Jonas Pöld

Institut für Ethik, Geschichte und Theorie der Medizin, Universität Münster

Longtermism is the ethical viewpoint that the decisive aspect for the evaluation of our actions is their effect on the far future (Ord 2020; Greaves & MacAskill 2021). The thesis is motivated by the vast potential for the existence of beings with moral status that the future contains and whose lives are being shaped for better or worse by present actions (or omissions). It has already been pointed out in the literature that longtermists encounter the problems of influencing the far future in a controlled manner (Tarsney 2023) and of potentially neglecting the rights of present generations (Crary 2023; Lundgren & Kudlek 2024). Longtermist positions appear to focus almost exclusively on future lives and thus face the objection of demanding too much from present generations. 

However, the concrete consequences of longtermism for practical decision-making processes are so far underexplored. In this talk, I discuss the implications of longtermist premises for applied questions in medical ethics with a focus on germline interventions (1) and distributive justice in the intergenerational allocation of healthcare resources (2). This analysis requires a critical interpretation of ambivalences concerning the “safeguarding principle” that longtermists frequently promote (MacAskill 2023). My thesis is that a lot of potential can be found in combining longtermist strategizing with sustainability efforts to reasonably balance the rights of both present and future generations.