Philip Kitcher, the philosopher who claims science as the axis of democracy

One of the most influential philosophers of our time, Philip Kitcher , professor emeritus at Columbia University in New York, has been awarded the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Prize in the Humanities category for his vindication of science. as the axis of a democratic society.

The British-American humanist has had an immensely prolific career in which, through philosophy, he has delved into the importance of education and science as the essence of democracy .

In recent years he has also focused on the ethical vision of what he considers to be the major current challenges : climate change and biodiversity loss.

" His work has transcended the boundaries of knowledge in the humanities," emphasized one of the jury's representatives, Atocha Aliseda, a researcher at the Autonomous University of Mexico, during the award announcement ceremony held at the BBVA Foundation headquarters in Madrid.

In a live broadcast after learning of the award, Kitcher said he felt "extremely grateful and overwhelmed," and hoped that the dissemination of his work resulting from this award "will contribute to promoting thinking for the common good."

The philosopher, whose most important work is titled in Spanish The Advancement of Science (1993), has stated that we are in the "most worrying and catastrophic" moment for science that he has known in his almost five decades dedicated to it.

He has warned citizens that, behind the attacks on science and the denial of scientific knowledge, "there are only selfish politicians who act solely for their own benefit , usually economic."

In his opinion, the reason for Donald Trump's rise to the presidency of the United States is "the destruction of the educational system that ruthless capitalism has caused."

An "annihilation" of public education that has left "hordes of people excluded and vulnerable , at the mercy of believing the promises" of politicians like Trump.

Kitcher has argued that until society regains a measure of equity and social justice, and the system reintegrates the vulnerable it has left behind, there will be no effective way to combat denialism and other attacks on science promoted by politicians like Trump.

Along these lines, the philosopher's work advocates "education so that children can understand what truly matters and choose how they want to live their own lives, as well as to facilitate their development into citizens capable of cooperating with others for the advancement of society."

In addition to science and education, Kitcher has dedicated part of his career to studying the value of music and literature for people's ethical understanding , through the analysis of the work of James Joyce and Thomas Mann, among others.