The Institute for Ethics and the Common Good (ECG) is launching a new academic conference in the field of normative ethics.
The Ethics at Notre Dame symposium ("ENDs" for short) will be held every other spring at the University of Notre Dame, with its inaugural meeting to be held on Friday, April 30, and Saturday, May 1, 2027.
The purpose of ENDs is to generate significant scholarship in ethics and to support researchers—especially early-career scholars—through feedback, mentorship, and publication opportunities.
In addition to Financial Assistance Grants made possible through the University of Notre Dame’s Ethics Initiative, ENDs will also feature a $5,000 early-career paper prize. Presented by the symposium organizers, the prize will recognize the current graduate student or researcher within 15 years of having received their Ph.D with the most outstanding paper of the symposium.
The chief organizers of the Ethics at Notre Dame symposium are Doug Portmore and Katie O'Dell. Portmore is a professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame and serves as a program chair for the Institute for Ethics and the Common Good. Previously, Portmore was a professor of philosophy at Arizona State University for twenty years. He also serves as editor-in-chief of Ethics: An International Journal of Social, Political and Legal Philosophy.
Katie O’Dell is a Ph.D. candidate in philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. O’Dell’s work focuses on ethics and epistemology, especially issues related to knowing people. She also works in philosophy of religion.
The guest co-organizers of the 2027 ENDs symposium are Cheshire Calhoun (Arizona State University) and Tom Dougherty (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill).
“I’m thrilled to be supporting the Notre Dame Ethics Initiative by organizing the Ethics at Notre Dame symposium (ENDs), which we intend to grow into a high-profile annual conference in normative ethics.” said Portmore. “This, in tandem with the university's other exciting programs, will establish the University of Notre Dame as a premier global destination for the study of ethics."
The deadline for the call for abstracts for ENDs is noon (EST) on Sunday, December 6, 2026. Registration for the symposium closes on April 1, 2027.
In addition to the Ethics at Notre Dame symposium, Portmore and O’Dell are also organizing Books in Ethics at Notre Dame ("BookENDs"), a biennial, invitation-only book manuscript workshop. BookENDs will be held in tandem with ENDs in alternating academic years. The first BookENDs workshop will be held at the University of Notre Dame on October 22 and 23, 2027.
BookENDs will serve authors seeking feedback on book manuscripts in normative ethics. The workshop will provide authors the opportunity to invite leading scholars to convene with them on Notre Dame’s campus to discuss their manuscripts.
Authors who have completed, or nearly completed, a book manuscript in normative ethics may submit proposals to ends@nd.edu.
The Institute for Ethics and the Common Good is at the heart of the Ethics Initiative, a University-wide effort to establish Notre Dame as a premier global destination for the study of ethics. Under the leadership of Meghan Sullivan, Ethics Initiative director and Wilsey Family College Professor of Philosophy, the institute focuses on cross-disciplinary ethics research, undergraduate course development, the moral formation of its students and faculty, and engaging the public in meaningful dialogue around ethical issues.