Project Vox (2026-2027)

Background

Scholarship on modern philosophy has remained frustratingly focused on canonical (nearly always male) figures. This narrow focus makes it difficult for instructors to diversify curricula because research on marginalized philosophers is often limited or inaccessible. Widely used textbooks rarely include women or non-European thinkers, and even informal resources such as Wikipedia often contain sparse or inaccurate information about early modern women philosophers.

This gap in scholarship, teaching materials and digital discovery systems contributes to persistent demographic disparities in the field, where gender parity and broader representation remain elusive. Project Vox addresses this challenge by expanding the philosophical canon and providing open-access research tools that highlight the contributions of historically marginalized philosophers.

Project Description

Project Vox is an online resource founded by an interdisciplinary and international team of students and scholars at Duke that offers an open-access, peer-reviewed resource on marginalized voices in philosophy. Each year, the Project Vox team researches and publishes web entries on an under-studied philosopher, often highlighting women and people of color.

Each entry takes approximately two years to complete and includes original research, visual culture analysis, bibliographies and pedagogical tools. The site has reached more than 182,500 users across 191 countries, and is widely used in high school, undergraduate and graduate classrooms.

In 2026-2027, the team will focus on completing and publishing the Project Vox entry on Anton Wilhelm Amo, an eighteenth-century philosopher originally from present-day Ghana who escaped enslavement and became the first African professor of philosophy in Europe. This will be Project Vox’s first entry dedicated to a philosopher of African descent. The team will collaborate with Professor Dwight Lewis, a leading scholar of Amo, and with the Amo Collective in Berlin.

Team members will also work on translating existing Project Vox entries into additional languages to expand international access; a systematic review and correction of Wikipedia entries on Project Vox philosophers; and the development of pre-collegiate lesson plans.

Anticipated Outputs

Published entry on Anton Wilhelm Amo
Translations of existing entries into French, Spanish and Portuguese
Wikipedia edits and corrections for relevant philosophers
Monthly blogs from global collaborators, educators and students
Pre-collegiate lesson plans and teacher training workshop
Expanded website content and user analytics reports

Student Opportunities

Ideally, this project team will include 4-5 graduate students and 5-6 undergraduate students.

Students from philosophy, history, art history, literature, information science, political science and computer science are encouraged to apply. The project especially welcomes students with experience in historical research in European, Latin American or Africana philosophy; textual analysis in languages such as French, Spanish or Latin; visual culture and image research; coding, data visualization or web maintenance; web analytics; and/or Wikipedia editing.

Subteams will include:

Research team — leads research and writing for the Amo entry and begins work on the next philosopher.
Image and visual culture team — identifies reliable portraits, engravings and contextual sources.
Outreach and education team — manages blogs, social media, analytics and lesson plan development.

Graduate students will mentor undergraduates, coordinate subteams and assist with peer review and publication. All students will gain skills in collaborative research, digital humanities, scholarly communication and public philosophy.

Some doctoral students may have the opportunity to conduct archival research in Germany and attend the Amo Collective conference at Humboldt Universität Berlin.

Timing

Summer 2026 – Summer 2027

Summer 2026 (optional):

Review new Spanish translation
Conduct archival research in Berlin or Halle
Continue writing the Amo entry
Explore new funding opportunities

Fall 2026:

Complete and publish the Amo entry
Review new French translation
Attend Amo Collective conference in Berlin
Publish Spanish translation

Spring 2027:

Undergraduates begin researching next philosopher
Publish French translation
Commission next Spanish translation
Continue improving Wikipedia entries

Summer 2027 (optional):

Continue research on next philosopher
Continue translation work
Finalize new funding partnerships

Crediting

Academic credit available for fall and spring semesters

See earlier related team, Project Vox: The Second Decade (2025-2026).