The APO is an annual competition that consists of two rounds. The first round was a 90-minute online test where students wrote an essay of between 1,000 and 1,500 words in length in response to an unseen prompt. The second round invited the top 6 contestants of the first round for a 20-minute academic interview with a panel of philosophy educators.

In the essay component, Ethan argued that “goodness” is not something objective that exists out in the world waiting to be discovered. Instead, it is something that is created by conscious beings as they interact within this environment. In other words, rather than uncovering a universal moral truth, we may be actively shaping what counts as good through our thoughts and actions. In the interview, Ethan spoke enthusiastically about the intersection between Philosophy, Politics, and Science.

Congratulations to Ethan on his remarkable achievement.