in ethics across Australia would produce an uplift on GDP of $45 billion per annum.
“The need to strengthen the quality of the nation’s ethical infrastructure – in the public sector, the private sector and across the professions – is urgent,” said the University’s Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Mark Scott.
To support the establishment of the institute, the founding partners are calling for a one-off investment of $33.3 million from the Federal Government.
“Stronger ethical infrastructure means a stronger economy – a more prosperous and equitable Australia,” said Dr Simon Longstaff, Executive Director of the Ethics Centre. “This would be an investment in Australians and our institutions. We have everything to gain. Australia has never been more distrustful – and it costs us all more than we can know. The Australian Institute of Applied Ethics will help bring back trust to all aspects of our society.”
The call for funding for the institute follows a decline in Australia’s international rankings for ethics. In the 2021 Governance Institute of Australia Ethics Index, Australia achieved an overall index score of +45 (somewhat ethical), a fall from the 2020 score of +52. This places Australia below nations such as Finland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and China.
“Ethics sits at the heart of good business practice, good governance, education, and politics,” said University of NSW Vice-Chancellor, Professor Attila Brungs. “Rather than viewing ethics as an ambiguous discipline, we must reconceptualise it as critical to solving the intractable problems of our time – from improving productivity, to climate change, to closing equity gaps.”
