Democracy depends on having citizens engaged, informed, and willing to play well with others. From ancient Greece to modern America, self-government has been the ideal. What values do we affirm and what qualities of character should we cultivate to ensure that democracy can survive and thrive? The answers lie in virtue ethics, an ancient Greek teaching that can still help us do a better job of protecting, preserving and restoring self- government in the public interest.

Holley Ulbrich is a veteran OLLI instructor whose career as a professional and a volunteer has spanned economics, ethics, religion, and politics. A retired economics professor from Clemson, she received a Master of Theological Studies degree from Emory with a concentration in ethics and returned to the classroom to teach a graduate course in ethics and public policy for 14 years.