Is that which is right because God commands it? Or does God command that which is right?

views, both through ‘WWJD’ and also through Aristotle’s major influence on the 13th century Christian theologian St. Thomas Aquinas. Some will therefore critique these belief systems as being increasingly irrelevant in today’s secular society.

However, as old as Virtue Ethics is as a valuesystem, it does offer some valuable insight into modern life. Firstly, it stands out from the rest of the ethical systems by being character-based instead of being an ethical code to follow. This means that anyone can practise it without having to mathematically calculate whether the action they are about to take is moral or not, unlike (for example) Utilitarianism’s ‘Hedonic Calculus’.

Secondly, with the 21st century’s habit of idolising celebrities, it acts as a compatible ethical code to encourage people of any age to be able to utilise celebrity culture for moral reasons. Some commonly chosen virtuous people to emulate are Michelle Obama, Malala or Marcus Rashford1 .

Finally, we do not live in the same age as Aristotle, and strict ethical codes are rarely used by the average person. Virtue Ethics serves as a flexible gateway for people to be reflective about their behaviours. Rather than focussing on particular actions, it makes people look at themselves as a cumulative whole and asks them if they are happy with the character they have built up, whilst giving some guidance about how to change it if they are not.

This flexibility, however, does not mean that being ethical is easy, Aristotle recognises this. He shows that virtues must be practised to be able to come naturally. However, as the various lockdowns have served to many as a time of selfreflection and improvement, Virtue Ethics appears to be as important as ever within modern society.

1 virtuous people do not have to have first names beginning with M, but it is a pattern I have

What is COP26?

Beatrice Graham & Kavneet Dhillon, both Year 11

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi addresses COP26

COP26 is a climate change conference that was hosted from the 31st of October to the 12th of November. It was a chance for countries and companies from all over the world to join together in an attempt to inspire climate action and encourage viewers from around the world to work on stopping climate change. Many statistics have shown that climate change is the greatest risk facing the world right now. COP26 is a way of spreading awareness and educating people about how the little things we do can have such a large effect on the rise or fall in carbon emissions.

COP26 is the world's last hope before our actions become irreversible and global warming becomes out of control, that is why it is so important for people around the world to understand what it is about. More than 190 world leaders have agreed to come together and discuss their plans of action towards preventing climate change and reducing carbon emissions in their region. If emissions continue to rise in the future, the harm on the earth's ecosystem will be further damaged, and more lives will be lost. Our world is in danger.

To fully understand what COP26 is aiming towards we have to look further back to COP21, which took place in Paris in 2015. The Paris Agreement was discussed between the countries

discovered when thinking of inspiring contemporary celebrities