Colonialism in Science

Many of the prevailing knowledge practices, results and institutions in (post-)industrial societies, including revered scientific accomplishments, have emerged against the background of the European colonial project. In view of this history, we must ask: What are the effects of this colonial past on current scientific practices? How should contemporary scientific communities deal with this legacy? This workshop brings together scholars who study science (philosophers, historians, sociologists) and scientists to interrogate these colonialist legacies in scientific practices and investigate ways in which they can be countered

Our goal is to reflect on how colonialism (thus understood) has influenced scientific practices over the last centuries, and how and to what extent colonialist assumptions and practices—such as racialized hierarchies of ways of knowing and extractivist practices (of knowledge, resources, labor)—are still pervasive in contemporary scientific research. At the same time, we want to investigate whether, and if so how, scientific practices and methods can be reformed from within so as to counter these colonialist assumptions and practices. To this end, we engage with practice-oriented scholars and scientists who are already developing new ways to do science