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Nancy Cartwright, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the University of California San Diego, has been named the 2026 Frontiers of Knowledge Awardee in Humanities for her leading contributions to the philosophy of science and her influential work on evidence-based policy.
A leading thinker on how science operates in the real world, Cartwright has reshaped scholarly understanding of scientific evidence, causality and objectivity. Her work argues that complex problems often require multiple models, methods and forms of expertise — an approach with wide influence across physics, the social sciences and public policy.
Presented by the BBVA Foundation, the international Frontiers of Knowledge Award recognizes singular impact across eight categories: basic sciences, biomedicine, environmental sciences and climate change, social sciences, economics, humanities, music and opera. Each honoree receives a €400,000 award.
The awards program celebrates knowledge as a global public good and highlights its role in addressing the defining challenges of our time, broadening individual worldviews and advancing human understanding. To date, 34 Frontiers of Knowledge laureates have gone on to receive the Nobel Prize.