Julie Rose has been an associate professor in the government department since arriving at Dartmouth in 2014. She teaches classes that bridge ethics and public policy such as “Justice and Work” and “Ethics, Economics and Environment.” Rose’s research — which is broadly in political philosophy — focuses on issues of economic justice. Rose will become director of the Ethics Institute on July 1.
What first attracted you to political philosophy and economic justice?
JR: I've been interested in politics and policy as far back as I can remember. When I found out in college that you could think about these topics in a more abstract way and analyze the underlying principles and values, that really clicked with my own way of thinking.
I came to issues of economic justice when I was picking a topic for my dissertation in graduate school. A mentor suggested that I choose something that would keep me motivated [which is] how I started focusing on issues of economic justice, work and leisure.
What exactly is the Ethics Institute?
JR: I find it helpful to think of the institute as serving three overlapping constituencies: first, the Dartmouth undergraduates, then the Dartmouth faculty, visiting academics and the graduate students engaged in research and then the broader community on campus and the Upper Valley.
You can think of it as a space on campus for all kinds of ethics related programming. We don't have a major or a minor. Instead, the institute provides fellowships and funding for students and faculty. We also have events, discussion series and bring speakers to campus.
Why do you feel that the Ethics Institute is so necessary?
JR: I think there are lots of reasons why we need this kind of a space on campus. I think students are often really deeply engaged with thinking about how society should be organized, what kinds of public policies we should have, what kinds of values should be underlying our economic practices and what kind of lives we want to lead as individuals. It’s really vital for students to have a space, whatever their major or minor is, to engage with those kinds of questions in a supportive environment.
I also think that the Dartmouth students, faculty, staff and the Upper Valley public can meaningfully benefit from the visitors that the Ethics Institute brings to campus. These are people who think in a really sustained way about challenging ethical questions in public life. To have the opportunity to engage with them hopefully helps people to clarify and advance their own thinking, whether they agree or disagree with the speaker.
Are there new initiatives in the works at the Ethics Institute that you're excited about?
JR: We have a few ideas in progress. One is what I’ve been thinking of as “summer and winter retreats” for visiting faculty. Dartmouth is uniquely advantaged in having top tier scholars in this small, friendly community in a place with incredible natural beauty. The idea is to use those advantages to draw faculty from across the country and internationally onto campus. During that time, they could focus on advancing their own research and meeting with Dartmouth faculty to discuss their works in progress. They could also be meeting with students in informal discussion sessions and speaking about some of their “greatest hits” from their own lectures. I think if we were to have these retreats every summer and winter over a series of years, a lot of new people would learn how special Dartmouth is and benefit from engaging with the interesting people coming through campus.
What opportunities does the Ethics Institute provide for students?
JR: There’s a Sayles Research Grant that provides ethics-related research funding to work with a Dartmouth advisor. The Phillips Family Professional Development Fund provides funding for students who have ethics-related internships or conferences. Students who have a particular interest in ethics can also check out the Law and Ethics Fellowship. You apply to it and then a small group of students meet over two terms for a discussion series. You get to meet with people visiting campus and have sustained conversations as a group with them.
Is there one ethical issue that you think students should be grappling with more today?
JR: There is no shortage of difficult ethical issues today. I think that those are important concerns and sometimes we focus on issues too much or exclusively at the national or global level. Instead, we should think more about regional and local tiers as well. I’d encourage students to think more about how we can support people at the local level to lead flourishing lives. At a small-scale institutional and community level, we can then help to ensure that people have opportunities to use their talents and skills, to have a rich network of social connections and to have opportunities to contribute to others.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
