Top-tier Philosophy Researchers in the Philippines

As of 2026, the following three researchers are considered the top tier in the Philippines based on different metrics (ResearchGate, Google Scholar, and AD Scientific Index):

1. Most Productive & Cited: Christopher Ryan Maboloc

Based on data from ResearchGate and the AD Scientific Index 2026, Dr. Christopher Ryan Maboloc (Ateneo de Davao University) is arguably the most active and widely read philosophy researcher in the country today.

Focus: Ethics, Political Philosophy, and Social Justice.

Impact: He has a massive body of work (over 100 publications) and high "reads" on global research platforms. He is known for applying radical democracy and the works of Chantal Mouffe to the Philippine context.

Current Status: He was recently recognized as a top scientist in the Philippines by the AD Scientific Index 2026 for his contributions to Philosophy and the Humanities.

2. High Academic Influence: Agustin Martin Rodriguez

Dr. Agustin Martin Rodriguez (Ateneo de Manila University) is a titan in Filipino philosophical research, particularly in the intersection of phenomenology and social justice.

Focus: Loob (inner self), environmental justice, and decoloniality.

Accolades: He is a frequent winner of the National Book Award (including a win in 2023/2024 for his work on Filipino thought).

Impact: His work is essential for anyone studying "Indigenous Filipino Philosophy."

3. Analytic & Formal Leader: Jeremiah Joven Joaquin

If you look at the Analytic tradition (logic, epistemology, and formal philosophy), Dr. Jeremiah Joven Joaquin (De La Salle University) is the leading researcher.

Impact: He is one of the few Filipino philosophers who consistently publishes in high-impact international Scopus and Web of Science journals.

Leadership: He often leads discussions on the "state of Filipino publishing," pushing for higher standards in peer-reviewed research.

Statement of the SES expressing its opposition to the proposal to remove Ethics in the GE Curriculum

We, members of the Board of Directors of the Social Ethics Society, express our strong opposition to the proposal to remove ethics in college. Such move is bereft of merit and is ignorant as to the value and purpose of the teaching of the course, which is thoroughly rooted in the integral and critical function of higher education. The proposal to transfer it to Senior High School deprives college students of the teaching of ethics as a professional course, which is crucial in their civic engagements and the pursuit of a democratic society that can only be grounded in responsible citizenship and critical thinking. The direction of Edcom and its advisers from the technical panels of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) reduces our whole education system into a mode of creating docile workers who will constitute the labor force that will serve the whims and interests of a capital intensive and consumer driven globalized neoliberal economic order. It only breeds our subser...

List of Accepted Papers for Oral Presentation in the 16th SES Conference

1. Donnalen Quezon (MSU-IIT) - The Paradox of Justice: A Feminist Analysis of How the Philippine Legal System Reinforces Silence Among Rape Victims through Catharine MacKinnon’s Theory of the State 2. Najifah Macaraya & Erickson Totanes (MSU - GenSan) - Thinking Peace: A Philosophical Approach to Inner and Social Harmony 3. Francis Matay-ao Jr. (Isabela State University) - Principle-Centered Leadership: A Catalyst for Sustainable Development in Higher Education Institutions 4. Shasell Ybanez (MSU-IIT) - A Foucauldian Analysis of How Mega Influencers Reconfigure Knowledge and Desire in the Click-to-Bet Economy 5. Casey Tuazon & Shasell Ybanez (MSU-IIT) - The Ethical Implications of David Poplar’s Concept of Play Framing in the Context of Body-Shaming Humor Toward Filipino Women: A Luna Dolezal Body and Shame Analysis 6. Marlon Naiz (Southern Christian College) - Redefining Ecotourism: A Conservationist Analysis Based On Aldo Leop...

Statement of the SES BOD Chair

The Social Ethics Society was founded in 2010 by the late Dr. Romulo Bautista, a professor at Ateneo de Davao University who did his doctorate on Marx at the University of Madrid in Spain, and Dr. Christopher Ryan Maboloc, then a young teacher at Ateneo de Davao. The first SES Conference was held at the University of Mindanao. Its original membership was only 15, consisting mainly of the masters students of the two founders. While in the peripheries of academia, the SES pursued its goals of helping teachers in Mindanao develop their craft in ways that is consistent with philosophy as an exercise of the human will and as the highest expression of the human intellect. When its proponents presented the concept, it was suggested that the Union of Philosophical Societies and Associations in the Philippines (USAPP) will lobby for a new bill that will professionalize philosophy in the country. That was in 2018. Top UST philosophy academics, upon the invitation of Peter Elicor, attended t...

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