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Edward Joseph Snowden is a former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor who disclosed a global surveillance by the NSA, such as PRISM, XKeyscore, Tempora, and the interception of US and European telephone metadata.

Page 2 1. In May 2013 Snowden took a leave of absence, telling his supervisors he was returning to the mainland for treatment, but instead left Hawaii for Hong Kong on May 20.

2. On June 22, US officials revoked Snowden's passport. Although Snowden had applied for political asylum to 20 countries, the US administration, specifically Vice President Joe Biden, had pressured the governments of these countries to refuse his petition for asylum.

3. On June 23, Snowden landed in Moscow's international airport.
He remained in the transit zone for 39 days until being granted temporary asylum by the Russian government on August 1.Then he went to an undisclosed location kept secret for security reasons.

HongKong
In Hongkong, Snowden spoke very frankly about the US Government’s attempts to extradite him, so his intention is to ask the courts and people of Hongkong to decide his fate.
As we can see in the pictures, On June 15, people in Hong Kong got together to support Edward Snowden.
After Snowden had taken off, The HongKong government released a statement, saying that said the extradition request received from the U.S. “did not fully comply with the legal requirements under Hong Kong law.” so they had no legal reason to prevent Snowden from boarding his flight to Mosco.

Russia
On Snowden's arrival, the Russian president Putin said that was "a surprise" and "like an unwanted Christmas gift" to Moscow. Then he said that if Snowden wanted to be granted asylum in Russia, he would be required to "stop his work aimed at harming our American partners".

US
In the US, Snowden's actions precipitated an intense debate on privacy and warrantless domestic surveillance.
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper condemned Snowden's actions as having done "huge, grave damage" to US intelligence capabilities, while United States Secretary of State John Kerry stated that "in some cases" the NSA had gone "too far" in some of its surveillance activities, and promised that it would be stopped.
On June 10, 2013, supporters gather at a small rally in support of Snowden in Manhattan’s Union Square.

It is interesting that a survey conducted by USA Today and Pew Research Center in January 2014 revealed a change in American's opinion of phone and Internet metadata collection. In July 2013, 50 percent supported the NSA programs. Six months later, the percentage dropped to 40.

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Motives:
Snowden explained his actions saying: "I don't want to live in a society that does these sort of things [surveillance on its citizens]... I do not want to live in a world where everything I do and say is recorded... My sole motive is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them."

Snowden said that in the past, whistleblowers had been 'destroyed by the experience', and that he wanted to "embolden others to step forward" by demonstrating that "they can win". In October, Snowden spoke out again on his motivations for the leaks in an interview with The New York Times, saying that the system for reporting problems does not work. "You have to report wrongdoing to those most responsible for it", Snowden explained, and pointed out the lack of whistleblower protection for government contractors, the use of the 1917 Espionage Act to prosecute leakers, and his belief that had he used internal mechanisms to 'sound the alarm', his revelations "would have been buried forever".

German "Whistleblower Prize"
Edward Snowden was awarded the biennial German "whistleblower prize" in August 2013 for his "bold efforts to expose the massive and unsuspecting monitoring and storage of communication data, which cannot be accepted in democratic societies". Snowden responded to the award, saying it was "a great honor to be recognized for the public good created by this act of whistleblowing",

Sam Adams Award
After two months as an asylee, Snowden made his first public appearance in Moscow to accept the award, a candlestick holder meant to symbolize "bringing light to dark corners". One of the presenters, FBI whistleblower Jesselyn Radack of the Government Accountability Project, told The Nation, "We believe that Snowden exemplifies Sam Adams's courage, persistence and devotion to truth—no matter what the consequences. We wanted Snowden to know that, as opposed to the daily vitriol from the US government and mainstream media, 60 percent of the United States supports him, including thousands in the national security and intelligence agencies where we used to work."

Post conventional Level
From what Snowden said, we think he acted in Post conventional level because he whistle blow for external good..

People have different opinions over the issue. But even to some of his supporters, Snowden is a hero of the “law-breaking” variety — a man who “stole” government documents to expose the activities of its most corrupt and secretive agencies.
But I don’t think he is a law breaker.
Usually people in an organization are required by contract not to disclose confidential information. But if the contract is designed to protect secret unlawful actions, it will not be legitimate or ethical, then whistle blowing does not mean breaking confidentiality agreements. In this way, the whistleblower is not a “noble law-breaker” — he is no law-breaker at all.