Diversity & Inclusion in Philosophy

People of different origins, skin colours, sex, and (dis)ability to access to dominant resources philosophise. At the Department of Philosophy at the University of Vienna it is important to us to acknowledge and address current structural exclusions of philosophies and philosophers ­­­­­­­— both students and faculty members. One crucial way to address the problem in hand is teaching. In particular, consciously planning our teaching arounds works of historical and contemporary philosophers from backgrounds which have been neglected in mainstream philosophical curricula so far.

Our reading lists are still under expansion, with an aspiration to pay attention to the works of female philosophers and philosophers of gender minorities, philosophers from non-Western (especially  indigenous minorities) backgrounds, (dis)abilities, and other intersections.

On this page we summarise helpful resources:

• Reading lists with works by philosophers of underrepresented groups;
• Key questions for reflection on one's own teaching with regard to diversity aspects;
• Further links about the topic equality and equal opportunities in academia.

If you have any suggestions for additions, please send them to Jeanne Pang (project manager).

How do I achieve more diversity in my teaching?

MAP - Minorities and Philosophy, offers several suggestions in this document. In addition, best practice examples and the empirical studies behind the methods can be found on this website.

The American Philosophical Association has also summarised five tips. APA also has published Good Practices Guide (GPG) since 2018. The latest guide is updated in 2023.

The Office for Equality and the Advancement of Women at the University of Technology in Graz has compiled a list of key questions (in German) on diversity and gender-sensitive aspects in teaching.

Further materials

The following pages contain further information, projects, blogs, etc. related to diversity and inclusion.

• Lexicon of Women Philosophers
• List of active German-speaking female philosophers, maintained by the Society for Women in Philosophy Germany
• PhilosopHER, a collection of further links of the ÖH of the University of Graz
• Resources on Diversity and Inclusion of the American Philosophical Association
• MAP - Minorities and Philosophy
• New York Times article series Women in Philosophy
• Biopolitical Philosophy provides up-to-date information and cutting-edge critical analysis of biopolitical asymmetries and other mechanisms and effects of power in philosophy and beyond
• Dialogues on Disability: Interview archives with disabled philosophers