NCI Courses

The three pillars of sustainability - economic, environment, and society (people, planet, profit) have become an integral aspect of organisational strategy and development. Learners will explore the interrelated nature of these three sustainable pillars. The importance of the UN Sustainable Development Goals will be discussed while examining how these shape Ireland’s own sustainable approaches.

Learners will develop an understanding of ethical concepts such as, Utilitarianism, Deontology, Value Ethics, Normative Ethics and theories of justice. These theories will be examined in the context of sustainability with a particular focus on the modern dilemmas of the business world.

Students will examine the specific economic (or profit) pillar of sustainability exploring how the economic aspect of sustainability folds in ethical questions of established profit maximisation and continued growth. Issues around resources, production, and consumption are discussed and critiqued.

The value of non-human and non-living qualities of nature have become a significant issue when considering how sustainability factors in the environment and biodiversity. Students will explore the biocentric and anthropocentric perspectives of environmentalism learning about the ecological views that can frame ethical ideas within sustainability.

Understanding the ethical choices of society that affect sustainable efforts. What are the ways we understand the social costs, benefits, and values of sustainable decisions in society? Students will learn about societal ethics exploring how such considerations guide sustainable decisions for communities and society as a whole. Learners will also explore the role of society in highlighting both environmental and economic issues.

This section of the course begins to tie both sustainability and ethics together by evaluating and discussing current sustainable ethical questions such as: Should moral rights be extended to nature? Does society today have a moral obligation to protect future generations? Should our modern societal and economic needs tie into the health of our ecosystems? And is sustainability an ethical issue at all? In conjunction to this case studies are used to examine the ethical paradoxes of sustainable issues in business.

Sustainability has become a large subject with national and international objectives guiding many policies and frameworks that tackle a variety of issues. Similarly CSR has become a strategic and operational factor in the development of organisational outreach. Often CSR encompasses both social and environmental concerns. This section explores the role of the organisation in developing broader strategies, with a particular focus on ethical challenges that many businesses face. CSR is discussed in relation to the four principles (ethics, environment, economic philanthropic) that guide organisational strategy. Organisational sustainability is a critical aspect in developing and implementing strategies that both work for any company and support the broader requirements of the environment and society. Through exampled case studies students will learn about the development of organisational sustainability as a strategic advantage within specific sectors.

Examining a history of sustainable futures. What are sustainable futures and how do they apply to business? What is the future role of the organisation within a sustainable world – where is current thinking taking the issue of sustainability? Students will analyse how ethics plays a vital role in the development of sustainable planning. Learners will develop an understanding of the ethical considerations that guide sustainable challenges.