Joseph Chan Cho Wai is a Hong Kong political philosopher. He was Professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), where he taught for three decades (1990-2021). He is Global Scholar and Visiting Professor at the University Center for Human Values, Princeton University, in Springs 2019 and 2020 and Fall 2022. In 2021-2022, he is Visiting Scholar at the Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan.
His recent research interests span Confucian political philosophy, comparative political theory, and contemporary theories of liberalism and democracy. He is the author of Confucian Perfectionism: A Political Philosophy for Modern Times (Princeton, 2014), and co-edited East Asian Perspectives on Political Legitimacy: Bridging the Empirical-Normative Divide with Melissa S. Williams and Doh Chull Shin (Cambridge, 2016). In 2015, he received the University Distinguished Teaching Award and Social Sciences Outstanding Research Output Award from the University of Hong Kong.
陳祖為，香港政治哲學學者。近年研究儒家政治哲學、比較政治哲學，及當代自由主義與民主理論。前香港大學政治與公共行政學系教授，任教三十載（1990-2021）。近年於美國普林斯頓大學人文價值中心擔任全球學者及訪問教授，任教儒家政治哲學。2021至2022年於台灣中央研究院人文社會科學研究中心任訪問學人。著作包括 Confucian Perfectionism: A Political Philosophy for Modern Times (Princeton, 2014)（中譯本：《儒家致善主義：現代政治哲學重構》，香港商務印書館，2016），以及與 Melissa S. Williams 和 Doh Chull Shin 合編的 East Asian Perspectives on Political Legitimacy: Bridging the Empirical-Normative Divide (Cambridge, 2016)。2015年獲香港大學頒發「大學傑出教學獎」和「社會科學優秀研究成果獎」。
Academic qualifications
| 1988-1995 | D.Phil. in Political Philosophy Nuffield College, University of Oxford (Thesis: “Politics and the Good Life: Explorations of Aristotle’s Political Theory.” Supervisors: Jonathan Barnes and David Miller) |
| 1983-1984 | M.Sc. in Political Philosophy (Pass with Distinction) Department of Government London School of Economics & Political Science (Thesis: “The Subject-matter of Justice: A Comparative Study of Classical Greek and Contemporary Political Philosophy”) |
| 1979-1983 | B.Soc.Sc Chinese University of Hong Kong Major in Government and Public Administration, Minor in Philosophy |
Major Administrative Responsibilities
At the University of Hong Kong:
| The Council | – Elected Member (2015-2018) |
| Common Core Curriculum Committee | – Chairperson (2013-2016) – Deputy Chairperson (2007-2013) |
| Department of Politics and Public Administration | – Head (2002-2004, 2011-2013) |
| Centre for Civil Society and Governance, Faculty of Social Sciences | – Founding Director (2003-2009) |
Joseph C.W. Chan 