A Conversation with Carnegie Ethics Fellow Nicholas Bayer

Was there a moment for you that made you interested in ethics in your professional or personal life?

I guess this is a bit of a corny answer, but the first time I really started interrogating my own code of ethics was during my mandatory ethics course at Marist University. During this same year of school, I was enrolled in a suite of formative courses that helped shape my worldview, including courses on global health politics, the history of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, and nonprofit management. When I first started my political science degree studies, I wanted to make the world a better place, and I admired the many global institutions that are working towards that big, abstract yet altruistic goal. The more I examined my own worldview, the more I started to see the cracks and flaws in the system. I realized a few key things in a short period of time. First, that those who need the most support from the system often lack a voice or platform, and as someone with a decent amount of privilege already, I had a responsibility to do something about that. Second, I realized that if one doesn’t have their health, or basic human rights, then there’s no chance for them to stand up and advocate for themselves or their communities. Third, I realized that progress doesn’t happen in a vacuum of political theory, and I started to believe that the best way to make meaningful change in the world is through local, community-led approaches. 

From then on, I became a kind of constructivist comparative politics scholar, and really started looking at the world, our politics, our culture, and our norms through a human-first lens. I developed a knack for really figuring people out, and thought of ways to better our world, one person, and one community at a time. Without really realizing it, I was on my way to becoming a humanitarian aid professional. As soon as I got to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), all the pieces fell into place, as if I was meant for this area of work.

How did you find out about the Carnegie Ethics Fellowship? Why did you think it would be a good fit for you?

I learned about the Carnegie Ethics Fellowship through one of my best and most inspiring mentors, Dr. Juris Pupcenoks, with whom I spent many years and courses together in my time at Marist University. Juris is a longtime friend of Carnegie Council, and as soon as he recommended the opportunity to me, I knew it was a perfect fit for where I am in my career at this moment. And it has proven to be an extremely valuable experience so far, especially in this moment when our multilateral institutions are fracturing, our democracies are in crisis, and the future of humanitarian aid—and, I would argue, basic compassion and respect for one another—hang in the balance. If ever there was a moment to prioritize ethical leadership, this is it

You have been working at MSF since 2017. What is it about their mission that resonates with you?

There are a few things, but I would say the most important one for me is the commitment to go where the needs are greatest. Working for an emergency aid organization, we all know that the medical care provided in our projects are temporary alleviations. I hold this belief that changing someone’s life, giving them critically needed care today, gives them the opportunity to stand up and speak out for themselves tomorrow. What is more meaningful than taking your life in your own hands, and having the agency to determine your own future? 

This brings me to the second most important thing for me: MSF’s core principles of neutrality and impartiality are paramount in every decision the organization makes, from determining when and where to open a medical project, to deciding when to speak out and bear witness to the realities our colleagues and patients see in the places where we work around the world. While it’s not always easy to make the right decision, especially working in communications, having these strong guiding principles helps me to stick true to an ethical approach to work at every turn.

Working in communications at MSF, a lot of the topics and issues that you need to discuss are complex and/or traumatic. What have you found is the best way to discuss these issues with people that may be hearing about them for the first time?

I’ve learned over time that there are a few tactics for raising awareness about the world’s underreported emergencies while building support for our movement so we can continue to do our humanitarian work. Sometimes you have to share a person’s tragedy, but how can you ensure you do it in a way that centers their agency and resilience? How do we shift the narratives we see in the news, amplifying the voices of the individuals beyond the numbers in the headlines? How do we speak truth to power when our world leaders benefit from keeping us divided?

I interact with a lot of people working in public engagement and events. I think the key to any successful conversation with a person being exposed to these issues for the first time is to always approach from a place of compassion and respect. Start by checking in with them, see how they’re feeling and what headspace they’re in. For me, it’s about really listening to them first to try and understand their perspective and ethical reasoning. If someone is open to learning and discussion, I use compassion to help educate them and give them the confidence to go forth and help us amplify our cause. If someone is less open to discussion, it’s still important to hear them out, then see if there’s a way to introduce a more impartial perspective for them to consider, less grounded in emotions or preconceived notions, and more rooted in truth, facts, ethics, and the real lived experiences of MSF’s patients and colleagues around the world.

We are sometimes criticized for being “too political” in our communications, usually from people who don’t agree with our messages or methods for bearing witness. In team discussions, we often remind ourselves that everything we do—or anything an institution does in this climate—is inherently political. But where we must stay true to our principles is through speaking out in a way that is neutral and impartial. We amplify the voices of real people, with real lived experiences in our communications and advocacy work. And that, for me, is the most ethical way to tell a story: in the words of the person who holds that experience. It seems obvious, but the human experience is often not centered in the complex or traumatic news we consume every day.

After the first three modules, what have you learned that you’ve been able to take back to your work at MSF? 

I’ve learned that it’s really important to take time to examine our code of ethics, acknowledge where different ethical beliefs can sometimes clash, and consciously put our ethics into practice. We’re all juggling different ethical perspectives and priorities, but until joining the Carnegie Ethics Fellowship, I had never given so much focused thought on inspecting how our ethics can clash in real life situations, in other words putting ethics into practice (thank you for the advice, Mary Gentile!). Most people engage with ethical dilemmas through abstract or hypothetical scenarios, but we can all make a real difference in our own spheres of influence with a bit more conscious ethical literacy. Since joining the Fellowship, I’ve felt much more comfortable invoking moral or ethical reasoning into everyday discussions and decisions at work (and in my personal life!) It’s not a huge difference in the way I think, but my approach is stronger, better informed, and I am feeling much more confident and empowered as a champion of ethical leadership. And that is a great feeling!

Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs is an independent and nonpartisan nonprofit. The views expressed within this article are those of the Fellow and do not necessarily reflect the position of Carnegie Council.