Rotman Institute of Philosophy

Meet another Rotman postdoc--Ed Baggs. He has research interests in embodied approaches in cognitive science & this semester he's teaching a course titled 'Self and Society'. Learn more in his interview! https://www.rotman.uwo.ca/ed-baggs-interview/

Meetings are happening virtually this year, but our members are still hosting reading groups on a range of topics. Find out more & reach out to group leaders to get involved: https://www.rotman.uwo.ca/activities/reading-working-groups/

We're excited to welcome our students back to Western - whether you're here in London or learning from home, wherever that may be. Keeping Western and the broad...er London community safe is our shared responsibility. Lets be thoughtful and work every day to take care of ourselves, each other and our community. I hope youve had a really great summer and are ready for what will no doubt be a busy fall. Wishing all of you a safe and successful fall term, Alan Shepard President & Vice-Chancellor, Western University

#WesternU grad students: do you have interdisciplinary interests in science, public policy or social issues? Our members conduct research in foundations of physics, neuroscience, environmental philosophy, research ethics, well-being, science policy & more. Join our team! https://www.rotman.uwo.ca/2020-call-for-graduate-student-a/

Medical school, a thesis talk, new publications and more! Find out all the exciting things our members have been up to in the last couple of months. Our July & August member news are now up on our blog! https://www.rotman.uwo.ca/july-august-2020-member-news-upd/

The health and safety of our campus is a shared responsibility. COVID-19 impacts our families, friends and colleagues. We all must take extraordinary and necess...ary steps to take care of ourselves, each other, and our community. If we all do our part, we work together to create a safer and healthier Western community. Learn how: https://takecare.westernu.ca

Alan Bernstein, President and CEO of CIFAR & member of our steering committee, wrote this article exploring the development of a vaccine for COVID-19.

The health and safety of our campus is a shared responsibility. All members of the Western community are required to wear non-medical masks or face coverings in...doors in the presence of others, and in common and shared spaces. This includes: corridors, lobbies, washrooms, elevators, classrooms, teaching laboratories, meeting rooms, or in any area where physical distancing is a challenge. Western is supplying all employees and students with washable Western-branded masks. For those with approved accommodations who are unable to wear a mask, Western will provide a face shield. Students: All main campus undergraduate students will receive two masks - even if all your courses are online. Pickup is in-person at the Great Hall (Somerville House) starting Aug 31 until Sept. 18 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Great Hall will remain open over the Labour Day long weekend. Youll also be able to pickup your Western ONEcard, which is handy, because you need to show your ONEcard to receive your masks. Students living in on-campus residence with Housing at Western will receive an additional two masks during move-in. Graduate students should contact their Supervisor or Faculty supply requisitioner for how and when they will be able to receive their masks. Anyone with an accommodation request, please contact Westerns Accessible Education team at [email protected] Employees: All Western employees will be supplied with three Western masks when returning to campus. Anyone with an accommodation request, please contact Western Employee Well-being : https://www.uwo.ca/hr/safety/ergo_rehab/contacts.html We will get through this time together by approaching the year ahead with kindness, patience and respect for one another. #takecarewesternu

New publication by Corey J. Maley--one of our visiting fellows from last year.

New on our blog: meet Adam Koberinski, one of the postdocs working on the New Directions in Philosophy of Cosmology research project (and one of our former graduate student members)!

An analysis of the many moral issues raised by the global response to COVID-19, including comments by one of our core faculty members, Anthony Skelton.

"Read. Watch. Listen" with Philosophy's Francesca Vidotto in this issue of Western News.

Another GRA we proudly sponsored this summer gave grad student James Mackey an opportunity to work with Ben Hill. Using Zotero, they created an annotated bibliography of recent works published on 16th century natural philosophy.

Happy Pride, London! Western is proud to celebrate the official beginning of the 2020 London Pride Festival, which starts today and will run virtually throughou...t the coming week. We want to see how you are celebrating this year. Please send us your Western Pride photos and short videos. You may just see yourself in our virtual Western Pride Parade video coming July 26. Send your photos to [email protected] or tag them with #westernuPride. Find all you need to know on the Western Pride webpage: www.uwo.ca/westernupride

Our May & June member news are up on our blog. Find out all the exciting things our members have been up to in the last couple of months!

Meet one of our postdocs, Rebecca Livernois. Her interdisciplinary work combines economic theory with environmental philosophy, examining how both fields can inform policy solutions to environmental issues in a real-world context.

Today, Western released the Anti-Racism Working Group report and the University's response and actions to move us forward. These commitments will I hope be fou...ndational in creating systemic change, and setting Western on the path of a more just future. President Shepard Key actions include: 1. Establishing a senior role at the university to help lead our efforts towards equity, diversity and inclusion. This senior role will begin as a Special Advisor to the President because that can happen this summer, and will be subsequently proposed to the Board of Governors as an Associate Vice-Presidents role. 2. Establishing a Council to advise the various constituents of the university on our ongoing anti-racism and EDI work, including the collection and publication of relevant data, and metrics that measure our progress. 3. Strengthening our training programs across campus to combat racism. 4. Conducting a review of existing policy and the mechanisms for reporting racist incidents. 5. Carrying out an awareness campaign to combat all kinds of racism, especially anti-Black racism and racism against Indigenous communities, and attending to the intersectionality of other kinds of oppression. 6. Committing to additional funding for anti-racism, equity and inclusion initiatives. We encourage the community to read the report, as well as the full response from President Shepard, which can be accessed via Western News and the Presidents website.

ICYMI: Rotman member Francesca Vidotto was interviewed on JSTOR Daily, sharing her "thoughts on spin foam theory, her obsession with primordial quantum fluctuations, and one good way to turn kids into future scientists". Be sure to check it out!

Rotman member Jess Du Toit is one of three students at Western to be awarded a 2020-21 Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship. Congratulations to all three recipients!

GRAs (graduate research assistantships) are one way we support research projects at the Institute. This summer well be highlighting some of the projects underway & were excited to start with this one led by Eric Desjardins. Stay tuned to learn about others!

Western stands with the Black community and with all those calling out anti-Black racism. Violence against Black, Indigenous and racialized peoples are pervasive Canada is not immune. Resistance against racism is critical to move society and our campus community forward.

Mustangs, we know this is a complicated time. With all that is going on, we've put together all our student programs, opportunities and services in one place. ...Whether you're currently a student at Western or joining us soon, youll find information on academics, financial support, housing, non-credit learning, health, social connection and fitness, as well as links to the latest updates from across campus. Visit Western's new virtual hub with resources for both graduate and undergraduate students See more

President Shepard has shared an important update regarding a mixed model of virtual and in-person learning for fall 2020; a gradual return to campus for faculty and staff; and building a strong, clear future for our University.

Arthur Sullivan's talk has been re-scheduled for Friday, May 22. We're trying out a new format--this will be a pre-read followed by a virtual discussion. Advance registration is required to get a copy of the reading & a link to access the online event. Hope to see many of you there!

Very happy to share some exciting updates from our members--including job news, faculty awards, publications & much more!

Released today! "Conscience in Reproductive Health Care - Prioritizing Patient Interests" by Carolyn McLeod

We're wearing red alongside our fellow Canadians, in honour of the lives lost in Nova Scotia. Our flag stands at half-mast and we will join the country in a national moment of silence at 2 p.m. Atlantic Time / 1 p.m. Eastern Time #NovaScotiaStrong #WearRedFriday Art: Scott Woods

It's National Volunteer Week, and time to celebrate and thank Canada's 12.7 million volunteers! We would love to hear how you are supporting communities near and dear to your heart. So Mustangs, past and present, let us know in the comments below. Thank you for volunteering

Catch the upcoming Q&A with Western COVID-19 experts including Rotman member Maxwell Smith, from the faculty of Health Sciences.

Best wishes to our students as they write their final exams and assignments! And in particular, to our graduating students who we are eager to celebrate with in person when it is safe to do so. Remember to check uwo.ca/coronavirus regularly for updates as well as supports.

"Some people want to intentionally infect themselves. As an epidemiologist, I can confirm thats a horrible idea." - Greta Bauer, in The New York Times. Greta Bauer is a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry - Western University.

Staying connected to each other during this unprecedented time is more important than ever before. President Shepard delivers a message of hope and thanks in his latest update to the Western community.

This is an especially challenging and disruptive time for our students, some of whom are facing significant challenges as they navigate the unexpected and far-r...eaching implications of COVID-19. For those asking how they can help, we have launched the Student Relief Fund to help direct critical resources to students experiencing sudden financial challenges from lack of available summer jobs, out-of-work family members, health and wellness expenses and other unbudgeted needs. Thank you to all those who have reached out to support our Mustangs! #purpleandproud

COVID-19 Campus Update: Graduate students, a dedicated website is now live with answers and resources specifically for you: grad.uwo.ca/covid19/ Graduate instru...ction and evaluation over the summer will be online, including comprehensive exams. Please speak with your supervisors and your graduate chair as appropriate. We are all here to be as flexible as possible in helping you achieve your learning outcomes. If you are in a research program you should confer with your supervisor by April 15, to consider how you might adapt your academic plans to the current situation. Some important confirmations and updates to be aware of: 1 Funding commitments made to graduate students in funding letters will be honoured, regardless of whether or not you are able to progress in your scholarly activities/duties due to the current disruption. 2 Additional funding relief is being explored. Western is working with our provincial and federal partners, and we will share updates as they become available, including study/work permits, student loan policies and/or EI eligibility. 3 Students in professional graduate programs whose internships or placements have been disrupted will not be required to incur additional tuition costs to resume or complete those placements or internships, as arranged by their program, when it is possible to do so. 4 Students currently on Thesis Defence Only (TDO) status whose thesis exams are delayed will have their TDO status extended for another term. Students who expect to submit their exam-ready thesis before the April 30 deadline should apply for TDO status. Please visit the new Digital Student Experience website for tools and resources to help with the transition to online/remote learning, as well as academic, health and well-being, career development, and social connection supports: studentexperience.uwo.ca/remote/ We sincerely thank you for your patience and understanding as this situation continues to develop and encourage you to send questions or concerns to [email protected].

Thank you, #healthcareheroes! We are so grateful for your bravery, dedication and hard work in caring for our communities. Join in. Share your thanks for health care workers with a video or message of support.