Monika Kirloskar-Steinbach Appointed Chair for Diversifying Philosophy by Special Appointment
The VU University Amsterdam (VU) appoints Monika Kirloskar-Steinbach as professor by special appointment of 'Diversifying Philosophy' as of 1 September 2021.
02/04/2021 | 1:47 PM
Kirloskar-Steinbach is professor of Philosophy at the University of Konstanz (Germany) and studies topics such as immigration ethics, cultural pluralism, structural injustice and other issues related to public philosophy.
Current Topics
The new chair is devoted to current themes in philosophy and is funded by the VU Special Chairs Foundation. One of the main current themes is increasing the diversity within the field: Diversifying Philosophy. With this focus, the Chair is a pioneering attempt in Europe. VU-professor Marije Martijn and initiator of this new chair: “Philosophy has long been a closed discipline and is fixated on the European tradition of education and research, often only a small part of it. The canon of the so-called Great Thinkers consists of a selection of white European men, who can be counted by the fingers of two hands. Fortunately, more than ever, recent efforts have been made to break open the discipline, by paying more attention to Indian and African philosophical traditions for example, but there is still a lot of work to be done.”
Changing the discipline from within
VU-professor and Dean of the Faculty, Susan Legêne: “We welcome Kirloskar-Steinbach to the Faculty of Humanities and the Department of Philosophy, because of the way in which she is working towards increasing diversity within philosophy. The way in which her projects relate philosophy to material culture is also important to humanities at the VU. Based on views on public philosophy, she involves various groups in society in the daily practice of philosophy research and education.”
Kirloskar-Steinbach initiated and co-founded the Journal of World Philosophies as well as the Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies and Bloomsbury Studies in World Philosophies. These international collaborations seek to diversify the field. She has previously worked as visiting professor at the South Asia Institute in Heidelberg (Germany), the University of Vienna (Austria) and the Oxford College of Emory University (USA).
Current Topics
The new chair is devoted to current themes in philosophy and is funded by the VU Special Chairs Foundation. One of the main current themes is increasing the diversity within the field: Diversifying Philosophy. With this focus, the Chair is a pioneering attempt in Europe. VU-professor Marije Martijn and initiator of this new chair: “Philosophy has long been a closed discipline and is fixated on the European tradition of education and research, often only a small part of it. The canon of the so-called Great Thinkers consists of a selection of white European men, who can be counted by the fingers of two hands. Fortunately, more than ever, recent efforts have been made to break open the discipline, by paying more attention to Indian and African philosophical traditions for example, but there is still a lot of work to be done.”
Changing the discipline from within
VU-professor and Dean of the Faculty, Susan Legêne: “We welcome Kirloskar-Steinbach to the Faculty of Humanities and the Department of Philosophy, because of the way in which she is working towards increasing diversity within philosophy. The way in which her projects relate philosophy to material culture is also important to humanities at the VU. Based on views on public philosophy, she involves various groups in society in the daily practice of philosophy research and education.”
Kirloskar-Steinbach initiated and co-founded the Journal of World Philosophies as well as the Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies and Bloomsbury Studies in World Philosophies. These international collaborations seek to diversify the field. She has previously worked as visiting professor at the South Asia Institute in Heidelberg (Germany), the University of Vienna (Austria) and the Oxford College of Emory University (USA).