Can We Solve the Mystery of Consciousness?
For almost 150 years, we’ve struggled to explain conscious experience. Andrew Lee thinks an answer may be within reach.
Philosophy News - UTSC
In the News: Late Night Philosophy Series in the Globe and Mail
Published: September 28, 2026
Posted In: In the News, St. George, UTM, UTSC
A new undergraduate philosophy series called Night Owls was covered on the front page of the Globe and Mail, which showcased a debate between Joseph Heath (University of Toronto) and Agnes Callard (University of Chicago). The article noted that philosophy at the University of Toronto has been able to maintain … Read More
Introducing Four New Faculty in 2026
Published: September 23, 2026
Posted In: Faculty, St. George, UTSC
The department is happy to welcome four new members to the faculty: Jonathan Cottrell, Alison Laywine, Daniel Berntson, and Benjamin Wald. Jonathan Cottrell joins UTSC campus as an associate professor. His research focuses on the history of modern philosophy with interests in epistemology and philosophy of mind, and in the … Read More
Socrates Project Celebrates 20 Years
Published: September 16, 2026
Posted In: General, St. George, UTM, UTSC
When Donald Ainslie was chair of the philosophy department more than twenty years ago, little did he imagine the success of the Socrates Project, where the department’s best undergraduates experience the Socratic approach of learning philosophy by teaching philosophy by serving as teaching assistants (TAs) for an introductory philosophy course. … Read More
Thirteen Faculty Members Awarded SSHRC Insight Grants
Published: August 27, 2026
Posted In: Awards and Honours, Faculty, St. George, UTM, UTSC
Congratulations to the recipients of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Insight Grant competition. Read about the 12 projects below. The department set a record for most successful applications in one year! The successful colleagues are Donald Ainslie, David Barnett, Mike Caie, Jessica Gelber, Reza Hadisi, … Read More
Andrew Lee Receives UTSC’s 2026 OVPRI Emerging Scholar Award
Andrew Lee, Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy, has received the OVPRI Emerging Scholar Award, which recognizes outstanding early-career researchers at U of T Scarborough.
The Department at CPA Halifax 2026: Presentations and Awards
Published: June 8, 2026
Posted In: Awards and Honours, Faculty, Graduate, St. George, UTM, UTSC
The philosophy department was very busy in Halifax in early June 2026 with the Canadian Philosophical Association (CPA) annual congress and awards for faculty member William Paris for the CPA Book Prize, Tarek Dika for an honourable mention for the book prize, PhD candidate Raphaelle Dupont for the Student Essay … Read More
In the News: Eric Mathison on Safeguards for MAID in the Globe & Mail
Published: May 28, 2026
Posted In: Faculty, In the News, St. George, UTSC
Eric Mathison, assistant professor of philosophy at the University of Toronto Scarborough, comments in a Globe & Mail story about a disciplined MAID doctor in Ontario (May 28, 2026). “A single physician’s conduct shouldn’t lead us to conclude that MAID itself needs more safeguards any more than a single bad … Read More
Recent PhDs – Spring 2026
Published: May 13, 2026
Posted In: Awards and Honours, Graduate, St. George, UTM, UTSC
The Philosophy Department congratulates the latest PhDs to defend their dissertations. David Rattray defended “Getting Purposes in Mind,” supervised by Denis Walsh in October 2025. Denis Walsh describes David Rattray’s work as a highly innovative dissertation that “draws out some of the implications of agent-centred evolutionary biology for traditional issues … Read More
In memoriam: Hans George Herzberger
Published: May 11, 2026
Posted In: Announcements, Faculty, General, St. George, UTM, UTSC
It is with great sadness that the Department of Philosophy remembers our cherished colleague Professor Emeritus Hans George Herzberger, a philosopher and logician with a varied set of interests from Gottlob Frege’s inexpressible to the silence of Buddha. He passed away in the Rishi Valley, India, on January 30, 2026, … Read More
2025 Martha Lile Love Teaching Award
Published: January 30, 2026
Posted In: Awards and Honours, Graduate, St. George, Undergraduate, UTM, UTSC
It is our pleasure to announce Kristen Beard as the winner of the 2024-25 Martha Lile Love Teaching Award for her outstanding work teaching PHLB13 Philosophy and Feminism. The committee was greatly impressed by Kristen’s solutions to the difficult task of teaching a large online class in the time of … Read More
Welcoming the Inaugural Michael & Virginia Walsh Chair in History of Philosophy: Stephen Menn
Published: January 9, 2026
Posted In: Announcements, Faculty, Graduate, St. George, Undergraduate, UTM, UTSC
The Department of Philosophy is delighted to welcome Stephen Menn, the inaugural Michael & Virginia Walsh Chair in History of Philosophy. His main areas of research are in ancient Greek philosophy (with current projects in Aristotle, in the pre-Socratics, and in neo-Platonism), in medieval Arabic and Latin philosophy, and in … Read More