Nurturing Ethics in Governance: Taming Our Rascals Within

So many people dismiss ethics as wishy-washy, being in the eye of the beholder, a matter of opinion. This view reflects an astonishing marginalization of the subject from contemporary conversations, even while ethics are being judged every day in coffee shops and at the kitchen table. When good people find themselves in positions of power—whether in families, communities, public service, or elsewhere—an inner rascal may emerge who wants to wield that power for personal gain. There is a job to be done: to make ethics and governance more intelligible to all of us, including elected and appointed leaders. The research, philosophy, case studies, and over 60 illustrations of rascally birds within this remarkable book will help you nurture your own ethics. At the same time, you will more easily recognize the rascally behaviour going on around you.Leonard P. Apedaile is Professor Emeritus at the University of Alberta. Dr. Apedaile’s career as an agriculture economist spans many decades. He has lived, worked, taught, and collaborated as an economist and agrologist in 14 countries. Passionate about agriculture and rural development/ sustainability, Dr. Apedaile has served as a rural councilor and reeve in rural Alberta. With this book, he has turned his attention to a philosophical inquiry into the importance of ethical behaviour in governance. Dr. Apedaile lives on the family farm and continues to be active in his community and family life as well as to travel the globe. " The book provides a call for organizations to develop ethics infrastructure and obtain guidance in doing so. The work raises issues and awareness that any organization would do well to consider. Ethics is everybody’s business." Norm Dueck, BA, MSW, Civic Management (ret.)" This is an important book for those who take the responsibility of “governance” with and over other people seriously. Do read it if you want to know more about yourself, more about the foundations of ethical behaviour, and more about how to affect the performance of our governing systems, particularly at a local government level." Don Cummings, MBA,FCMC. Managing Partner, National Growth Partners Inc. "A thought-provoking study of concepts, that govern our everyday lives. I appreciate the approach to this book as it caused me to think internally about my own ethics and ethics in action in many of the workplaces I interact with daily. Access to this book makes these conversations much easier to navigate." Margot Ross-Graham, President, Sandbar Coaching and Consulting. "Inviting change can be a tall order, especially cultural or societal change because it can be scary and uncomfortable. But far from scary, this book is approachable, breaking down big concepts into small pieces and steps. Beyond simply cultivating understanding and consideration of ethics in governance, the book underscores the need for change, and indeed, provides discussion and demonstration as to how we can make changes to the status quo, working toward improving ourselves, and our organizations." Sarah-Patricia Breen, PhD, Adjunct Professor, University of Saskatchewan, Former President, Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation. "Peter's wonderful sense of humanity, personality, humour, and humility shine through and his writing is excellent and engaging. What’s so very helpful to the reader is the origin of ethics and how nurture plays a key role. The book provides the reader with motivation and power to make changes pertaining to either personal or public growth and development."Claudia Petersmeyer, BEd, MA, PhD (Philosophy) (ret.) "This is an amazing book. It demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of ethics theory and practice and it interposes some very practical examples where ethics have gone wrong. Each reader will see themselves in a situation described and benefit from the analysis and options." Peter J M Lown Q C,Director Emeritus, Alberta Law Reform InstituteProfessor Emeritus, Faculty of Law University of Alberta.