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Peter Singer

Peter Singer

Writing for PS since 2001
232 commentaries
1 videos & podcasts

Peter Singer, Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University, is Founder of the nonprofit organization The Life You Can Save. His books include Animal Liberation, Practical Ethics, The Ethics of What We Eat (with Jim Mason), Rethinking Life and Death, The Point of View of the Universe, co-authored with Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek, The Most Good You Can Do, Famine, Affluence, and Morality, One World Now, Ethics in the Real WorldWhy Vegan?, and Utilitarianism: A Very Short Introduction, also with Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek. In April 2021, W.W. Norton published his new edition of Apuleius’s The Golden Ass. In 2013, he was named the world's third "most influential contemporary thinker" by the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute. He is a co-author (with Shih Chao-Hwei) of The Buddhist and the Ethicist (Shambhala Publications, 2023).

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  1. Will Cambridge Support Free Speech?
    singer230_View PicturesPeter CookUniversal Images Group via Getty Images_cambridge View Pictures/Peter Cook/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

    Will Cambridge Support Free Speech?

    Apr 12, 2024 Peter Singer examines the university’s ongoing case against Nathan Cofnas, a research fellow who advocates “race realism.”

  2. Does Religious Freedom Trump Animal Welfare?
    singer229_ Mustafa YalcinAnadolu Agency via Getty Images_echr Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

    Does Religious Freedom Trump Animal Welfare?

    Mar 14, 2024 Peter Singer assesses the European Court of Human Rights’ recent ruling on Belgian legislation regarding how meat may be produced.

  3. The Competitive Edge of Doing Good
    singer228_ humanitix

    The Competitive Edge of Doing Good

    Feb 8, 2024 Peter Singer explains why companies that donate 100% of their profits to effective charities often end up doing very well.

  4. Killing Innocents in Israel and Gaza
    singer227_MOHAMMED ABEDAFP via Getty Images_gaza Mohammed Abed/AFP via Getty Images

    Killing Innocents in Israel and Gaza

    Jan 5, 2024 Peter Singer says that while Israelis' desire for revenge for October 7 is not wrong, choosing to act on it is.

  5. A Bargain in Saving Lives
    singer226_AMOS GUMULIRAAFP via Getty Images_malaria AMOS GUMULIRA/AFP via Getty Images

    A Bargain in Saving Lives

    Dec 11, 2023 Peter Singer urges the swift approval and rapid production of a new, low-cost malaria vaccine that can save millions of lives.

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  1. elerian167_Michael M. SantiagoGetty Images_nyse Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

    Navigating Major Transitions in an Uncertain Economy

    Mohamed A. El-Erian explains how to recalibrate expectations in the face of yet another forecasting failure.
  2. brosda1_Matt CardyGetty Images_social media news Matt Cardy/Getty Images

    Must Democratizing the Media Be Bad for Democracy?

    Carsten Brosda proposes a strategy to defend the digital public square against manipulation and algorithmic distortion.
  3. mazzucato66_Soumyabrata RoyNurPhoto via Getty Images_IndiaUPI Soumyabrata Roy/NurPhoto via Getty Images

    Central Banks in a Cashless World

    Mariana Mazzucato & David Eaves explain why policymakers should become more involved in shaping or creating digital-payments infrastructure.
  4. nsofor9_ Zhu Huanan  CFOTOFuture Publishing via Getty Images_hpv vaccine Zhu Huanan / CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images

    Governments Must Step Up to Prevent Cervical Cancer

    Ifeanyi M. Nsofor urges policymakers worldwide to commit to administering the HPV vaccine as widely as possible.
  5. op_ghilarducci1_Jeffrey GreenbergUniversal Images Group via Getty Images_USelderlyworker Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

    The Perils of Retirement in America

    Teresa Ghilarducci

    The US retirement system is failing American workers. But after decades of pushing fake fixes – especially forcing people to work longer – US policymakers have an opportunity to make real progress in bolstering Americans' economic security in old age.

    proposes a Grey New Deal that would boost economic security for all US workers in old age.
  6. nishtar8_AMAURY HAUCHARDAFP via Getty Images_africavaccine Amaury Hauchard/AFP via Getty Images

    Fifty Years of Immunization Success Call for 50 More

    Sania Nishtar touts the remarkable results of global collaboration on routine vaccination and foresees continued progress.
  7. GettyImages-2149550584 Photo by MARK PETERSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

    Trump on Trial

    From a long list of criminal indictments to unfavorable voter demographics, there is plenty standing between presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump and a second term in the White House. But a Trump victory in the November election remains a distinct possibility – and a cause for serious economic concern.

  8. woods56_Alex WongGetty Images_georgieva Alex Wong/Getty Images

    The IMF Chose the Right Leader the Wrong Way

    Ngaire Woods thinks the Fund’s process for selecting its managing director is woefully out of step with today’s world.
  9. bildt122_Mikhail SvetlovGetty Images_trumpputin Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images

    Trump Is Putin’s Only Hope Now

    Carl Bildt considers the implications of Ukraine finally receiving the Western military aid it has been waiting for.

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