DePaul University’s Institute for Business and Professional Ethics (IBPE) is seeking nominations of Chicago-area companies for the institute’s Business Ethics Award 2001.

The annual award was established last year to honor companies that demonstrate special dedication and innovative approaches to integrating ethics into everyday business practices. The goal of the award is to create a dialogue about ethics within the corporate community by highlighting the best ethical practices.

Nominations are open to any organization currently headquartered in the Chicago area. Companies may be nominated by any individual, inside or outside of the organization, who has direct knowledge of how ethics is embodied in an organization’s character and practices. Applications must be postmarked by March 1, 2001. For applications and information, please call the institute at (312) 362-6624.

The IBPE was co-founded in 1985 by DePaul’s College of Commerce and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences as a forum for exploring and furthering ethical practices in organizations. The mission of the IBPE is to encourage ethical deliberation in decision-makers by stirring the moral conscience and imagination. The IBPE sponsors ethics-related lectures and conferences, including an annual rotating ethics conference with St. John's and Niagara universities on business ethics teaching and training. The institute also provides on-site ethics training, and written and electronic ethics resources that include its Web site.

The winner of the IBPE’s Ethics Award 2001 will be announced at the College of Commerce’s Financial Markets Update forum on May 18, 2001.