The Missing “E” in ESG – AI as a Mirror for Ethics and Empathy

This reflection grows from over 25 years in global education — a journey that led me to design the Peace Circle® as a living mirror between values and action. For leaders navigating ESG and sustainability, it offers a human-centered lens: from measuring performance to mirroring coherence.

What if artificial intelligence could help us see, not measure?  Not to rank or score, but to reflect – to show how our values, understanding, and actions align or diverge. This led me to test if AI could reveal how ethical balance appears in the language of real organizations and public reports. Beyond ESG: the missing human dimension

Current ESG frameworks show what organisations do, but not always why or how their values live in everyday decisions.

ESG frameworks measure performance, but not coherence. The Peace Circle® Index aims to complement ESG by adding the missing “E”: Ethics and Empathy.

It offers a way to see whether there is harmony between purpose, knowledge, and action – whether declared values are truly embodied in practice. In this way, it can become a reflective companion to existing ESG systems: Where ESG measures the footprint, Peace Circle® reveals the soulprint.

From measuring to mirroring

In the Peace Circle® model, peace and sustainability grow when the Heart (values and empathy), the Head (knowledge and understanding), and the Hands (action and responsibility) are in balance.

The Peace Circle® began as a symbolic park—a living design that became a framework and a guide for turning values into visible actions. I had spent years watching brilliant projects fail, not from a lack of intelligence, but because the Head (strategy) and Hands (actions) were detached from the true Heart (shared human values).

The Peace Circle® Core Protocol v1.0 is my attempt to bridge that gap, defining how compassion guides, knowledge illuminates, and action leads the way.

The idea behind the Peace Circle® Index emerged from this principle: If a physical circle can mirror ethical balance in space, could AI do the same by reflecting the coherence found in our language and decisions?

Could a machine, when guided by human values, reveal how our intentions turn into action – or where the connection is lost?

From organisations to cities and communities

The same approach can serve not only companies, but also cities and public organisations seeking value-based transformation.

What if municipalities could use AI to reflect on how their strategic values are realised in planning and decision-making?

What if national policies could be mirrored for their ethical coherence, not just their economic efficiency? This could open a new research frontier – AI for Human and Planetary Balance – where technology supports awareness rather than automation.

From efficiency to awareness

Our societies already have enough metrics. What we need are mirrors. Tools that help leaders, communities, and citizens see themselves more clearly.

Peace Circle® does not propose smarter machines, but wiser systems – systems that reflect when the Heart, Head, and Hands are in harmony, and when they are not.

For me, this is not merely a thought experiment. It is the culmination of a lifelong mission to bridge the gap between human ideals and practical human systems.

Perhaps the true promise of artificial intelligence is not to replace human judgement,

but to help us remember what balance looks like.

🕊️ Learn more: Peace Circle® Core Protocol v1.0

Text by Mika Vanhanen. AI was used to support editing and structuring. Concept image generated with AI (Peace Circle® visual).