Statement of Intent

Statement of Intent Regarding ERC Involvement in Other Nations

       The Ethics Resource Center is a non-profit, non-partisan organization, located in Washington, DC, USA. Our organization exists to help strengthen individuals, institutions and communities based upon a commitment to ethical principles. We undertake our work in pursuit of the vision of an ethical world. Specifically, the ERC regularly works with businesses, educational institutions, non-profits and other organizations as they establish and maintain ethics programs for their community members.

       Our vision can only be achieved by stepping outside the boundaries of our own country. We believe that in a growing global economy, the ability of each country to better itself is dependent upon the ability of its people to work effectively with people from outside of their own local contexts. This means that each nation must ultimately provide a safe and ethical operating environment for multinational and multilateral institutions. To that end, the ERC has begun working with a wide variety of stakeholders in other countries, so that everyone can have the opportunity to benefit from an increasingly global society.

       The international work of the ERC varies in its approach. To date we have most frequently engaged in a process of gathering local resources to establish ethics centers around the world. In every case, the focus of the center, the people that comprise the staff, and the values with which they work are all determined by the needs of the nation in which it is located. The Ethics Resource Center does not enter a country with the intent of promulgating western values. Neither do we proselytize the political and religious views of that nation. We are concerned about ethics, not politics.

       It is the aim of the ERC to build on the strengths of each country, the values, traditions and belief systems that they profess. We work to provide technical assistance, so that each local ethics initiative can cultivate rule of law, ethical business standards and values-based educational systems to strengthen their voice in a growing dialogue about global integrity.

       The Ethics Resource Center established its first foreign ethics center in the United Arab Emirates in 1997. The greatest need at the time of establishment was in the health care system in the UAE, and for that reason, with the assistance of Merck, Sharpe and Dohme, Inc., the Gulf Center for Excellence in Ethics was created. Since that time, the ERC has been working to provide similar technical assistance in the area of ethics in South Africa, Colombia, Turkey, and Russia. We are excited about the possibility of projects in development throughout Latin America.

       Despite global tensions, it is the position of the ERC that the need for attention to individual and organizational ethics grows-only through a shared commitment to ethical principles can we ever benefit one another. We pursue our work in ethics with the hope of strengthening the values and beliefs that make the culture of each nation so rich. We also aim to help developing countries become equal partners in the global dialogue.

       We are glad to answer any questions about our international work. We work on behalf of the public trust, and welcome new partners in the effort.