Public Philosophy – David E. Storey

March 23, 2023March 23, 2023

Episode #33: Kim Stanley Robinson on COP26

During my trip to the global climate talks in Glasgow in 2021, I had a most serendipitous encounter.

I was there as a member of Boston College’s first delegation to the United Nations Conference of the Parties (“COP”), and on day three, I bumped into the science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson, whose novel, The Ministry for the Future, I had recently assigned in my course on the ethics of climate change. Robinson is generally acknowledged as one of the greatest science fiction writers of our time. Ministry even made Barack Obama’s best books list of 2020.

I was expecting a photo and maybe a brief comment about his experience of the COP; instead, he gave me his email and, a few days later, over an hour of his time.

We sat on the floor in the “Action Zone,” one of the main lounges, ducking beneath the din of the conference, and talked about the climate, the future, the power of stories, and what he likes to call the science fiction novel we are currently all living within.

July 8, 2022

Episode #27: On Science and Stoicism: Massimo Pigliucci (Part 2)

Massimo Pigliucci is professor of philosophy at City University of New York. He holds PhDs in both philosophy and biology. As an early adopter of blogging, he has effectively communicated philosophy to the broader public. A prominent philosopher of science, he has engaged popular scientists such as Neil deGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye, exposing the limits of science and the key role philosophy can play in figuring out the role of science in public life. More recently, he has played a leading role in the “Stoic Renaissance” and translated the teachings of this ancient philosophical school into practical terms for living a good life.

June 21, 2022June 17, 2022

Episode #26: On Science and Stoicism: Massimo Pigliucci (Part 1)

January 18, 2022January 18, 2022

Episode #23: The Tom Morris Experience (Part 2): From Notre Dame to Corporate America

Tom Morris was doing public philosophy before it was a thing.

At the peak of academic success–a full professor at Notre Dame for 15 years, an accomplished scholar and acclaimed teacher–Morris found another calling: bringing philosophy into the business world. After discovering he had a knack for making philosophy practical for audiences outside the academy, he started appearing on TV and eventually found himself on the Today Show and Live! With Regis and Kathy Lee. From his website:

Imagine the wisdom of Yoda, Gandalf, and Dumbledore, rolled together and linked to the spirit and energy of the world’s most winning athletic coaches. Stir in the unexpected humor of a Seinfeld or Fallon, and you have an idea of what Tom’s audiences experience.

After this conversation, I definitely felt like I had had “the Tom Morris experience.” Listening to it, I think you will, too.

January 11, 2022January 11, 2022

Episode #22: The Tom Morris Experience (Part 1)

Tom Morris was doing public philosophy before it was a thing.

Imagine the wisdom of Yoda, Gandalf, and Dumbledore, rolled together and linked to the spirit and energy of the world’s most winning athletic coaches. Stir in the unexpected humor of a Seinfeld or Fallon, and you have an idea of what Tom’s audiences experience.

After this conversation, I definitely felt like I had had “the Tom Morris experience.” Listening to it, I think you will, too.

October 19, 2021October 20, 2021

Episode #21: Grace Lockrobin on Community Philosophy in a Time of Crisis

Grace is a philosophy teacher, trainer, facilitator, scholar and advocate. Over the last fifteen years – through her many projects in the places people live, learn, work and play – she has enjoyed philosophical conversations with thousands of thinkers of all ages, backgrounds and levels of experience. Through her workshops, training, talks and writing, she has shared her thinking and practice nationally and internationally.

Working in the community, she founded Thinking Space in 2008. She is also an accredited trainer with SAPERE and Dialogue Works, a specialist with The Philosophy Foundation, a contributor to P4C.com and a board member of the European network SOPHIA.

Working in academia, she is a Teaching Fellow at the University of Leeds where she runs ‘Philosophy Exchange’ – a project that brings together philosophy students, teachers and children in weekly philosophical enquiry. She also consults with other UK universities, helping to set up similar programmes. Grace is currently finishing a PhD in Philosophy at UCL Institute of Education where she writes on ethics, education and aesthetics, funded by an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) doctoral award.

September 16, 2021October 5, 2021

Episode #20: “Post-Progressive” Political Philosophy with Steve McIntosh (Part 2)

Steve McIntosh is the founder of the Institute for Cultural Evolution, a think tank devoted to solving the problem of political polarization. His recent book, Developmental Politics, draws on integral philosophy to drill down into the causes of the culture wars, and proposes a bold new vision for how America can become a better version of itself.

More recently, Steve has collaborated with thought leaders such as John Mackey, the founder of Whole Foods, and Carter Phipps on the book Conscious Leadership, and started an organization called the Post-Progressive Post.

Steve’s diagnosis of the hyper-polarization plaguing our political culture is the best I have ever come across; better, in my judgment, than those of media luminaries such as Ezra Klein and Jonathan Haidt. Join us for a philosophical tour de force of a conversation.

September 9, 2021September 9, 2021

Episode #19: “Post-Progressive” Political Philosophy with Steve McIntosh (Part 1)

February 9, 2021February 4, 2021

Episode #18: Ask a Philosopher with Ian Olasov

Ian Olasov is a doctoral candidate in philosophy at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York and a public philosopher at large. In his new book, Ask a Philosopher: Answer to Your Most Important and Most Unexpected Questions, Ian weighs in on the results of a social experiment he has run for years: philosophers travel to public places like parks, street fairs, and farmers markets, set up a booth, and invite people to talk about whatever is on their mind. He has written for Slate, Vox, and other publications.

In this episode, Ian regales us with tales from the popular Brooklyn Night of Philosophy, considers what speech act theory can tell us about the rhetoric of the Black Lives Matter movement, and shares what he has learned running the “Ask a Philosopher” booth–from the funky to the weird, provocative, and profound.

July 27, 2020July 31, 2020

Episode #15: Zachary Pirtle

Conventional wisdom regards the “STEM” disciplines as diametrically opposed to the humanities in general, and philosophy in particular. But Zachary Pirtle is living proof that this view is wrong headed. After studying philosophy and engineering as an undergraduate, Zach went on to receive an MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Arizona State University and his PhD in Systems Engineering from George Washington University. His training and research in engineering was deeply informed by science policy and the philosophy of science.

During his graduate studies, Zach became a Presidential Management Fellow and a civil servant in the federal government. In addition to his day job, Zach has continued publishing his research, and has helped organize the Forum on Philosophy, Engineering, and Technology (fPET).

In this episode, he explains what philosophy–particularly ethics and epistemology–can contribute to engineering. We explore what engineering is; how the philosophy of science helped him stick with the study of engineering; and how to think about the obligations engineers have in and to a democratic society. At a time of waning public confidence in the federal government, on the one hand, and big tech, on the other, Zach helps us reflect on how science and technology policy might be intelligently designed to better serve the public and improve society.

We also talk about the power of science fiction to offer inspiring visions of the future…and his experience helping to organize a citizens forum on asteroids!

(Note: Pirtle’s views are his own and do not represent his employer)

July 20, 2020July 20, 2020

Episode #14: Amy Reed-Sandoval

What can philosophy tell us about immigration and identity?

Amy Reed-Sandoval, assistant professor of philosophy at UNLV, is the founder of two Philosophy for Children (P4C) initiatives: one in Oaxaca, Mexico, and one at the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso. She is the author of the new book, Socially Undocumented: Identity and Immigration Justice.

Amy was recently awarded the Public Engagement Fellowship from the Whiting Foundation to expand her P4C work. In this episode, she shares her experience working in the conceptual and geographical borderlands between American and Mexican culture, between teaching children and college students, between philosophy and everyday life.

July 2, 2020June 28, 2020

Episode #13: Tim Richardson (Part 2)

Tim Richardson is a Washington, DC based multi-client government affairs and media
consultant. After extensive political and business publishing and two congressional aide
stints, Richardson has become the nation’s only private sector consultant that has worked
on Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon oil spill restoration. In addition, he has served
as Wildlife Forever’s Washington, DC representative since 1995.

In our conversation, Tim sings the praises of what he calls “normative careers,” and explains why studying the humanities and philosophy can not only lead to a fulfilling life, but a successful career. Tim has worn many hats throughout his career–journalist, speechwriter, fundraiser, consultant, lobbyist–and worked for a number of politicians, including Lloyd Bentsen. But what unites his efforts is his grounding in philosophy.

June 29, 2020June 29, 2020

Episode #12: Tim Richardson (Part 1)

Tim Richardson is a Washington, DC, based multi-client government affairs and media
consultant. After extensive political and business publishing and two congressional aide
stints, Richardson has become the nation’s only private sector consultant that has worked
on Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon oil spill restoration. In addition, he has served
as Wildlife Forever’s Washington, DC representative since 1995.

June 29, 2020June 29, 2020

Episode #11: Andrew Light (Part 1)

With the possible exception of William Bennett, Andrew Light is the first philosopher to work in a presidential administration.

Andrew has two interrelated careers.

One is as an academic. He is University Professor of Philosophy, Public Policy, and Atmospheric Sciences, and Director of the Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy at George Mason University. In his academic work, Andrew is the author of over 100 articles and book chapters on climate change, restoration ecology, and urban sustainability, and has authored, co-authored, and edited 19 books.

The other is as a policy expert and advocate where he works on the front lines of international climate and science policy. From 2013-2016 he served as Senior Adviser and India Counselor to the U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change, and as a Staff Climate Adviser in Secretary of State John Kerry’s Office of Policy Planning in the U.S. Department of State. In this capacity he was Co-Chair of the U.S.-India Joint Working Group on Combating Climate Change, Chair of the Climate Working Group on the Sustainable Development Goals across all agencies for the U.S. government, and served on the senior strategy team for the UN climate negotiations. He is currently a Distinguished Senior Fellow in the Climate Program at the World Resources Institute in Washington, D.C.

In short: Andrew helped to negotiate the Paris Agreement.

In our conversation, Andrew tells the story of how he created a parallel professional identity: by first breaking into the think tank and policy community in D.C., and second landing a job in the U.S. government. In Part 1, he gives a report on the state of climate policy in the Trump era, how he got involved in interdisciplinary work, and what he thinks philosophers can contribute in the policy arena.