Centre for Ethics, Politics and Society

07/04/2026

CEPS Seminar / Axel Gosseries (UCLouvain)
"Do lawyers have duties of distributive justice?"

📅 Wednesday, April 15
⌚️ 16:00 Lisbon time
📍 In Person and Online
CEPS room and Zoom
https://zoom.us/j/95430963757?pwd=Xqy6SFSSl0c24ztaF02Bng8Szo7q8P.1

Abstract:
In this talk, I will look at one issue, central to role morality, but also to a proper understanding of the scope of justice: do professionals such as lawyers or physicians have duties of distributive justice in the context of their profession? I will focus here on lawyers. I will start with the default position that they do have distributive duties. And I will then explore reasons to reject this position.

Bio:
Axel Gosseries is FNRS Research Professor at UCLouvain and a member of the Hoover Chair in Economic and Social Ethics. Trained in law and philosophy, his research focuses on the institutional distribution of duties, as well as climate and intergenerational justice. He is a leading contributor to the field, notably as co-editor of Intergenerational Justice (with Lukas H. Meyer, 2009) and Institutions for Future Generations (with Iñigo González-Ricoy, 2016), two influential volumes shaping contemporary debates on justice across generations. At UCLouvain, he currently serves as President of the Institute of Philosophy (ISP) and has previously directed the PPE programme. He has taught and conducted research extensively across Europe and beyond, holding visiting positions at numerous international institutions.

31/03/2026

📢 CEPS Seminar / Workshop with Lasse Thomassen
"Derrida, Deconstruction and Political Theory"

🗓️ Tuesday, April 14th, at 15:00 (Lisbon time)

📍 Online event
If you are interested in attending, please send an email to [email protected] to receive the Zoom link.

The presentation will be followed by comments from four discussants:

António Baião (CEPS, University of Minho)
Ines Zampaglione (CEPS, University of Minho)
Thomás Zicman de Barros (CEVIPOF, Sciences Po)
Giuseppe Ballacci (CEPS, University of Minho)

Abstract.
Drawing on the work of Jacques Derrida and other post-structuralists, this seminar explores deconstruction as a distinctive way to practice political theory. Lasse Thomassen shows familiar critiques of deconstruction as relativist and apolitical to be misconceived and argues for deconstruction as a critical approach to contemporary politics and society. We contrast deconstruction with other approaches to political theory, including analytic philosophy, critical theory, liberalism, deliberative democracy and biopolitical approaches. Developing the argument around political concepts such as rights, justice, sovereignty, democracy and populism, the seminar examines how one may combine the deconstructive readings of these political concepts with engagements with contemporary political phenomena such as 9-11, Covid-19, Donald Trump and post-truth.

Bio.
Lasse Thomassen is Professor of Politics in the School of Society and Environment, Queen Mary University of London. He is the author of, among others, Deconstructing Habermas (2007) and Derrida, Deconstruction and Political Theory (2026). He is currently working on poststructuralist discourse theory as method, on deconstruction as a method for conceptual analysis, and on the concept of political representation.

16/03/2026

🧬 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽: 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀: 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗘𝗽𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗨𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘆, 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗽𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗘𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴

📅 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝟭𝟵–𝟮𝟬

Venue
ELACH Building, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal
Auditorium ELACH - Sala 0.22

If you plan to attend online, please send an email to [email protected] and we will share the zoom link.

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We are excited to announce that CEPS will be hosting a two-day workshop on March 19–20, titled “Beneath the Surface of the Life Sciences: How Epistemic Uncertainty, Metaphysical Assumptions, and Value Judgments Shape Ethical and Political Reasoning.”

Today, the life sciences - evolutionary biology, genetics, the medical sciences, and ecology - are generally presented as being rigorously grounded both empirically and methodologically as well as being value-neutral. Yet, their conceptual frameworks frequently rely on ambiguous epistemic claims, idealized models, metaphors and analogies, pragmatic shortcuts, unexamined assumptions and arguably even value judgments.

Nevertheless, in our society science has assumed an increasingly important role in supporting political and ethical decisions. The significant reliance on scientific opinion and modelling during the COVID-19 pandemic, or the use of empirical evidence of sentience as the key driver in the articulation of animal welfare legislation, illustrate how science increasingly influences policymakers and becomes embedded in ethical and political reasoning.

The epistemological and metaphysical foundations of the life sciences are thus no longer confined to academic circles: beneath the surface, they subtly shape how citizens perceive the world. Much like in ‘The Devil Wears Prada’, where Andrea’s blue sweater, unbeknownst to her, originated on haute couture runways, filtered through designer collections, and eventually ended up in a clearance bin where she picked it up, ingenuously believing her choice was free from the fashion industry’s influence, policymakers and citizens are constantly influenced by frameworks that are neither scientifically coherent nor politically independent.

This ‘Philosophical Colloquium’ brings together scholars from diverse areas of philosophy to critically examine the metaphysical and epistemological foundations of the life sciences, and to explore their growing but often-invisible impact on society.

In the end, we may still choose to wear the same sweater, but with a clearer understanding of why we do, and where it truly comes from.

ℹ️ For more information and full schedule:
https://ceps.elach.uminho.pt/event/beneath-the-surface-of-the-life-sciences-how-epistemic-uncertainty-metaphysical-assumptions-and-value-judgments-shape-ethical-and-political-reasoning/

04/03/2026

📢 Call for PhD Candidates 2026

CEPS is now welcoming expressions of interest for the FCT PhD Call 2026.
🗓 Deadline to express interest: March 12
🗓 Official FCT call deadline: March 31

If you would like to apply with CEPS, please send a recent CV, a brief research proposal (max. 2 pages) and the name of a potential supervisor at the Center (if already identified).
📩 Send your application materials to: [email protected]

For full details about the FCT PhD Call 2026, consult the official call:

FCT is aware of the constraints of the DGES platform for requesting the recognition of foreign degrees. We are monitoring the situation as it develops.

24/02/2026

📣 New publication co-authored by CEPS researcher Jorge Mateus!
📖 MATEUS, J. & MATEUS, R. (2026). Autonomy Under Control: Ethical Challenges of Brain-Machine Interfaces. Journal of Science Fiction and Philosophy 8, pp. 1-30.
👉 https://zenodo.org/records/18640369

19/12/2025

📣 New publication by CEPS researcher Jorge Mateus!
📖 Flesh as Trauma: First Thoughts on the Transhumanist Traumatic view of the Human Body. Tópicos, Revista de Filosofía 74, pp. 429-462.
👉 https://doi.org/10.21555/top.v740.3107.

05/12/2025

We are thrilled to announce the 1st Lisbon Conference on Intergenerational Justice!

This inaugural edition results from a partnership between CEPS and Ifilnova - Instituto de Filosofia da Nova (NOVA University Lisbon) and will bring together leading voices on justice across generations.

📅 December 15–16, 2025
📍 Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal, Lisbon

Keynote Speakers:
- Axel Gosseries (UCLouvain)
- Anca Gheaus (Central European University – CEU)

🔗 Full program and details: https://ceps.elach.uminho.pt/pt-pt/event/lisbon-conference-on-intergenerational-justice/

27/09/2025

On September 26 and 27 took place in Guimarães the 5th edition of the Jornadas de Investigadores, the annual meeting of CEPS' researchers and PhD students. Thank you to all the participants for joining these two intense days of discussion. Looking forward to seeing the continued impact of the research shared!

23/09/2025

CEPS Seminar: 25 September at 2.30 pm, Lisbon time
Xavier Landes (Stockholm School of Economics in Riga) - The Risks of Dimming the Sun: Some political and ethical considerations

His fields of specialisation are political philosophy and normative economics. Currently, his focus is on climate change issues that reflect his recent book publications, "Engineering and Governing the Climate" (2024) and "La Géoingénierie" (2024).


The MS Teams Link to join the CEPS Seminar online: https://deref-gmx.net/mail/client/YPSPvtJzkZg/dereferrer/?redirectUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fteams.microsoft.com%2Fl%2Fmeetup-join%2F19%253ameeting_M2QxODczZTAtNzEyZi00NDIzLTk4MmYtMWYzNjg0ZTI0NTkx%2540thread.v2%2F0%3Fcontext%3D%257b%2522Tid%2522%253a%2522d05d4c80-da1e-4cd7-83a6-0d2094b20418%2522%252c%2522Oid%2522%253a%25226b3bf9b6-1a70-4015-b56f-2dd37af32ba1%2522%257d

The location for the in-person attendance:
CEPS meeting room
ELACH Building
University of Minho
Campus de Gualtar
4710-057 Braga – Portugal

21/08/2025

📣 New publication by CEPS researcher Manuel Sá Valente!
📖 “Ageing, equality, and community” - Published in Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy.

Check it out here 👉 https://doi.org/10.1080/13698230.2025.2541154