•  374
    “Environmental Justice: A Proposal for Addressing Diversity in Bioprospecting”
    International Journal of Diversity in Organizations, Communities and Nations 6. 2006.
    Recently, there has been an insurgence of corporations that bioprospect in Third World countries (going into these areas in hopes of utilizing traditional knowledge about local natural resources so as to eventually develop a synthetic alternative that they can then market). Although this type of bioprospecting does not encounter the problem of depleting environmental resources, other problems arise. Two primary problems are: (1) determining who has legal ownership of these resources, and (2) who…Read more
  •  40
    This book uses the example of informed consent guidelines for international research on human subjects to demonstrate how a philosophical analysis can assist in understanding how underlying concepts affect public policy; how and why such policies are exclusionary; and what methodology can be used to remedy injustices in public policy and practice. Epidemics, such as AIDS, have resulted in an increase in medical research in less developed countries. In an attempt to be more globally applicable, c…Read more
  •  30
    Individuals and Relational Beings
    Social Philosophy Today 23 87-101. 2007.
    Currently, the universal human rights model relies on the notion of individual human rights. According to Michael Ignatieff, this is based on the fact that universal human rights are necessarily individual rights. However, there are cultures in which persons define themselves as relational beings (firmly believing that the foundation of their value as persons rests in their being an integral part of a larger whole rather than their being identified as an individual self). Thus, the problem arise…Read more
  •  21
    Given the increase in research in less developed countries and the necessary reliance on informed consent guidelines, we should pay close attention to the extent to which these guidelines address important cross-cultural differences. I argue that the current underlying conception of autonomy that is reflected in informed consent guidelines fails to adequately address important cultural differences —namely differences in conceptions of the person. Since this conception directly influences one’s c…Read more
  •  9
    Given the increase in research in less developed countries and the necessary reliance on informed consent guidelines, we should pay close attention to the extent to which these guidelines address important cross-cultural differences. I argue that the current underlying conception of autonomy that is reflected in informed consent guidelines fails to adequately address important cultural differences—namely differences in conceptions of the person. Since this conception directly influences one’s co…Read more
  •  4
    Individuals and Relational Beings
    Social Philosophy Today 23 87-101. 2007.
    Currently, the universal human rights model relies on the notion of individual human rights. According to Michael Ignatieff, this is based on the fact that universal human rights are necessarily individual rights. However, there are cultures in which persons define themselves as relational beings (firmly believing that the foundation of their value as persons rests in their being an integral part of a larger whole rather than their being identified as an individual self). Thus, the problem arise…Read more