The idea that there is such a thing as a human right to health has become pervasive. It has not only been acknowledged by a variety of international law documents and thus entered the political realm but is also defended in academic circles. Yet, despite its prominence the human right to health remains something of a mystery - especially with respect to its philosophical underpinnings. Addressing this unfortunate and intellectually dangerous insufficiency, this book critically assesses the stipulation that health is a human right which - as international law holds - derives from the inherent dignity of the human person. Scrutinising the concepts underlying this stipulation (health, rights, dignity), it shall conclude that such right cannot be upheld from a philosophical perspective.

In this book, Christian Erk examines the ethical (im)permissibility of killing human beings in general and of selected killings in particular, namely suicide, lethal selfdefence, abortion and euthanasia, as well as organ transplantation and assisted suicide. He does so by addressing a range of important ethical questions: What does it mean to act? Of what elements is an action comprised? What is the difference between a good or evil action and a permissible or impermissible action? How can we determine whether an action is good or evil? Is there a moral duty not to kill? Is this duty held by and against all human beings or only persons? What and who is a person? What is human dignity and who has it? What is it that is actually taken when somebody is killed, i.e. what is life? And closely related to that: What and when is death? By integrating the answers to these questions into an argumentative architecture, the book offers a comprehensive exploration of one of the most fundamental questions of mankind: Under which conditions, if any, is killing human beings ethically permissible?

Unternehmens-OEkosysteme ("Business Ecosystems") entfalten derzeit ihre transformative Wirkung auf viele etablierte Bereiche der Wirtschaft. Angesichts dieser Entwicklung besitzt das Verstandnis dafur, wie sich solche Wertschoepfungsnetzwerke aufbauen und orchestrieren lassen, nicht nur in theoretischer, sondern vor allem auch in praktischer Hinsicht eine grosse Bedeutung. Denn Unternehmens-OEkosysteme stellen ein Instrument dar, um spezifische und komplexe Kundenbedurfnisse auf kooperative Weise in in uberlegener, nutzenstiftender Form zu befriedigen. Dieses Buch bietet einen integrierenden Rahmen fur das Verstandnis des Konzepts (plattformbasierter) Unternehmens-OEkosysteme. Es analysiert Wesen und Zweck von OEkosystemen, legt dar, wann der Aufbau von OEkosystemen eine sinnvolle Strategie darstellt und beschreibt im Sinne praktischer Handlungsanregungen die Grundlagen, wie sich OEkosysteme erfolgreich gestalten und nachhaltig entwickeln lassen.