ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the epistemic and social relevance of geographic diversity for addressing the values that shape the production of scientific knowledge at a global level. First, it identifies how geographic diversity has been neglected or inadequately addressed in current philosophical frameworks of value-laden science. Second, it advances the social and epistemic rationales for considering this type of diversity. To do so, the chapter shows how different forms of epistemic oppression hinder the participation of scientific communities located in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), affecting their epistemic agency and the values that shape the production, content, and uses of scientific knowledge globally. The chapter ends with a set of considerations that any philosophical framework must take into account when considering geographic diversity and conceiving measures for increasing it in a judicious way.
Readers may be interested in these Handbook chapters as well: Kirstin Borgerson, “Critical Contextual Empiricism”; Abigail Nieves Delgado et al., “The Limits of Diversity in Science: The Case of Human Microbiome Research.”
