PODCAST · education
Life is Better with Ethics
by WMU Ethics Center
At the Western Michigan University Center for the Study of Ethics in Society, we believe that life is better with ethics. Join us as we engage in public reflection about a variety of ethical issues through our lecture series or through interviews with ethical thought leaders.
Episodes
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EP 38: Speaking with Integrity: The Power of Ethical Dialogue in PR
Dr. Leah M. Omilion-Hodges, Professor and Graduate Program Director in the School of Communication, and Dr. Anna Popkova, Associate Professor at Western Michigan University School of Communication and an allied faculty member at WMU Global and International Studies program, joined host Jayla…
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EP 37: Civil Discourse Across Difference
David Paul, Chair of the Department of Philosophy, and Jennifer Townsend, Executive Assistant for the Lee Honors College, joined host Sandra Borden, Director of the Ethics Center, to talk about why we should try to talk across difference about difficult issues and how can we do so with civility…
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EP 36: Ethical Implications of the Korematsu Case
Dr. Karen Korematsu, the executive director of the Fred T. Korematsu Institute, joined host Kathy Purnell, an Ethics Center affiliate and the director of the Human/Civil Rights Law Center, on October 10, 2025. They talked about the special exhibit, “Am I An American or Am I Not?” that opened...
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EP 35: Interrogating Foundations and Practices in Research Ethics
Host Jayla Bryan, the Ethics Center's intern, talks to the team behind the Center's National Science Foundation grant (Award #2316197): Dr. Sandra Borden, the Ethics Center’s director and a professor in the School of Communication; Dr. David Hartmann, chair and professor in the Department of...
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EP34: Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism
Ryan Scrivens, assistant professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University, joined host Sandra Borden, the Ethics Center’s director, on April 3, 2025. They talked about his research on terrorism and extremism, as well as the ethical issues involved in working with former...
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EP 33: WMU Ethics Center's 40th Anniversary
The Ethics Center’s founding director, Michael Pritchard, and longtime Center Advisory Board member Ronald Kramer joined host Sandra Borden, the Ethics Center’s current director, on March 13, 2025, to talk about the Ethics Center’s mission and history on the occasion of its 40th anniversary....
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EP 32: A Life Well Lived - Kalamazoo Photovoice exhibit
Award-winning photographer Jeri Love and Osher Lifelong Learning Institute members Kris Locke and Jim Bennink joined host Sandra Borden, the Ethics Center’s director, on March 10, 2025, to talk about an exhibit created by participants in an OLLI Photovoice workshop as part of the A Life Well…
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EP31: Therapy Dogs and Ethics
Angie Moe, a professor of sociology at Western Michigan University, joined host Olivia Munoz, the WMU Ethics Center's intern, on December 2, 2024. They talked about the role of therapy dogs, how to ensure access to their services and how to treat the dogs ethically. Dr. Moe, who specializes in...
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EP30: The Ladies Library Association's Abolitionist History
Sharon Carlson, president of the Ladies Library Association in Kalamazoo, joined host Ashley Atkins, Ethics Center affiliate and associate professor in the Western Michigan University Department of Philosophy, on November 20, 2024. They talked about the association’s abolitionist history. The...
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EP 29: The Common Good
Dr. Mark Hoipkemier, assistant professor of philosophy at the University of Navarra in Pamplona, Spain, joined host Sandra Borden, director of the WMU Ethics Center, on June 14, 2024. He delivered the keynote address for a workshop co-sponsored by the Center and the Department of Public...
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EP 28: The Idea of Prison Abolition
Today we are joined by Professor Tommie Shelby--Caldwell Titcomb Professor of African American Studies and Philosophy--to discuss his book The Idea of Prison Abolition.
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EP 27: Between Violence and Resistance
This episode is a recording of the 2023 Winnie Veenstra Peace Lecture. Dr. Edgar Franco-Vivanco presents his talk, “Between Violence and Resistance: The Challenges of Latin America in the 21st Century,”, where he examines the role of colonialism and US foreign policy in shaping violence in Latin...
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Ep 25: Learning Ethics Abroad
Today we are joined by Dr. Sandra Borden and Dr. Fritz Allhoff to discuss the benefits of studying ethics abroad. Dr. Borden spearheads a media ethics study abroad program, which takes place in London, England. Dr. Fritz Allhoff runs an Arctic Security class which travels to Iceland. For more...
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Ep 23: How Science Can Help Us Understand Ethics
In this episode, PhD student Luke Golemon is interviewed about his project: "Redifining the Scientific Analaogy for Ethics." Broadly, Luke explores how understanding ethics as something that is influenced by the world--and perhaps even scientifc--can benefit our understanding of ethics.
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Ep 23: Climate Change and Moral Responsibility
Jon Milgrim, faculty specialist in the Department of Philosophy, and Alec Koppers, a second-year master's student in the same department, joined Madelyn Wallace, the intern for Western Michigan University's Center for the Study of Ethics in Society, on February 24, 2023. They talked about their...
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EP 22: Why Should We Care About Conspiracy Theories
Thomas Stelzl joins us again to discuss conspiracy theories. What constitutes a conspiracy theory? How do they happen? How do we talk about them? And what can an international analysis offer to our understanding of them?
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Ep: 21 A Conversation About The Ethics Bowl and Public Affairs
In the Fall of 2022, Western Michigan University had designed a course around the Ethics Bowl. Students read moral philosophy revolving around public affairs and the ethics bowl. This is a conversation with these students after having attended the Ethics Bowl. Listen in as these students describe...
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Ep 20: The RoDonda Vaught Case
Dr. Sandra Borden is joined by Dr. Elissa Allen, assistant professor in the Bronson School of Nursing here at Western, and Nayeli Guandique-Benitez, a third-year student in the Bronson School of Nursing. They discuss nursing, medical error and the line between ethical responsibility and criminal...
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Ep 19: Do We Have an Ethical Duty of Moral Attention
Victoria Vuletich, CEO of Ethics^2 in Grand Rapids, spoke with Sandra L. Borden, director of the Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at Western Michigan University, on March 14, 2022, as part of the Center's Spring 2022 lecture series. Produced and Edited by Alec Koppers.
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Ep 18: Getting to Know the Ethics Bowl Competition
This program was recorded on March 25, 2022. Our guests are Jeanine DeLay, president of A2Ethics, which coordinates the Michigan High School Ethics Bowl; Anna Kietzerow, a former member and coach of WMU's APPE Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl team, now a Ph.D. student in philosophy at the University…
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Ep 17: A Conversation about Business Ethics and Sustainability
This program was recorded on March 14, 2022, with Timothy Palmer, WMU professor of management and director of the Haworth College of Business’s Center for Sustainable Business Practices. What is sustainability, and why does it raise ethical questions? How have businesses come around to...
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Ep 16: Disputed Memorials and the Moral Standards Question
Ainsley Carry, vice-president for students, University of British Columbia in Vancouver (Canada), spoke with Sandra L. Borden, director of the Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at Western Michigan University, on April 5, 2022, as part of the Center's Spring 2022 lecture series. Produced…
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Ep 15: Business Ethics and Sustainability
Timothy Palmer, WMU professor of management, spoke with Sandra L. Borden, director of the Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at Western Michigan University, on March 30, 2022, as part of the Center's Spring 2022 lecture series. Produced and edited by Alec Koppers.
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EP 14: Voluntary Tax Preparation in Alaska
This program was recorded on March 28, 2022, with philosophy Professor Fritz Allhoff and WMU senior Jacob Grosan who traveled to Anchorage as part of the Alaska Tax Program. The student team did taxes for approximately 200 rural households. How does this program help Alaskans from lower-income...
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EP 13: A Conversation About Ethics and Political Rhetoric
Peter Loge, director of the Project on Ethics in Political Communication at The George Washington University, spoke with Sandra L. Borden, director of the Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at Western Michigan University, on November 4, 2021.
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EP 12: A Conversation about Ethics and Carceral Higher Education
This program was recorded on October 28, 2021, with Rebecca Ginsburg, director of the Education Justice Project at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Dale Brown, director of the Prison Education Outreach Program at Western Michigan University. Produced and edited by Alec Koppers.
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EP 11: Ethics and Video Games
This program was recorded on February 17, 2022, with Alec Koppers, an M.A. student in Philosophy. What ethical issues are presented by the gamification of violence? How do users negotiate personal identity in digital spaces? What ethical responsibilities do game designers have? Hosted by Sandra…
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Ep. 10 Dursun Peksen - Winnie Veenstra Peace Lecture
Dursun Peksen, Dunavant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Memphis, spoke on April 5, 2021, about “Political Effectiveness, Negative Externalities, and the Ethics of Economic Sanctions.”
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Ep. 5 Can and Should Robots Have Rights?
In a recent proposal issued by the European Parliament, it was suggested that robots and AI might need to be considered “electronic persons” for the purposes of social and legal integration. The very idea sparked controversy, and it has been met with considerable resistance. Underlying the...
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Ep. 4 The Right(s) Issue
Can robots have rights? Should robots have rights? Listen in to what David Gunkel thinks!
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Ep. 3 Race and the Politics of Loss
Dr. Ashley Atkins of WMU's Philosophy department joins Ethics Center G.A. Taylor Koopman to talk about collective loss, mourning, and how grief can be used for political movements and institutions. Join us at Dr. Atkins' talk on Oct. 4. More info at wmich.edu/ethics.
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Ep. 2 The Politics of Denial with Bernhard Stahl
The past years have been marked by a high number of conflicts with mass atrocities and humanitarian emergencies. The civil wars in Yemen and South Sudan or the fate of the Rohingya in Myanmar provide only a few examples. Most of these situations are in dire need of responsible external support…
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Ep. 1 The Silencing of Mass-Atrocities
Welcome to Life is Better with Ethics - the official podcast for the Center for the Study of Ethics in Society at Western Michigan University. Today's episode uncovers the fall happenings at the center and our host, Taylor, is joined by Dr. Bernhard Stahl from the University of Passau to talk…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
At the Western Michigan University Center for the Study of Ethics in Society, we believe that life is better with ethics. Join us as we engage in public reflection about a variety of ethical issues through our lecture series or through interviews with ethical thought leaders.
HOSTED BY
WMU Ethics Center
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Life is Better with Ethics currently has 37 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
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At the Western Michigan University Center for the Study of Ethics in Society, we believe that life is better with ethics. Join us as we engage in public reflection about a variety of ethical issues through our lecture series or through interviews with ethical thought leaders.
How often does Life is Better with Ethics release new episodes?
Life is Better with Ethics has 37 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
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Life is Better with Ethics is created and hosted by WMU Ethics Center.
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