Xavier Landes is a political philosopher and professor of business ethics and sustainability at SSE Riga. After studying economics, political science and philosophy, he was awarded a Ph.D in philosophy from the Université de Montréal in 2008.

Xavier is also an advisor at the Happiness Research Institute (Copenhagen) and regularly contributes to the media in Denmark, France and Latvia. His research focuses on the welfare state, well-being and climate change.

As Xavier points out: "My focus in the years to come will be on climate change and sustainability. In these troubled times, it is essential that SSE Riga students, local businesses and surrounding communities prepare for the environmental, economic, social and political effects of extreme climate events. With that in mind, I will pursue my work with partners, develop teaching, research, publications and capacity building. This includes addressing climate change per se, but also instruments that could help to tame its most deleterious consequences such as the welfare state."

Prior to SSE Riga, Xavier worked at various institutions such as the Université de Montréal (CRE), the University of Toronto (Centre for Ethics), the University of Copenhagen, the Université Catholique de Lille, and the Institut d'Études Politiques de Lille.