Used to teach, guide or manage ethics, our framework has also proven effective in a wide variety of settings – corporations, professional associations, civic organizations, schools, universities, and even a hospice.

There are plenty of tools for decision making, but few secular guides to help us detect when a situation has ethical implications. Outside of case studies, ethical dilemmas rarely present themselves as such. In real life they usually pass by before we know it, or develop so gradually we only recognize them in hindsight - a little like noticing the snake after you've been bitten.

These principles are landmarks - generic indicators and guides for an active conscience. They are NOT values, which vary widely between individuals and cultures. Nor are they absolute rules. They are simply a set of constant, essential principles that serve to trigger our conscience and guide our actions no matter where we are in the world.

Learn how you can use these universal principles (and other practical ethics guides) in your organization by contacting Crossroads directly at email.

Learn more about these principles by linking to Crossroads' 3-page article at http://www.ethics.ubc.ca/papers/invited/colero.html