Denis Goulet

Denis Goulet (1931–2006) was an American philosopher and international development analyst, who became the leading English language proponent of “development ethics.” His particular quality was to synthesize insights from anthropological observation, policy practice, and philosophy—humanist, religious, and existentialist—and to bridge between Anglophone, Francophone, Lusophone, and Hispanophone literatures. He articulated themes of human development and human security well before and in some respects more deeply than Amartya Sen, Mahbub ul Haq, and Martha Nussbaum (see, e.g., Goulet 1960, 1971). While understanding “development ethics” within a global context, he insisted on the necessity of a combination of global-level and local-level focus and loyalties. His work offers suggestions for the study of global justice, including its identity and ambitions as a field that aspires to combine theory and policy significance.