Uploaded January 2021 | Updated September 2026, 7 hours ago
Lots of large global issues require collective, coordinated responses. For example, if only a handful of individuals make choices that might reduce climate change if large numbers of people made the same choices (many of which involve sacrifice), that’s not enough to make a difference. But if enough people are contributing to make a difference, then (sadly) it can be tempting for others to embrace “exceptionalism,” wherein they experience the benefits of the collective effort without making the sacrifices. The response to the global pandemic is similar, where the collective public health effort requires that individuals work together with the common goal of curbing the spread of COVID-19. This raises ethical questions about how to balance individual and collective interests. My talk will focus on these questions, offering an argument for why, when we face these sorts of global issues, individuals ought to feel an ethical investment in and be guided by the collective goal.
This talk was part of our annual library lecture series prepared in partnership with the Rotman Institute of Philosophy, the Department of Philosophy at Western University, and the London Public Library.
Tracy Isaacs, Western University
Lots of large global issues require collective, coordinated responses. For example, if only a handful of individuals make choices that might reduce climate change if large numbers of people made the same choices (many of which involve sacrifice), that’s not enough to make a difference. But if enough people are contributing to make a difference, then (sadly) it can be tempting for others to embrace “exceptionalism,” wherein they experience the benefits of the collective effort without making the sacrifices. The response to the global pandemic is similar, where the collective public health effort requires that individuals work together with the common goal of curbing the spread of COVID-19. This raises ethical questions about how to balance individual and collective interests. My talk will focus on these questions, offering an argument for why, when we face these sorts of global issues, individuals ought to feel an ethical investment in and be guided by the collective goal.
This talk was part of our annual library lecture series prepared in partnership with the Rotman Institute of Philosophy, the Department of Philosophy at Western University, and the London Public Library.
Tracy Isaacs, Western University
