Virtually all research in policy-related fields is today geared to the attainment of sustainability. Theoretical models, political programs, legal provisions, ethical guidelines equally and invariably exhibit sustainability as an ultimate goal – at least nominally. In reality, however, the very formulation of these goals shows a high degree of vagueness and arbitrariness and allows for outcomes – both intended and unintentional – which, even though they comply, at least formally or rhetorically, with set benchmarks, might cause misgivings and concerns as to their truly sustainable character. The term “moral hazard”, originally used in the insurance and lending companies, and widely diffused in microeconomics, is therefore adopted here to capture such decoupling of declared objectives and, often adverse, actual results. The conference addresses moral hazards in the context of sustainability research and policy from an economic, political, legal, and ethical perspective.

Speakers: Christian Arnsperger, Paolo Graziano, Silvia Ivani, Malte Kramme, Eugene Nulman, William Rees, Oliver Schlaudt, Sören Schuster

The conference is organised by the «Competence Centre for Economic, Ecological and Social Sustainability» of the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, in collaboration with the «Euregio Platform on Human Dignity and Human Rights - Euphur».

The conference is made possible through the generous support of «Raiffeisenkassen Bozen».

Please find the programme below (downloads)