Sam Black

Sam Black is an Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Simon Fraser University. He holds a B.A. in Liberal Arts from Concordia University and a Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Cambridge, UK. His work focuses on foundational questions in social philosophy, including the relationship between individual and group rights, skepticism in public reason theory, and the historical development of 17th-century moral and political philosophy. He is currently co-editing a book manuscript on moral reasons and serves as associate editor of The Canadian Journal of Philosophy and Chair of the Philosophy Undergraduate Curriculum Committee.

Dr. Black's research intersects ethics, political theory, and the history of philosophy. His recent projects explore skepticism's role in shaping Enlightenment-era moral thought and the application of skeptical reasoning to contemporary debates in public justification. He has published widely in journals such as Journal of Ethics, History of Philosophy Quarterly, and Social Theory and Practice.

Prior roles include Vice-President of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, Liberal Arts Fellow at Harvard Law School, and Board Member of the Canadian Philosophical Association. He actively contributes to academic governance, having served on SFU’s Senate.