Sabine Winters

Philosopher of science, writer, speaker, curator

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Hi there, welcome!

My name is Sabine Winters and I work as a philosopher of space and science.
In my projects, I explore the ways we think about space and science.

From January to July 2023, I conducted research on the role of imagination in space science at the Advanced Concepts Team of the European Space Agency (ESA). Since October 2023, I’ve continued this research as a PhD candidate at Utrecht University, where I explore how imagination shapes and informs the space sciences.

Alongside my academic work, I curate programs on art and technology at Theater De Lindenberg in Nijmegen. I also teach philosophy at ArtEZ University of the Arts, give public lectures on film and philosophy (in cities including Arnhem, Eindhoven, Tilburg, Utrecht, and Nijmegen), and design interdisciplinary research programs that bring together art and technology.

I’m the founder of Future Based, an interdisciplinary philosophy platform that organized more than 60 events between 2018 and 2025, focusing on topics such as technology, ethics, and feminism. Furthermore, I host the podcast Scientific Imagination, where I explore the role of imagination in the natural sciences.

Currently, I’m working on my first book, to be published by Ten Have Publishers in June 2027. In the book, I reflect on place, space, and the cosmos. Through visits to observatories and space research institutes, I explore questions such as: What does space reveal about our place in the universe? What can we learn from the way we look outward? And how do stories about the cosmos shape our visions of the future?

Education

PhD Candidate in Space Science Imagination at the Freudenthal Institute, Philosophy and History of Science (2023-present)

Promotor Dr. Guido Bacciagaluppi (Utrecht University) , supervisors Dr. Mike Stuart (University of York), Dr. Jai Grover (European Space Agency, Advanced Concepts Team)

Radboud University – Master degree – Philosophy of Science

Thesis on the work of Johannes Kepler as a thought experiment

Utrecht University – Bachelor degree- Philosophy

Thesis on the role of imagination in scientific thought experiments

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Recent projects

Author of the book The Imagination of Space at Ten Have publishers (forthcoming, June 2027)

Study coach, mentor ArtEZ Product Design (2023 – present)

Philosophy teacher Design Art Technology – University of the Arts ArtEZ (2024- present)

Philosophy teacher Product Design – University of the Arts ArtEZ (2022 – present)

Founder, curator and host Scientific Imagination (2020- present)

Founder & director interdisciplinary philosophy platform Future Based (2018- 2025)

Programmer and project-leader at Art and Technology, at Theatre Lindenberg (2021- present)

ESA philosopher in residence at the Advanced Concepts Team European Space Agency, (January 2023 – June 2023)

Project leader artist in residency ‘Hydrogen’ Foreland Studios (September 2021 – September 2022 )

Head artist in residency programme design studio Fillip Studios ( September 2019-September 2021)

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Recent publications

Scientific Progress is Increasing Ability: AI and Space Science.
Mike Stuart and Sabine Winters (Forthcoming 2025)

Creativity Reinvented: Exploring AI’s Influence on Meaning in Art
ArtEZ Press (Forthcoming, 2025)

Defining Space Debris Policy: A Perspective from Rawls’ Veil of Ignorance
Crime, Criminal Justice & Ethics in Outer Space, Routledge/Taylor & Francis.

Biomimethics: a critical perspective on the ethical implications of biomimetics in technological innovation
Chris Broeckhoven and Sabine Winters
IoP Science, peer reviewed (2023)

Kármán Nomads – When living in space becomes reality
Intense Futurity Systems (2023)

A View from the Moon: How Imagination Offers an Alternative Perspective
Junkyard of the Mind (2023)

Over the Moon (quite literally!)

How does the Moon see the Earth?

That was the question posed by the Moon Gallery Foundation. I responded with an essay titled The Moon is Women. A passage from my essay is one of 49 selected works included in a truly extraordinary little book — just 1 cm³ in size — that will travel to the Moon on a mission at the end of 2025. It will be the very first book on the Moon.

More information: Moon Gallery.

Inner Orbits, Cosmic Motion

Exhbition Kunstenlab Deventer

On October 12, the exhibition Inner Orbits, Cosmic Motion opens at Kunstenlab Deventer. Commissioned by and in collaboration with Kunstenlab, I contributed to an exhibition in which five artists reflect on the imagination of the cosmos. What is ‘inside’ and what is ‘outside’? How do we relate to the very largest and the very smallest? In this exhibition, five artists explore these questions through their work.

Artists: Zalán Szakács, Heleen Blanken, Lucien Bitaux, Daniela de Paulis, and Hannah van der Heide

More information can be found via Kunstenlab’s social channels.

PhD related presentations

Scientific Progress is Increasing Ability: AI and Space Science.

Roundtable discussion at the Ethnographies of Outer Space Imaginaries, Infrastructures and Interventions – Vienna 25-26th September 2025

Scientific Progress is Increasing Ability: AI and Space Science.

Presented at the joint conference of the Asia-Pacific Philosophy of Science Association (APPSA) and the Taiwan Association for Logic, Methodology, Philosophy of Science and Technology (LMPST Taiwan) at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, June 17-19 2025.

Space Futures and Imagination – workshop and lecture

Invited as exchanging-fellow by the University of Vienna Future Space working group (May 2025)

Visualization, Imagination and Data Interpretation – workshop and lecture

University of Lapland (September 2025)

Interdisciplinary Thinking in Space Practice – Presentation

Ethnographies of Outer Space Conference, Kraków Poland (2024)

Imagination in Space Sciences – Presentation

Ventspils University of Applied Sciences, Latvia (2024)

Lecture and workshop experience

Lectures and Workshops (2016 – Present)

I delivered a wide range of lectures and workshops for diverse audiences—including policymakers, children, and art enthusiasts—at venues such as several (film) theaters, libraries, P-OST, Kunstenlab, The Next Museum, and the European Space Agency. Furthermore, I participated in panel discussions on ethics and space, including one alongside astronaut André Kuipers. Topics include philosophy of technology, future thinking, utopian anddystopian thought, philosophy of mind, and philosophy of science. A selection:

Technology, Identity, Authority, and Autonomy – Course Writer & Workshop Leader

(2022 – Present)

Commissioned by Overdenkwerk, I developed and taught a course that explores the philosophical implications of emerging technologies. The course is designed for executives and decision-makers.

Future Based – Founder, Initiator, Facilitator

(2018 – 2025)

As the founder of Future Based, I curated and executed the program from concept to delivery. I developed over 60 workshops and meetups, 25 reading sessions, and 50 podcast episodes, creating spaces for interdisciplinary dialogue around art, science, and philosophy.

Science Meets Fiction in Space – Initiator, Curator & Moderator

(2022)

Curated and moderated at Focus Filmtheater Arnhem, a four-part film event Fiction Meets Science in Space, exploring the intersection of science fiction and science. Each evening featured a film screening followed by an interactive discussion with scientists and artists.

Film as Philosophy – Curator, Writer, Teacher

(2018 – Present)

Co-developed and taught four course series (six sessions each) in collaboration with film critic Kevin Toma. The courses explored the intersection of film and philosophical thought, and were held at institutions including Wageningen University, Focus Filmtheater, Cinecitta Tilburg, and Louis Hartlooper Complex.

Winterlab Zwolle ArtEZ University of the Arts– Workshop Facilitator

(2020 & 2025)

Invited to lead a week-long series of workshops on critical future thinking:

• 2020 – Utopia and Dystopian Thinking about the Future

• 2025 – Shaping Solidarity within One’s Own Practice

Certified Courses

Study Career Mentorship: Conversation techniques and guidance (2024)

Curating New Media Art: Process, Interaction, Virtuality: Node Center (March – May 2019)

Two-day course debate and moderating: Debat.nl (2019)

Philosophy of Technology : Twente University (May 2018)

Curating Art and Science; potentials and pitfalls: Node Center (January – March 2018)

Clients