The department has established scholars specializing in traditional subdisciplines in philosophy including aesthetics, epistemology, ethics, history of philosophy, logic, and metaphysics. The department also has a focus on global philosophies, including South and East Asian and Arabic Philosophies. The department has long been recognized as a leader in applied ethics, especially bioethics and environmental ethics.
Cutting Edge
The department has been a leading center for the study of environmental ethics since Holmes Rolston III began his pioneering work in the field in the 1970s. Bernard Rollin stood as one of the dominant figures in animal ethics. Today, with several tenured philosophers focusing their research in the area and a strong university-wide commitment to sustainability research, CSU is a premier destination for students from around the world who seek to do cutting-edge graduate work in environmental ethics and animal welfare.
Together the full faculty constitutes a community of over 30 scholars and teachers pursuing through research and instruction an exciting range of philosophical questions.
Cross-Campus Collaborations
- Leading first-year seminars and engaging in service learning with Key Communities
- Participating in the campus-wide Ethics Colloquium series
- Leading as Global Teaching Scholars with Semester at Sea
- Serving as faculty at the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences