When we are divided and in conflict it can be difficult to maintain a positive stance in living. This is especially true today when political, cultural, and economic strife are prevalent. Bart Worden, Executive Director for the American Ethical Union, will talk about how to sidestep open conflict while addressing the challenges we face as we strive to live ethically and work to build a caring and just society for all.
Bart will also reserve time at the end of his presentation to briefly discuss the American Ethical Union and Ethical Humanism: it’s strategic direction, challenges and successes.
Bart Worden has been the Executive Director of the American Ethical Union, the national federation of Ethical Culture and Ethical Humanist Societies, since 2012. Bart is, in addition, the clergy leader for the Ethical Culture Society of Westchester, and is a Social Worker who has worked with programs that help people recover from psychiatric disability.
Informal discussion and refreshments will follow the presentation.
“Pay attention. Be Astonished. Tell about it.” This stanza from Mary Oliver’s poem “Sometimes” is at the core of being aware, living in the “Now” and thinking ethically. Kathy and Ira teach medical students about ethical thinking and moral imagination versus risk aversion. Moral imagination means envisioning the full range of possibilities, including new and creative alternatives in a particular situation, in order to solve an ethical challenge. Acting morally requires more than just strength of character; it requires compassion, empathy and the awareness to discern what is morally relevant in a given situation. Join Kathy and Ira to elevate your moral imagination, creativity and moral courage as we seek to act more ethically in society.
Kathy Meacham, Ph.D., is the Course Co-Director of Ethics & Humanism at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Asheville Campus. She is a Professor Emerita in Philosophy from Mars Hill University, with academic degrees from Temple University (Ph.D. and M.A.), Harvard University (Ed.M.), and Eckerd College (B.A.)
Ira Sloan, M.D., is the Course Co-Director of Ethics & Humanism at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Asheville Campus. He is a semi-retired Psychiatrist, licensed in NC. He is Emeritus Chairman, Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Professor, Evanston Hospital, for Northwestern University Medical School. Dr. Sloan earned his B.A and M.D. from the University of Illinois, Champaign/Urbana and Chicago. Ira also teaches at the OLLI College for Seniors on magic, balloon sculpting and medically-related topics.
