"VIEW! project: Collaboration with the Dr Jürgen Meyer Stiftung

The materials on value creation processes in various sectors – such as tourism, textiles and cocoa – and the ethical reflection on these aim to foster young people’s capacity for critical judgement.

Initially, seven teaching units are available, which will be continuously supplemented and expanded. In a foundational module, participants learn to recognise their own values underlying specific decisions. At the same time, they practise arguing consistently at both the moral level (value judgements) and the factual level (factual judgements). Furthermore, supplementary modules address issues of responsibility in global contexts and discuss them in an industry-specific manner.

The Hamburger Stiftung für Wirtschaftsethik has already had positive experiences with this discursive approach – which links ethical questions directly to economic learning content – in other projects. “We have also noted a high demand, particularly from vocational schools, for materials that are closely related to the respective professional fields,” said Executive Director Dr Jesco Kreft. The teaching materials offer a nuanced approach to dilemma situations and current economic and socio-political conflicts along the value chains of specific sectors.

Both project partners attach great importance to giving greater consideration to issues of business ethics in school lessons and vocational training in future. “For our foundation, ethics in business is the central focus of our work,” said Rüdiger Winkler, Director of the Dr Jürgen Meyer Stiftung. “We are therefore very keen to raise young people’s awareness of this issue.” The foundations have been collaborating since 2013 as part of their joint programme “Ethics in Vocational Training”.