What Is Business Ethics?

Business ethics studies appropriate business policies and practices regarding potentially
controversial subjects, including corporate governance, insider trading, bribery,
discrimination, corporate social responsibility, fiduciary responsibilities, and much more.
The law often guides business ethics, but at other times business ethics provide a basic
guideline that businesses can follow to gain public approval.

There are generally 12 business ethics principles:

 Leadership: The conscious effort to adopt, integrate, and emulate the other 11
principles to guide decisions and behavior in all aspects of professional and personal
life.
 Accountability: Holding yourself and others responsible for their actions.
Commitment to following ethical practices and ensuring others follow ethics
guidelines.
 Integrity: Incorporates other principles—honesty, trustworthiness, and reliability.
Someone with integrity consistently does the right thing and strives to hold
themselves to a higher standard.
 Respect for others: To foster ethical behavior and environments in the workplace,
respecting others is a critical component. Everyone deserves dignity, privacy,
equality, opportunity, compassion, and empathy.
 Honesty: Truth in all matters is key to fostering an ethical climate. Partial truths,
omissions, and under or overstating don't help a business improve its performance.
Bad news should be communicated and received in the same manner as good news
so that solutions can be developed.
 Respect for laws: Ethical leadership should include enforcing all local, state, and
federal laws. If there is a legal grey area, leaders should err on the side of legality
rather than exploiting a gap.
 Responsibility: Promote ownership within an organization, allow employees to be
responsible for their work, and be accountable for yours.
 Transparency: Stakeholders are people with an interest in a business, such as
shareholders, employees, the community a firm operates in, and the family members
of the employees. Without divulging trade secrets, companies should ensure
information about their financials, price changes, hiring and firing practices, wages
and salaries, and promotions are available to those interested in the business's
success.
 Compassion: Employees, the community surrounding a business, business partners,
and customers should all be treated with concern for their well-being.
 Fairness: Everyone should have the same opportunities and be treated the same. If a
practice or behavior would make you feel uncomfortable or place personal or
corporate benefit in front of equality, common courtesy, and respect, it is likely not
fair.
 Loyalty: Leadership should demonstrate confidentially and commitment to their
employees and the company. Inspiring loyalty in employees and management
ensures that they are committed to best practices.
 Environmental concern: In a world where resources are limited, ecosystems have
been damaged by past practices, and the climate is changing, it is of utmost
importance to be aware of and concerned about the environmental impacts a business
 has. All employees should be encouraged to discover and report solutions for
practices that can add to damages already done.

Corporate governance is the system of rules, practices, and processes by which a company
is directed and controlled. Corporate governance essentially involves balancing the interests
of a company's many stakeholders, which can include shareholders, senior management,
customers, suppliers, lenders, the government, and the community. As such, corporate
governance encompasses practically every sphere of management, from action plans
and internal controls to performance measurement and corporate disclosure.

Benefits of Corporate Governance

 Good corporate governance creates transparent rules and controls, guides leadership,
and aligns the interests of shareholders, directors, management, and employees.
 It helps build trust with investors, the community, and public officials.
 Corporate governance can give investors and stakeholders a clear idea of a
company's direction and business integrity.
 It promotes long-term financial viability, opportunity, and returns.
 It can facilitate the raising of capital.
 Good corporate governance can translate to rising share prices.
 It can reduce the potential for financial loss, waste, risks, and corruption.
 It is a game plan for resilience and long-term success.

The Principles of Corporate Governance

While there can be as many principles as a company believes make sense, some of the most
common ones are:

 Fairness: The board of directors must treat shareholders, employees, vendors, and
communities fairly and with equal consideration.
 Transparency: The board should provide timely, accurate, and clear information
about such things as financial performance, conflicts of interest, and risks to
shareholders and other stakeholders.
 Risk Management: The board and management must determine risks of all kinds
and how best to control them. They must act on those recommendations to manage
risks and inform all relevant parties about the existence and status of risks.
 Responsibility: The board is responsible for the oversight of corporate matters and
management activities. It must be aware of and support the successful, ongoing
performance of the company. Part of its responsibility is to recruit and hire a chief
executive officer (CEO). It must act in the best interests of a company and its
investors.
 Accountability: The board must explain the purpose of a company's activities and
the results of its conduct. It and company leadership are accountable for the
assessment of a company's capacity, potential, and performance. It must
communicate issues of importance to shareholders.

Environmental ethics is a field of study that seeks to understand humans’ moral

obligations to protect and preserve the environment. It is a branch of ethics that recognizes
the intrinsic value of nature, the interconnection of all living things, and the responsibility
of humans to act in accordance with ethical principles.

Types of Environmental Ethics

 Libertarian Extension: Libertarian extension is a type of environmental ethics
that focuses on an individual’s right to do whatever they want with the
environment and its resources. This concept also stresses that an individual
should not impose their own values on others and should instead respect the
choices of others.
 Ecological Extension: Ecological Extension is a type of environmental ethics
that focuses on preserving the natural environment and its resources in order to
maintain the balance and health of the ecosystem. This concept stresses the
importance of humans working with nature in order to sustain it for future
generations.
 Conservation Ethics: Conservation Ethics is a type of environmental ethics that
focuses on preserving natural resources for future generations by ensuring that
current resources are not depleted or damaged beyond repair. This concept
encourages individuals to use natural resources responsibly and judiciously so
there will be enough for future generations.
Importance of Environmental Ethics
 Environmental ethics is essential for protecting the environment, species, and
resources.
 It promotes sustainable practices and encourages people to become more aware
of the impact their actions have on the environment.
 It emphasizes the interconnectedness of all living things and the need to respect
them. It encourages us to think about our place in the world and how we can
contribute to preserving the natural environment.
 Environmental ethics helps to build better relationships with nature, recognizing
its intrinsic value, not just its instrumental value.
 It encourages us to think beyond our immediate needs and consider the long-
term implications of our actions.
 It teaches us responsibility towards our environment, advocating for
environmentally friendly practices that help protect natural resources.
 Environmental ethics also promotes better public policies and laws, which help
ensure that our environment is properly cared for.

The earth has faced numerous environmental sustainability issues. The environmental
issues we face today are radically different than those humanity had to deal with in previous
generations, and this post will offer a list of environmental problems and solutions we
can address today.

#1: Climate Change

Largely considered the most urgent and impactful contemporary environmental crises by
scientists and other experts, climate change is the most high-profile challenge facing the
world today. For years, public figures such as Al Gore and Greta Thunberg have sounded the
alarm regarding growing carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, which pundits fear
could lead to a lingering increase in global temperatures for centuries to come. Georgetown
University states, “Scientists predict that if the increase in greenhouse gas emissions
continues unabated, temperatures will rise by as much as 10 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of
this century.” Georgetown also noted that “the five warmest years on record have occurred in
the last decade.

Unfortunately, the way forward on climate change isn’t easy to chart. In 2019, U.N.
Secretary-General António Guterres stated, “We need more concrete plans, more ambition
from more countries and more businesses. We need all financial institutions, public and
private, to choose, once and for all, the green economy.” Unfortunately, not all nations have
gotten on board with this way of thinking. For instance, Carbon Brief noted that China has
regularly been responsible for a tenth of all human-prompted climate change.
#2: Natural Resource Use
One of the top environmental problems facing the world is the challenge of natural resource
use. Virtually all economic activity ties into natural resource use, and many environmental
activists decry not only the rapid exploitation of various inputs, but also the growing gulf
between the wealthy and the less advantaged. For instance, the use of water by one
community can threaten the existence of another and even permanently alter nature itself.

Managing this challenge will require forward-thinking planning and taking into account the
environmental impact. As the U.N. Environment Programme states, “We are facing a historic
choice about how we use resources and the report scopes the potential of innovation,
rethinking economic growth and the role of cities in building more resource efficient
economies.”
#3: Waste Production
Waste management and production is a key point that numerous environmental issues articles
highlight. Dramatic pictures of refuse-choked waterways and giant floating patches of
oceanic waste have highlighted the dangers of improperly disposed plastic. Similarly,
electronic waste represents both an environmental danger and a missed opportunity given the
inherent value of computers, peripherals, cellular phones, and other electronics that get tossed
rather than recycled. In fact, the EPA states that only about one-quarter of all e-waste gets
recycled.

And then there’s the challenge of food waste. Not only do consumers in developed countries
throw away large amounts of food due to its appearance, but substantial losses also occur
early on in the growth cycle. The Journal of Agricultural Science notes that “among crops,
the total global potential loss due to pests varied from about 50% in wheat to more than 80%
in cotton production. The responses are estimated as losses of 26–29% for soybean, wheat
and cotton, and 31, 37 and 40% for maize, rice and potatoes, respectively.” The need for
environmentally friendly pest-remediation measures is more important than ever to avoid
further stressing the planet.
#4: Water Pollution
Earth has been called the Blue Planet due to the proliferation of water on its surface, but far
less of that liquid is potable than the casual observer might think. According to the World
Wildlife Federation, “Only 3% of the world’s water is fresh water, and two-thirds of that is
tucked away in frozen glaciers or otherwise unavailable for our use. As a result, some 1.1
billion people worldwide lack access to water, and a total of 2.7 billion find water scarce for
at least one month of the year.”
To make things even worse, water pollution puts potable water supplies at risk. “The United
Nations World Water Development Report 2017” found that “globally, it is likely that over
80% of wastewater is released to the environment without adequate treatment. … Increased
discharges of inadequately treated wastewater are contributing to the further degradation of
water quality in surface and groundwater. As water pollution critically affects water
availability, it needs to be properly managed in order to mitigate the impacts of increasing
water scarcity.”
#5: Deforestation
Data from NASA shows that forests cover nearly a third of the world’s landmass, and they
play an incredibly important role in the wider environment. For example, forests:
 Remove carbon dioxide from the air
 Prevent erosion
 Protect against floods
 Encourage biodiversity
 Provide timber and other related resources (e.g., mushrooms, maple syrup, usable
barks, berries)

Unfortunately, developing nations too often resort to practices such as slash-and-burn

clearing and failing to care for the soil afterward, which perpetuates a vicious cycle requiring
the clearing of yet more trees.
#6: Overfishing
While fishing supports human populations across the globe and isn’t inherently harmful to
the wider world, poor fishing practices can cause lasting harm. How? When more fish get
harvested than current populations can produce, a deficit develops. If such deficits continue
unabated, fisheries can become economically unviable, endangered, and even extinct.

Sometimes this occurs not due to the specific targeting of a species, but because of incidental
and unintentional catches. In addition to the elimination of harmful subsidies, the
establishment of technologically advanced fishing methods, fishing rights, and public
education can safeguard at-risk fisheries.
#7: Ocean Acidification
Few laymen are aware that the ocean absorbs almost a third of the carbon dioxide released
into the world. Even fewer know that increased carbon emissions can also impact water
quality, altering the pH of the ocean itself. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration has noted that the past 200 years has seen “approximately a 30 percent
increase in [ocean] acidity,” which directly impacts so-called “shell building” creatures.
Studies have linked reef bleaching, reef death, mollusk death, and ecosystem disturbance to
this increasing acidification.
#8: Air Pollution
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines air pollution as “fine particles in polluted air
that penetrate deep into the lungs and cardiovascular system, causing diseases including
stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and respiratory
infections. Industry, transportation, coal power plants and household solid fuel usage are
major contributors to air pollution.”

Like many environmental risks, air pollution doesn’t impact every corner of the world the
same. Whereas many western corporations have learned what is environmental sustainability
in business, the same can’t be said for other areas. WHO reports that, “in the Western Pacific
Region alone, around 2.2 million people die each year” from air pollution.
#9: Water Scarcity
Water scarcity threatens the well-being of communities and ecosystems worldwide. The
availability of fresh water is rapidly declining, putting millions of people at risk. Aquatic
ecosystems, vital for biodiversity, are also suffering as water sources dry up.

Collective action is essential in addressing water scarcity. Sustainable water management

practices, such as efficient irrigation and responsible consumption, can help conserve water.
Rainwater harvesting and recycling graywater are practical measures. Educating communities
about water conservation is crucial, empowering individuals to make informed choices.

International cooperation is vital in tackling water scarcity on a global scale. Sharing best
practices and promoting collaborations can lead to effective water management strategies. By
working together, we can ensure equitable access to water resources and create a sustainable
future.
#10: Sustainable Food Production & Demand
Food production and demand present significant challenges to achieving environmental
sustainability. As the global population continues to grow, the need for food escalates, putting
strain on agricultural systems and the natural environment.

Sustainable farming practices are vital. Conventional methods harm soil, water, and
biodiversity. Organic farming, permaculture, and regenerative agriculture promote soil
health, water conservation, and reduced chemical use. These practices contribute to resilient
ecosystems and healthier food systems. Addressing food waste is crucial. Globally, one-third
of all food produced is wasted, squandering resources and increasing emissions. Better supply
chain management, consumer education, and innovative initiatives can minimize waste and
its environmental impact.

Collaboration is essential. Individuals can support local and organic producers, reduce waste,
and choose sustainable options. Businesses should adopt sustainable practices. Policymakers
must enact regulations and incentives for sustainable agriculture.

Education and awareness drive change. Promoting knowledge about sustainable farming and
responsible consumption empowers individuals to make informed decisions.
#11: Decreasing Biodiversity
Human activities, such as habitat destruction, pollution, climate change, invasive species, and
overexploitation, contribute to the decline of biodiversity. As species disappear, ecosystems
suffer, losing crucial functions like pollination and nutrient cycling.
The consequences of decreasing biodiversity affect both ecosystems and humanity.
Ecosystems become vulnerable to disruptions and lose their ability to provide essential
services. Communities relying on biodiversity for agriculture, fisheries, and tourism face food
insecurity, economic instability, and cultural loss. The loss of keystone species and ecological
disruptions can also lead to the spread of diseases and the collapse of ecosystems.

Conservation efforts are essential to address declining biodiversity. Protecting and restoring
habitats, including through the establishment of protected areas, is crucial. Sustainable land-
use practices and mitigation of climate change impacts are also necessary. Collaboration
between governments, organizations, and communities, including indigenous peoples, is
vital. Education and international cooperation play key roles in raising awareness and sharing
best practices.

Computer ethics is a set of principles that regulates the use of computers. Computer ethics
address issues related to the misuse of computers and how they can be prevented. It
primarily imposes the ethical use of computing resources. It includes methods to avoid
violating the unauthorized distribution of digital content. The core issues surrounding
computer ethics are based on the use of the internet, internet privacy, copyrighted content,
software, and related services, and user interaction with websites.

Ten commandments of computer ethics:

The commandments of computer ethics are as follows:
Commandment 1: Do not use the computer to harm other people’s data.
Commandment 2: Do not use a computer to cause interference in other people’s work.
Commandment 3: Do not spy on another person’s personal data.
Commandment 4: Do not use technology to steal personal information.
Commandment 5: Do not spread misinformation using computer technology.
Commandment 6: Do not use the software unless you pay for this software.
Commandment 7: Do not use someone else’s computer resources unless he authorized to
use them.
Commandment 8: It is wrong to claim ownership of a work that is the output of someone
else’s intellect.
Commandment 9: Before developing software, think about the social impact it can of that
software.
Commandment 10: While computers for communication, always respectful with fellow
members.

Research ethics involves the application of fundamental ethical principles to research

activities which include the design and implementation of research, respect towards society
and others, the use of resources and research outputs, scientific misconduct and the regulation
of research.

Role of ethics in research: Research ethics are moral principles that guide researchers to
conduct and report research without deception or intention to harm the participants of the
study or members of the society as a whole, whether knowingly or unknowingly.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a management concept that describes how a
company contributes to the well-being of communities and society through environmental
and social measures.

What are the 4 types of CSR?

The 4 main types of corporate social responsibility your business should
consider (and why)
 Environmental social responsibility.
 Ethical/human rights social responsibility.
 Philanthropic corporate responsibility.
 Economic corporate responsibility.