Daniel Isaac Wikler (born 1946) is an American public health educator, philosopher, and medical ethicist. He is currently the Mary B. Saltonstall Professor of Population Ethics and Professor of Ethics and Population Health in the Department of Global Health and Population of the

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school at Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. It was named after Hong Kong entrepreneur Chan Tseng-hsi in 2014 following a US$350 ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. He is Director and a core faculty member in the Harvard Program in Ethics and Health (PEH). His current research interests are ethical issues in population and international health, including the allocation of health resources, health research involving human subjects,

organ transplant Organ transplantation is a medical procedure in which an organ (anatomy), organ is removed from one body and placed in the body of a recipient, to replace a damaged or missing organ. The donor and recipient may be at the same location, or org ...

ethics, and ethical dilemmas arising in public health practice, and he teaches several courses each year. He is a fellow of the

Hastings Center The Hastings Center for Bioethics is an independent, nonpartisan bioethics research institute in Garrison, New York. Its mission is to address ethical issues in health care, science, and technology. Through its projects and publications and its pu ...

, an independent bioethics research institution.

Career

Wikler is the son and third child of the late Abraham Wikler and Ada Fay Wikler. He was born and raised in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

, where he was graduated from

Henry Clay High School Henry Clay High School is an American public high school in Lexington, Kentucky. Opened on Main Street in 1928, it was named in honor of the Kentuckian and United States statesman, Henry Clay. The Main Street location now houses the main office ...

. His sister is

Marjorie Senechal Marjorie Lee Senechal (née Wikler, born 1939) is an American mathematician and historian of science, the Louise Wolff Kahn Professor Emerita in Mathematics and History of Science and Technology at Smith College and editor-in-chief of ''The Mathem ...

. Wikler earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

from

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1833, it is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational lib ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

in 1967. He served for two years (1968–1970) as Social Science Analyst in

NIMH NIMH may refer to: * Nickel–metal hydride battery (NiMH), a type of electrical battery *National Institute of Mental Health, an agency of the United States government * National Institute of Medical Herbalists, a professional organisation in the ...

, the

National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primar ...

, in

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. He completed his doctorate in

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

at the

University of California at Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the Ca ...

in 1976.

Early career

From 1972 to 1975, he was also awarded a Teaching Fellowship in the Department of Philosophy. He began his career working on

natural language semantics Semantics is the study of linguistic meaning. It examines what meaning is, how words get their meaning, and how the meaning of a complex expression depends on its parts. Part of this process involves the distinction between sense and referenc ...

at the intersection of philosophy, linguistics, and mathematics. At the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

, he was professor of philosophy in the UW-Madison Department of Philosophy, professor in the Department of the History of Medicine's Program in Medical Ethics, and professor in the medical school of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, serving from 1975 to 2002.
From 1980 to 1981, he served on the President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine in Washington, D.C., as Staff Philosopher for Biomedical and Behavioral Research. He served as the first staff ethicist for the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

, and remains a consultant to several WHO programs. Prof. Wikler was co-founder (with

Peter Singer Peter Albert David Singer (born 6 July 1946) is an Australian moral philosopher who is Emeritus Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University. Singer's work specialises in applied ethics, approaching the subject from a secu ...

and Helga Kuhse) and second president of th
International Association of Bioethics
and has served on the advisory boards of th

and the

Pan American Health Organization The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) in charge of international health cooperation in the Americas. It fosters technical cooperation among member countries to fight communicable and non ...

(AHO) Regional Program in Bioethics. While at the

, he instituted an international collaboration among philosophers and economists on ethical, methodological, and philosophical issues raised by WHO's work in measurement of the global burden of disease and in developing methods fo
improving health resource allocation

Harvard University

Wikler writes, lectures, and advises in bioethics and professional ethics, both internationally and in Greater

, including at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

. During the summers, he also attends and teaches at a summer program at Fondation Brocher , Accueil outside

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

. He is considered a world expert on ethics of the medical definition of death, specifically related to the dead-donor rule with regard to organ transplantation. He serves on numerous

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and other professional committees and advises several student groups, including th
Harvard Undergraduate Bioethics Society (HUBS)
sponsor in March 2008 of the National Undergraduate Bioethics Conference. Until 2010, Wikler was the co-director of the

’s Program on Ethical Issues in Global Health Research (formerly Program on Ethical Issues in International Health Research, through June 2008), a program of both empirical and theoretical research on ethical issues in health research, particularly in developing countries. Versions of the course have been taught in over a dozen developing nations, including

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, and

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...

. The Program offered fellowships for scholars in developing countries and sponsored an intensive each year for an international clientele. A version of that program is now operated by Harvard Chan School's ORARC (which nicknames it 'eager' - EIGHR).

Personal life

Wikler is married to philosopher Sarah Marchand, and was formerly married to Lynn McDonald, a professor of social work research and

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

consultant. He has three children: two from his first marriage—his daughter, Ruth Wikler, and eldest son, Ben Wikler, a political executive who has served as Chair of the

Democratic Party of Wisconsin The Democratic Party of Wisconsin is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is currently headed by chair Ben Wikler. Important issues for the state party include support for workers and unions, strong public edu ...

since 2019 and previously worked as a Senior Advisor at

MoveOn MoveOn (formerly known as MoveOn.org) is a progressivism in the United States, progressive public policy advocacy group and political action committee. Formed in 1998 around one of the first massively viral email petitions, MoveOn has since grown ...

; and a son, Samuel Marchand, from his second marriage.

Select publications

Studies in Philosophy and Health Policy
(book series published b
Cambridge University Press
* Buchanan, Allen; Brock, Dan W.; Daniels, Norman; Wikler, Daniel
From Chance to Choice: Genetics and JusticeCambridge University Press
. 2000.
PubMed Articles
* Wikler, D. and Cash, R. “Ethical Issues in Global Public Health” In Robert Beaglehole and Ruth Bonita, eds.. Global Public Health, Oxford University Press, 2009 * Wikler, D., "A crisis in medical professionalism: time for Flexner II". In Denis Arnold, ed., Ethics and the Business of Biomedicine, Cambridge University Press, 2009 * Wikler, D., Marchand, S., "Society’s Allocation of Resources for Health". In Kuhse H. and Singer P., A Companion to Bioethics. John Wiley and Sons, 2009 * Brock, D., Wikler, D., Ethical Challenges In Long-Term Funding For HIV/AIDS, ''Health Affairs'' 28(6), 2009, 1666–1677 * Schmidt, H., Voigt, K., Wikler, D. Carrots, Sticks, and Health Care Reform — Problems with Wellness Incentives, ''New England Journal of Medicine'' (10.1056/NEJMp0911552), 2009 * Cash, R., Wikler, D., Saxena, A., Capron, A. Casebook on Ethical Issues in International Health Research, Geneva: World Health Organization, 2010. Translated into five languages; second edition forthcoming. In collaboration * Daniel W. Brock o
Harvard Medical School

DME
an
Harvard's Program in Ethics and Health
* Norman Daniels o
HSPH

Ole Norheim

University of Bergen The University of Bergen () is a public university, public research university in Bergen, Norway. As of 2021, the university had over 4,000 employees and 19,000 students. It was established by an act of parliament in 1946 consolidating several sci ...

Bergen, Norway Bergen (, ) is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 2025 the population is 294 029 according to Statistics Norway. The municipali ...

* Richard A. Cash o
HSPH

Till Baernighausen

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

External links

Dan Wikler's HSPH Faculty Site

Full list of important ethics publications, 1977-2013

Harvard Catalyst Profile for Professor Daniel Wikler
- Searchable, with historical timelines of publications and concepts presented.

Journal of the Norwegian Psychological Association, Vol 46, No. 11, 2009, p. 1077-1081 In the margin ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wikler, Dan 1946 births Living people American ethicists American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent Jewish philosophers Oberlin College alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Fellows of the Hastings Center Harvard Medical School faculty Harvard University faculty Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health faculty Philosophers from Kentucky 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American philosophers 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American philosophers