Translating philosophy into climate justice
Kian Mintz-Woo graduated from UBC in 2008 with a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy (Honours) and Creative Writing. He went on to study at the Universities of Amsterdam, Reading, and Oxford, and in 2018 completed his doctorate in moral philosophy at the University of Graz in Austria, where he explored climate ethics and its connection to climate policy.
Kian is now a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at University College Cork (UCC) in Ireland, where he conducts research that helps inform policymakers on translating climate studies into sustainable and equitable policy proposals.
This year, Kian was named UCC Early-Stage Researcher of the Year. He received this prestigious award for his work on integrating concepts of justice into climate research.
We chatted with Kian to learn a bit more about his work and how his start at the UBC Faculty of Arts led him where he is today.
Why did you choose your program at UBC and what did you enjoy most about it?
I chose to study at the Faculty of Arts because it offers such a wide variety of options and my interests were very broad. Only in Arts could I pursue a dual degree in philosophy and creative writing and simultaneously explore English literature as a minor.
What I enjoyed most about my time at UBC was having the chance to learn so many diverse subjects on such a beautiful campus.
Aside from your studies, what were some of your most meaningful experiences at UBC?
One of my short plays written as part of an assignment was performed at a festival organized by the Department of Theatre and Film. It was such a thrill to see my words come to life, especially since the director made choices I was surprised and intrigued by, and the drama students were superb actors.
I was also vice-president for the UBC Philosophy Society and organized a memorable trip down to the American Philosophical Association’s Pacific meeting in California.
What choices did you make at UBC that contributed to your career success / journey?
UBC provided me with a broad foundation of concepts and theories to draw on so that when I went on to do my further studies I was already familiar with a variety of theories and ideas.
Perhaps most impactful of all, I had really excellent mentors, especially professors Dr. John Woods, Dr. Paul Russell and Dr. Paul Bartha (the only one of the three who is still part of UBC’s Department of Philosophy faculty all these years later).
Can you share how your path after graduating from UBC led you to where you are now and to being named the 2025 UCC Early-Stage Researcher of the Year?
The great philosophical education I received at UBC, especially in logic and moral philosophy, enabled me to dive deeper into topics that piqued my curiosity. My UBC foundation, along with my subsequent studies, helped me connect my philosophical interests to the world of climate policy. This path led to the honour of being invited to sit on an Irish government advisory group involved in national planning, the Carbon Budgets Working Group.
I have also attended several United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP meetings, including one as the lead of my current university, UCC. Here, I lead a multidisciplinary master’s program in philosophy, society and health where I teach both undergraduate and postgraduate students.
I am pleased to have continued to champion sustainability but also moral philosophy throughout this path, which is really what the UCC Early-Stage Researcher of the Year award celebrates.
Kian receiving the 2025 UCC Early-Stage Researcher of the Year Award. Photo curtesy of Ger McCarthy.
Is your current career shaping up as you originally intended? What kinds of challenges, and pivots, if any, have you faced? Any pleasant surprises along the way?
The year I was completing my degree at UBC, the Department of Philosophy (thanks to Dr. Margaret Schabas) suggested I be the student speaker for my graduating class. In preparation for this Q&A, I went back to check my speech, and I’m pleased to say my path has aligned with my words. I told my fellow 2008 graduates to embrace complexity and interdisciplinarity—and I ended up doing this in ways I hadn’t even realized were possible for me.
After UBC, I expected to be doing much more theoretical work, perhaps in logic or metaethics (the study of the fundamental existence of morality). It was not until I got to Oxford that I realized that I could connect my interests between philosophy and climate change. That was extremely exciting.
On the one hand, moving away from my expected areas was a pivot, and perhaps a challenge. On the other hand, being able to connect climate policy with moral philosophy has been incredibly satisfying. I was always interested in the importance of climate change as a layperson, and being able to connect that with my philosophical interests is a real privilege.
“I told my fellow 2008 graduates to embrace complexity and interdisciplinarity—and I ended up doing this in ways I hadn’t even realized were possible for me.”
And here is a pleasant surprise: after leaving UBC, a UBC scholar, Dr. Daniel Steel, reached out and asked if I would be part of a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grant. When we won the grant, this allowed me to continue to work with UBC colleagues. We have had a lot of success with publications and also just signed a contract to co-author a book. So that definitely counts as a great way for me to stay in touch with UBC even while I’m living and working overseas.
Can you share a bit about your work and how you are able to connect philosophy and climate policy/justice? What kind of value can training in philosophy have in this space?
This is a great question. Philosophy is an incredibly flexible discipline. As philosophers, we get to apply our conceptual tools and careful analysis to all kinds of areas (including philosophy itself). So, there is a philosophy of sport, philosophy of art, and philosophy of love (several of which are areas that UBC is strong in) just like there is a philosophy of climate ethics.
How I have connected philosophy specifically to the space of climate ethics is by giving structure to the intuitions and assumptions that people bring to climate discussions. I have helped provide a framework for integrating justice into these conversations, trying to break down justice concepts for climate scientists and other scholars who might find these concepts intimidating.
Being able to go beyond high-level justice concepts to understanding their underlying assumptions can lead towards more productive discussions on why a certain policy or plan may be seen as fair or unfair. This is especially useful in transdisciplinary conversations.
I think climate scientists can (and should!) discuss justice, and that philosophy can help. Also, I want to bring different kinds of audiences towards the ideas of justice by making them more accessible overall. I don’t necessarily think that this kind of work requires very novel ideas. It’s more about an exercise of translation between disciplines.
To answer another part of the question, what philosophers can do is help structure ideas, provide frameworks for understanding, and even clarify justifications. That is not necessarily all that they can do, but it is a really useful start.
For what it is worth, some of the most satisfying moments in the Irish Carbon Budgets Working Group were when people said things to me like: “You summarized the positions and their differences in a way that made it clearer where the positions differed.”
Some philosophers would want to go further. They would want to say that their training gives them better access to the moral truth (with a capital ‘T’). Personally, I am wary of this. As a matter of fact, I just had a paper accepted for publication where I argue that the role of a philosopher in public policy contexts is to lay out various moral positions and see where they agree or disagree on policy choices. I call this philosophical role the “conduit for the discipline.”
“I argue that the role of a philosopher in public policy contexts is to lay out various moral positions and see where they agree or disagree on policy choices. I call this philosophical role the ‘conduit for the discipline.’”
What advice would you give to students and alumni interested in breaking into your industry?
Philosophy is an extremely challenging discipline. It is very hard to make it and the rewards are hard to quantify.
It’s important to recognize that pursuing an academic career in philosophy is a job in itself. You need to be motivated to write, you need to be comfortable with criticism (and even welcome it), and open to rejection. Whether this applies to your papers, conference submissions, or job applications, everyone experiences a lot of rejection before hearing a “yes.” Developing some stoicism or resilience is key to success.
“ Philosophy is an incredibly flexible discipline. As philosophers, we get to apply our conceptual tools and careful analysis to all kinds of areas.”
What advice would you give your graduating self?
Since my graduating self was about to go do a master’s degree in the Netherlands, far from home in Vancouver, I’d tell myself: “Yes, it’s a good idea choosing this time to go vegetarian—but you should try something a little more adventurous than always making rice and stir-fries.”
