#  The Ethics of Extreme Wealth 

 





June 15, 2026

 

 

     ![stacks of money against a green background](/sites/g/files/omnuum9911/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2026-06/trillionaire%20graphic%20for%20website.png?itok=-R4i63wy) 

 



 

The recent arrival of the [world's first trillionaire](https://apnews.com/article/musk-spacex-tesla-ipo-trillionaire-billionaire-worth-rockets-7723f82b6063a9a17c194e25982cd66d) has brought along a wide spectrum of ethical opinions on wealth.

The Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics hosted an event in anticipation of this moment, inviting participants to wrestle with issues of extreme wealth and growing income inequality. Panelists representing fields including philosophy, political economy, and business administration staked contrasting and occasionally unexpected positions on whether the super-rich are a net positive for society.

In the spirit of our Civil Disagreement Series, the panelists also demonstrate how people of vastly differing viewpoints can share values and engage effectively across differences.

Read the full coverage of the event in the [Harvard Gazette](https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2024/10/are-rich-different-from-you-and-me-would-we-be-better-off-without-them/), or watch the recording on [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8apcoFJm8A).

**Moderator**  
[**Christopher Robichaud**](https://www.ethics.harvard.edu/people/christopher-robichaud), Senior Lecturer in Ethics and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government

**Panelists**   
**Dr.** [**Tee Malleson**](https://www.kings.uwo.ca/academics/faculty-info/member-profile/?doaction=getProfile&id=tmalleso), Associate Professor of Social Justice and Peace Studies at King’s University College at Western University; **Dr.** [**Shruti Rajagopalan**](https://www.mercatus.org/scholars/shruti-rajagopalan), Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University; **Dr.** [**Jessica Flannigan**](https://jepson.richmond.edu/faculty/bios/jflaniga/), Richard L. Morrill Chair in Ethics and Democratic Values at the University of Richmond; **Dr.** [**Nien-hê Hsieh**](https://www.ethics.harvard.edu/people/nien-h%D5%BE-hsieh), Kim B. Clark Professor of Business Administration in the General Management Unit at Harvard Business School



 

 

 

 [ Read the Gazette Article Here arrow\_circle\_right ](https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2024/10/are-rich-different-from-you-and-me-would-we-be-better-off-without-them/) 

 

 

 

 

 [ Watch the panel on YouTube here arrow\_circle\_right ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8apcoFJm8A)