Leeds’ Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility Launches Online Certificate Program in Ethical Leadership with the United Nations

Leeds’ Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility (CESR)​ is doing some important work with the United Nations this year. In March, CESR partnered with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) to develop an online certificate program to assist UN diplomats and staff in fostering both the character traits and leadership skills necessary for reaching the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals —a master plan to address the global challenges we face and achieve a more sustainable future for all.

According to CESR’s Executive Director Dr. Mark Meaney, “CESR’s partnership with UNITAR provides the Leeds School of Business with the opportunity to educate UN personnel on how best to exercise ethical leadership in achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.”

The program started earlier this summer and is taught by Meaney and two other CU Boulder professors: Carla Fredericks, associate clinical professor, director of Indian Law Clinic at CU’s Law School and Antonio Papuzza instructor of Organizational Leadership and Information Analytics at Leeds. The initial program attracted more than 30 participants from all over the world, including Mexico, Italy, France, Ghana, India, Nigeria, Sudan, Bangladesh and New Zealand.

About the program

“Leading with Ethics in Achieving the SDGs” is an interactive online certificate program aimed to teach individuals how to lead from a foundation of ethics. The course is grounded in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the learning experience consists of three segments:

• Fundamental Value Commitments in Self-Leadership (July)
• Ethical Decision-Making in Achieving the SDGs (September)
• How to Be an Ethical Leader in the Global Ecosystem (November)

The segments include short videos and lectures, instructor-led exercises and team collaboration on human-centered design projects. By the end of the course, the participants will have the tools and techniques for applying a new understanding of their values to their team, community, and global settings.

Read more about the UNITAR SDG initiatives.

How is UNITAR connected to the SDGs?

The United Nations developed 17 SDGs as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect our planet and provide peace and prosperity for people around the world. UNITAR was created for the sole purpose of encouraging innovative learning solutions among individuals, organizations and institutions with the SDGs in mind. UNITAR’s goal is to advance global decision-making to lead to a better future.