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Philosophy Speaker Series: Ross Upshur
By Mcmaster Philosophy Department
Free Lecture
Overview
McMaster Philosophy Speaker Series Presents:
Ross Upshur
(University of Toronto)
What Can Philosophy Contribute to Pandemic Response and other Public Health Emergencies?
Reflections from a Lapsed Philosopher
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic raised significant challenges about our collective ability to respond to public health emergencies. Ethical issues were numerous and philosophers, particularly ethicists and bioethicists were called upon to provide advice at various tables locally and globally. However, I will argue that philosophy is relevant to more than ethics and expertise in epistemology and philosophy of science (to name simply two areas) was underutilized in the formulation of policy and public communication.
Whether philosophers are interested in such applied work is an open question I hope to further explore in this seminar. I will draw from my experience co-chairing the WHO COVID-19 Ethics and Governance working Group as well as research I have collaborated on evaluating science advisory groups during the pandemic.
Speakers
Dr. Ross Upshur is currently the Head of the Division of Clinical Public Health at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Scientific Director, Bridgepoint Collaboratory for Research and Innovation and Assistant Director of the Lunenfeld Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health System. At the University of Toronto, he is a Professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and the Department of Family and Community Medicine, affiliate member of the Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology and Adjunct Senior Scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.