Who We Are

WHO WE ARE

INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZERS

Alexandria James (Co-Director) is a second-year philosophy MA student at the CUNY Graduate Center. Her research explores aesthetics, Black existentialism and phenomenology, and decolonial philosophy through a Black feminist lens. She also has related interests in Africana criticisms, namely Afro-pessimism, Black optimism, and Afrofuturism, as well as indigenous studies. Alexandria is a dedicated activist who has co-organized actions relating to anti-Black racism and state violence with People’s Power Assemblies NYC, decolonizing academia(and its limits) and anti-austerity with FreeCUNY, and is grateful for the insights her studies provide in informing this work. She became a MAP International Organizer in 2021.

Sophia Wushanley (Co-Director) is a second year PhD student at the University of Michigan. Her primary interests are in ethics, political, and social philosophy. A former software engineer, she is especially interested in data ethics, algorithmic justice, and the impact of technology on inequality. Before starting her PhD at Michigan, she lived in France for six years, where she got a master's at the Sorbonne and later worked in Parisian technology startups. In her free time, she likes lifting weights and watching sci fi movies (but not at the same time).

Lel Jones (Organizer) is a nonbinary activist, musician, and philosophy PhD student. They are pursuing their PhD and designated emphasis in Feminist Theory at UC Davis (on unceded Patwin land). Lel focuses in feminist philosophy and its intersections with environmental ethics, neuroethics, blame, and philosophy of language. They are currently working on their first x-phi project which researches potential discursive injustice.

Josh Petersen (Organizer) is a second year PhD student at the University of Michigan. His research interests span political philosophy, epistemology, and normative jurisprudence. He’s particularly interested in issues arising at the intersection of environmental law and environmental justice. Before beginning his PhD, he worked in human rights and environmental advocacy. He’ll begin a JD at Stanford Law School in 2023. He’s a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community.

You can read more about MAP's institutional history here.