The winner of the Derek Parfit Memorial Prize has been announced.
We are pleased to announce the Derek Parfit Memorial Prize, to be awarded in April 2019 to up to two students reading for a DPhil or BPhil in Philosophy at the University of Oxford. This award recognises academic excellence and exceptional research potential on topics relevant to global priorities research. Prize winners will be invited to spend Trinity term pursuing a standalone research project at the Global Priorities Institute.
About the prize
Derek Parfit came to be widely regarded as "the most original moral philosopher in the English-speaking world" during his tenure as a fellow of All Souls College from 1967 to 2017. His work on personal identity, rationality, and ethics, all meticulously argued, left an enduring mark on philosophy; among other contributions, he is responsible for establishing the field of population ethics. Throughout his work, he rejected the claim that one ought to give priority to one's own interests. He instead advocated for a stance of universal benevolence which gives equal consideration to all persons, both present and future, and which demands that we use our resources to improve their lives. Many of the ideas which now underpin the work of the Global Priorities Institute are due to him.
In honour of Derek Parfit, the Global Priorities Institute is offering up to two prizes to students who are currently reading for a DPhil or BPhil in Philosophy. These will be awarded to students who demonstrate exceptional research potential on topics relevant to global priorities research - that is, broadly, topics which address the question of how agents can use their resources to do as much good as possible.
These prizes will provide:
- an award of £5,000 p.a. for up to 9 terms (starting from Trinity 2019) while enrolled in the academic programme;
- the opportunity to work with GPI researchers on a standalone research project, on a topic relevant to global priorities research, for the duration of Trinity Term; and
- if desired, the opportunity to work in office space at the Global Priorities Institute.
While not mandatory, we expect that most prize winners will also regularly participate in GPI's seminars and work-in-progress groups.
Note that these prizes are awarded in conjunction with the Atkinson Memorial Prize, which is offered to students reading for a DPhil or MPhil in Economics. A maximum of two Parfit and Atkinson Prizes will be awarded each year, to the best candidates across both Philosophy and Economics.
If you have any questions about the Parfit Memorial Prize, please contact [email protected].
Eligibility
To be eligible for this award, applicants must be currently reading for a full-time Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in Philosophy or a full-time Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil) in Philosophy at the University of Oxford. We recommend that applicants obtain approval from their supervisor or advisor before applying, as this prize may entail a substantial time commitment during Trinity Term.
Prizes will be awarded on the basis of (i) academic excellence, and (ii) the relevance of the applicant's proposed project topic to global priorities research. For non-exhaustive examples of research questions which we consider highly relevant, see our research agenda.