MCR Philosophy Working Group

The Philosophy Working Group (PWG) was launched in October 2024 during the workshop My Climate meets Philosophy of Science at the University of Bern. The PWG is coordinated by Vincent Lam, a philosopher of science at the University of Bern (philoclimate.ch), and is constituted by climate scientists, social scientists and philosophers from various regions of the world.

The PWG aims to explore the epistemic and ethical foundations of the MCR approach(es), providing a toolbox for critically addressing issues related to objectivity, causality, explanation, understanding, interdisciplinarity, justice as well as the entanglement of value-laden/normative and epistemic dimensions at the heart of MCR. The PWG also works on establishing a common language on these issues among the various disciplines involved in MCR.

To this aim, the PWG organises regular online meetings, as well as some in-person meetings, where topics are discussed from various disciplinary angles. (If you are interested to participate to online meetings, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..)

Future meetings: 

  • 4 March 2026 (topic: overshoot, with Bruce Hewitson from the University of Cape Town)

Reading: Reisinger, A. et al. (2025). Overshoot: A Conceptual Review of Exceeding and Returning to Global Warming of 1.5°C, Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 50: 1.1-1.33. 

  • 25-26 May 2026: MCR Philosophy Group Meeting, IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC), Nairobi. 

Past meetings: 

  • 12 November 2025: discussion with the authors of Voget-Kleschin, L. et al. (2023). Reassessing the need for carbon dioxide removal: moral implications of alternative climate target pathway. Global Sustainability, https://doi.org/10.1017/sus.2023.21
  • 30 April 2025 (topic: values, model pluralism, & co-production)
  • 12 February 2025 (co-organised with the Manila Hub, discussion with Inez Ponce de Leon from the Ateneo de Manila University)
  • 2 December 2024 (topic: scientific objectivity)

The PWG was actively involved in the workshop Opening up Earth Observations for Climate Adaptation in the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern in December 2025. 

A number of fruitful synergies have also started to emerge with the MCR Education Working Group (EWG).

PSWG

Photo: The terms Philosophy - dictionary definition highlighted with yellow marker. Image source:Getty images via Canva (2025).