Ethics and Social Responsibility

Sean Porter - System Earth - Spring 2007

Ethics and social responsibility intends to empower us, as students, with the knowledge that we truly can change things for the better. We are being given the tools, and shown how to use them effectively to make the changes we wish to see happen. We, being priviledged enough to have the opportunities we do, owe it to the rest of society to use those tools in a manner befitting responsible, empathic, fully realized human beings.

We are instilled with the skills and experience required to effectively collaborate with others in a group, helping to prepare us for the workplace, and most every other endeavor we will undertake in our lives, since people rarely work in complete solitude. We must be prepared to evaluate the decisions before us with the effects that they will have on other people in mind. The ethical implications of our efforts to change society will always be present, and to ignore them would make a mockery of our efforts. If we don't consider them, we cannot effectively make the right decision.

Progress

I do not particularly feel as though my ethics have changed over the last three terms. I have changed some of my behavior, but it has stemmed from looking at my own actions more closely, as opposed to truly changing my opinion of right and wrong. I have changed with respect to social responsibility though, before this year, I did not fully acknowledge the extremely unique position that I am in, being able to attend college. This has shown me that it truly is essential that those of us who are privililedged enough to afford a college education, through whatever means, have a responsibility to look out for all those people who are unable to do attain the same benefits.

I intend to make more of an effort to build community and encourage others around me to do the same. I will more carefully consider the potential ethical ramifications of my endeavors on myself, the community I live in, and the world at large.

Assignments

Spring Project Progress Report
Our spring projects all focused on social responsibility in some respect. My group's project involved bolstering community spirit through volunteer service with a community organization. We also made an effort to utilize our unique position as students to increase the viability of an organization that we felt contributes a great service to our community at Portland State.

Letter to the Editor
This assignment was an attempt to involve ourselves in a larger forum and hopefully increase the awareness of the issue we were attempting to address. It is part of our responsibility to help educate the rest of the populace on the issues of the day.