Having started as a research unit dedicated to the Philosophy of Language, the Nova Institute of Philosophy was created in 1993 and, since then, has achieved Excellent in all assessments by the Foundation for Science and Technology. From 2014 onwards, the Institute saw its level of internationalization grow, both due to the increase in the number of publications in renowned international magazines and publishers, and through the various applications for European projects in which it was successful. In recent years, IFILNOVA has consolidated its commitment to research with a single thematic line, having simultaneously expanded the number of approaches to the philosophical problems in question.

At this stage, IFILNOVA’s main goal is to develop research programs focused on the philosophical investigation of values, particularly by investigating the nature of value, the role of values in human action, as well as their normativity as constituted through public argumentation and reasoning in the ethical, political and aesthetic fields. The programs aim also to apply philosophical theories to social practices and problems.

This goal is pursued through four distinct strategies:

• (1) Fundamental research on philosophical problems.
  (2) Development of classic theories.
• (3) Development and application of new theories to empirical fields.
• (4) Direct intervention into social practices.