Why So Few

Rice University Philosophy Department

Why so few women in philosophy?

This question has been driving us bananas here at the philosophy department at Rice University. The Why So Few initiative is committed to ongoing discussion about the presence of women and other underrepresented groups in philosophy and academia more broadly.

We began with organizing a conference investigating issues surrounding women in philosophy, and we have broadened to also look at other underrepresented groups – gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation – in philosophy and in academia.

We meet throughout the semester to discuss issues and sponsor a series of lunchtime talks with invited guests. We have been funded by the Rice University Humanities Research Center and the NSF ADVANCE fund.

In past years, we have organized conferences, workshops, and sponsored graduate student travel. You can read transcripts or watch video of our past conferences on the Past Events page.

What do you want to discuss with us? Contact gwen.bradford@rice.edu

Past events:

March 21, 2014: Workshop on (Lack of) Diversity in Philosophy

March 9, 2013: (Why Aren’t There More) Women in Philosophy