Newsletter 
Skepticism does not have a good reputation. For the last twenty years or so, we have been living in an era of suspicion towards science. The scientific wars had already polarized criticism under the name of relativism. The theme of the merchants of doubt and the idea of collusion between scientists and multinationals then emerged. Today, skepticism about climate change, the anti-science movement, the anti-vaccine movement, etc. have multiplied the fronts of criticism of modern science and fueled conspiracy theories.
Against this backdrop, we might ask whether skeptic thoughts can still be heard in the scientific world. How can we restore reasoned doubt to its rightful place in science and society?
To answer this essential question, we welcome historian Stéphane Van Damme, who will also talk about one of the most embodied or lively manifestations of this theme, scientific populism. This term refers to various scientific activists who are omnipresent in the public arena, in various European countries, including Finland where, according to a survey by the European Investment Bank, a majority of Finns are skeptical about the European Green Deal.
Dive into the subject with us at this event in English by registering now!
Stéphane Van Damme is Professor of History of Science in the History Department of the Ecole Normale Supérieure (Paris). His research focuses on the environmental history of science. In 2020, he published Seconde Nature. Rematérialiser les sciences entre Bacon et Tocqueville and in 2023, Les voyageurs du doute. L’invention d’un altermondialisme libertin (1620-1820).