The Moral Obligation to End Poverty

A presentation by Peter Singer
and dialogue with Ray Offenheiser and Serene Jones

Thursday, September 10, 5:00 – 6:30 p.m. James Chapel

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Featured Participants

In the midst of a spiraling economic crisis, rising homelessness and joblessness, and a growing awareness of our interconnectedness, the imperative to end global poverty has never been stronger. The voraciousness of the problems often seem to dwarf the actions of one individual, or even a group, and leave us paralyzed in the face of these manifold crises. Renowned applied ethicist, Princeton professor, and author Peter Singer will present proposals for personal, local, and global ethical engagement on issues of poverty and justice outlined in his latest book The Life You Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty.

Ray Offenheiser, President of Oxfam America, and Serene Jones, President of Union Theological Seminary, will offer responses to Dr. Singer’s presentation and join him in an open dialogue about strategic action for global justice.

Charlene Sinclair, Union PhD student and Poverty Initiative leader, will open the forum for discussion with the audience.

This event, which will be co-sponsored by Union Theological Seminary, Oxfam America, and Poverty Initiative is free and open to the public. We encourage RSVPs.

Featured Participants:

Peter Singer is the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University, a position he has held since 1999. Dr. Singer studied at the University of Melbourne and the University of Oxford and has taught at the University of Oxford, La Trobe University and Monash University. Singer was the founding President of the International Association of Bioethics and, with Helga Kuhse, founding co-editor of the journal Bioethics. Singer first became internationally known after the publication of Animal Liberation in 1975. His written works include Practical Ethics, How Are We to Live?, Rethinking Life and Death, One World and The President of Good and Evil, and The Way We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter.

Dr. Serene Jones became the sixteenth president of Union Theological Seminary, and the first woman president in the Seminary's 172-year history, on July 1, 2008. She is the Roosevelt Professor of Systematic Theology. Previously the Titus Street Professor of Theology at Yale Divinity School, Dr. Jones comes to Union after seventeen years on the Yale University faculty, where she also served as chair and faculty member of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Jones has held faculty appointments at Yale Law School and in the Department of African American Studies and Religious Studies.

Mr. Ray Offenheiser is the president of Oxfam America, a non-profit international development and relief agency and the U.S. affiliate of Oxfam International. Oxfam works to end global poverty through saving lives, strengthening communities, and campaigning for change. Since Mr. Offenheiser joined Boston-based Oxfam America in 1995, the organization has grown more than fourfold in size and has positioned itself as a leader on international development and global trade. Offenheiser, who has worked his entire career in the non-profit sector, is a recognized leader on issues such as poverty alleviation, human rights, foreign assistance, and international development. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Global Interdependence Initiative at the Aspen Institute, and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Inter-American Dialogue. Ray Offenheiser holds a masters degree in Development Sociology from Cornell University and earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame.

Ms. Charlene Sinclair has worked with the Poverty Initiative since coming to Union in 2005. Charlene has 20 years experience as a community organizer, having coordinated campaigns for the Center for Community Change, ACORN and the National Campaign for Jobs and Income Support. Sinclair has experience in providing comprehensive training in grassroots organizing and political strategy and targeted organizational development assistance. Charlene Sinclair is currently a PhD student in Ethics.