Waterloo

Science and Technology in Society University of Waterloo ​VIRI Founding Member

Heather Douglas, Waterloo Chair in Science and Society in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Waterloo, is a philosopher of science who works at the science-policy interface.  Her research focuses on the role of values in science, science advising in democratic societies, and the moral responsibilities of scientists.  She is interested in the implications of the importance of values in science for the opportunities for democratic governance of science, including mechanisms for involving the public.  Her work, which has been supported by the National Science Foundation and the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, aims to bring insights from the social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities to address the challenge of responsible science in democratic societies.

VIRI Associate Director Heather Douglas is the Waterloo Chair in Science and Society in the Department of Philosopy at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

Selected Publications

Douglas, Heather. 2013. "The Moral Terrain of Science." Erkenntnis 79 (5): 961-979.
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10670-013-9538-0

Douglas, Heather. 2010. "Engagement for Progress: Applied Philosophy of Science in Context. Synthese 177: 317-335. http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/40985707

Douglas, Heather. 2009. Science, Policy, and the Value-Free Ideal. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press. http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/40985707

Douglas. Heather. 2008. "The Role of Values in Expert Reasoning." Public Affairs Quarterly, 22 (1): 1-18. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40441475

Douglas, Heather. 2003. "The Moral Responsibilities of Scientists: Tensions Between Autonomy and Responsibility." American Philosophical Quarterly 40 (1): 59-68.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/20010097