I research the possibilities of acting and living less wrongly (or better) in unjust social conditions. I examine the harmonies and disharmonies with the social world that agents experience when they pursue their personal projects of identity and meaning.  My research pursues three intersecting trajectories: formulating a needs-centered ethics, investigating the ambivalence of norms as it introduces uncertainty to practical reasoning, and understanding moral emotions as they relate to sacred or unquestionable values. I approach these theoretical issues through concrete political issues, centrally gender transition and humanitarian efforts.