Editor's note Goal Statement For the arGument It is my pleasure to present you the first issue of the Argument: Biannual Philosophical Journal, published by the Department of Philosophy and Sociology, Pedagogical university of Cracow. this is a peer-reviewed journal founded to facilitate dialogue between Polish and international scholars and, on the other hand, to build bridges between professional philosophers and a wider educated public. We are open to the publishing of scholarly studies in history of philosophy as well as papers reporting the on-going debates in contemporary philosophy, representing various currents in philosophical inquiry, including continental, analytic, non-Western traditions and comparative perspectives. We also publish polemical papers, responses and interviews, book reviews and notices from professional philosophers. Besides, we are open to critical and innovative suggestions concerning teaching methods and the purposes of up-to-date philosophical education. as the name itself suggests, the Argument is intended to provoke rational argument, encourage clear and precise reasoning, and enhance the essential philosophical need for justification and well-founded argument that support the presented views and clarify the accepted positions. the Argument is also intended to serve as a forum for dedicated philosophical debate, polemics and dispute implied by the plurality of the methods and possible interpretations developed within contemporary philosophy. Being aware of the variety of socio-epistemic dimensions of scholarship we also encourage critical, inter-disciplinary and creative articles on topics of traditional and emerging interest. therefore, we welcome papers on such varied specialisations as: metaphysics, ontology, epistemology, axiology, logic, philosophy of religion, philosophy of mind, political philosophy, philosophy of science, as well as philosophical education, gender and feminist www.argument-journal.eu 6 Editor's Note thought, bioethics, environmental philosophy, etc. Favouring methodological and thematic plurality we also want to present philosophy as a rich field of great cultural and social value. although the editorial responsibility was passed onto me and my colleagues only last year, the journal, in fact, has a rather longer history. originally it was founded in 2002, the year in which our Department was also established, and named Studia Philosophica and was included in the series Annales Universitatis Paedagogicae Cracoviensis. Five issues of Studia Philosophica, edited by the Faculty members, were published till 2008. all papers comprised in those volumes were accepted by independent reviewers as well as being critically reviewed by the editors of the particular volumes. however, in 2010 the aims and scope of the journal were essentially redefined and its structure reshaped. a new editorial Board and advisory Board have been appointed. We decided to change the previous title to Argument: Biannual Philosophical Journal and separate it from the university annual series, thus making the journal autonomous and adapting it to higher academic standards. Starting with June 2011, we are going to publish the journal twice a year, in June and December. as one of the objectives of the Argumentis to facilitate the dissemination of philosophical knowledge to a wide group of reflective readers and critical thinkers we endorse an open access policy, one making therein the issues of our journal available both in print and freely accessible online in english and Polish at www.argument-journal.eu. Marzenna Jakubczak Editor-in-chief