Philosophy: Professional Groups

The American Philosophical Association promotes the discipline and profession of philosophy, both within the academy and in the public arena. The APA supports the professional development of philosophers at all levels and works to foster greater understanding and appreciation of the value of philosophical inquiry.. The American Philosophical Society, the oldest learned society in the United States, was founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin for the purpose of “promoting useful knowledge.” In the 21st century we sustain this mission in three principal ways. We honor and engage leading scholars, scientists, and professionals through elected membership and opportunities for interdisciplinary, intellectual fellowship, particularly in our semi-annual Meetings. We support research and discovery through grants and fellowships, lectures, publications, prizes, exhibitions, and public education. We serve scholars through a research library of manuscripts and other collections internationally recognized for their enduring historic value. The American Philosophical Society’s current activities reflect the founder’s spirit of inquiry, provide a forum for the free exchange of ideas, and convey our conviction that intellectual inquiry and critical thought are inherently in the best interest of the public.

The Ancient Philosophy Society was established to provide a forum for diverse scholarship on ancient Greek and Roman texts. Honoring the richness of the American and European philosophical traditions, the Ancient Philosophy Society supports phenomenological, postmodern, Anglo-American, Straussian, Tübingen School, hermeneutic, psychoanalytic, queer, and feminist interpretations of ancient Greek and Roman philosophical and literary works.

The Society for Applied Philosophy was founded in 1982 with the aim of promoting philosophical work that has a direct bearing on areas of practical concern. It arose from the awareness that many topics of public debate — in law, politics, economics, science, technology, medicine and more — can be illuminated by critical analysis, philosophical questioning, and reflection of questions of value. We support workshops, conferences, lectures and graduate bursaries across the field of applied philosophy, and produce the Journal of Applied Philosophy.
In accordance with our constitution, we are not allied to the ideology of any political party, social interest group, campaign or religion. Membership is open to anyone committed to the notion of human values that transcend narrow or local interests, classes and cultures, and to the identification, justification and discussion of these values as they apply to topics of public importance.

SPEP is the Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy, a professional organization devoted to supporting philosophy inspired by continental European traditions.
With a membership of over 2500 people, it is one of the largest American philosophical societies, and strives to encourage work not only in the philosophical traditions of phenomenology and existentialism, but also in all those areas commonly associated with ‘continental philosophy,’ such as animal studies, critical theory, cultural studies, deconstruction, environmental philosophy, feminism, German idealism, hermeneutics, philosophy of the Americas, post-colonialism, post-structuralism, psychoanalysis, philosophy of race and queer theory.
We foster discussion on all philosophical topics, from art and nature to politics and science, and in the classic philosophical disciplines of metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and aesthetics. SPEP is actively committed to philosophical pluralism and to the support of historically under-represented groups in the philosophical profession.

Join the Society for Philosophy in the Contemporary World in a venture that seeks to bring more fun, warm fellowship, and greater originality to philosophy. Membership in SPCW is open to all persons with a deep and abiding interest in the future of philosophy in the contemporary world.
SPCW was founded in August 1993 by philosophers who had gathered at the very edge of Rocky Mountain National Park for a conference on "The Community, the Family, and Culture." Exhilarated by the unique combination of stimulating philosophy, good fun and fellowship permeating the conference, they resolved to expand these opportunities by creating SPCW as a nonprofit, democratically organized Society.
Our founding members include scholars - women and men - from analytical, Continental, American, multicultural, and post-modern traditions. Forty-nine presentations were made at the 1994 Annual conference on "Philosophy and Cultural Diversity in Estes Park, Colorado.

The Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy (SAAP). SAAP exists to advance scholarship and teaching in the diverse areas of American Philosophy. Work on figures and issues in American pragmatism, American idealism, American naturalism, American transcendentalism, and process philosophy are encouraged. The society also supports collaborative transactions between these strains of American thought with feminism, indigenous philosophies, African American philosophy, Latin American and Latinx philosophies, post-colonialism, and race theories, to name just a few. Equally important is SAAP’s support of the application of these theories to particular issues, such as injustice, poverty, food, war, animals, and the environment.

The Society of Philosophers in America (SOPHIA) is an educational nonprofit membership and chapter organization dedicated to building communities of philosophical conversation. We are made up of people from within and beyond the academy, people who are interested in deep, meaningful dialogue, and who aim to enrich public discourse, civility, and community.