Catarina Dutilh Novaes

Universities and learned societies are increasingly reflecting on their colonial past. Many of the knowledge practices and institutions that shape (post-)industrial societies today were forged in the context of European colonial expansion during the modern era. For decades, intellectual movements such as postcolonial and decolonial theory have examined how these colonial legacies continue to shape contemporary knowledge. Yet their insights have had limited impact on the day-to-day practices of science and have not been fully absorbed by fields that theorise about science, such as the philosophy of science and science and technology studies.

Professor Catarina Dutilh Novaes will develop a novel conceptual framework to address the imprint of colonialism on scientific practices. Drawing on feminist epistemology and philosophy of science, she will examine whether, and if so how, knowledge practices and methods can be reformed from within to counter colonial assumptions and practices. In doing so, her research aims to open up alternative ways of producing (scientific) knowledge.