Ethics Grants Send Six Abroad

One will study the ethics of selling organs in India. In South Africa, another will examine HIV health care reform.

This summer, six Harvard College students will tackle issues in practical ethics as the first recipients of grants sponsored by the late Harvard benefactor Lester Kissel, a 1931 graduate of the Law School.

For Kelly W. Heuer ’07, the grant—which carries a stipend of $3,000—will allow her to travel to Beijing to research Chinese philosophy on justice and individual rights.

“It’s really great to think that I will be working this summer in such uncharted territory,” wrote Heuer, a Cabot House philosophy concentrator.

Jillian N. London ’07, a philosophy concentrator in Adams House, will spend the summer in London examining the political and ethical implications of providing care to individuals who suffer from mental disorders or drug abuse without their permission.

“To get people into rehab programs is really difficult if they have drug abuse problems,” she said. “I’ve always sort of wondered, is that right? Should we be doing more to help them?”

While the grants are focused on ethics, Om L. Lala ’06, who will study the human organs market in India, said they have broad appeal.

“I am more interested in public health, but ethics ultimately relates to any policy issue or any area of research,” said Lala, a Kirkland House government concentrator.

Other recipients of the grants include W. Kevin Gan ’06, Ketih C. Hemmert ’07, and Loui Itoh ’07.

“I am confident that these students not only will learn more about the ethical topics they are investigating, but also will produce work that will help the rest of us better understand the issues,” Dennis F. Thompson, director of the Safra Foundation Center for Ethics, said in a statement.

—Staff writer Javier C. Hernandez can be reached at jhernand@fas.harvard.edu.