15–18 August 2014, Belgrade, Serbia
Organised by:
Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, University of Belgrade
Faculty for Media and Communication, Singidunum University
Serbian Association for Philosophical Practitioners
Centre for Advanced Studies, University of Rijeka
Philosophical practice is gradually becoming an established philosophical profession with an increasing amount of clients such as organizations, government or individuals. Whilst retaining the philosophical curiosity faced with the perennial questions of life, meaning and values, philosophical practice seeks to make the philosophy of any school, conceptual background or methodological focus as practical as any discipline can become: it seeks to use philosophy to foster the quality and transparency of the meaning of life, both organisational (or corporate) and individual. The community of philosophical practitioners has grown to an impressive group of philosophers ranging from the so-called philosophical ‘generalists’ to specialists from varied fields as philosophy of language on the one hand and traditional metaphysics, on the other engaged in consultations, advice of organizations or facilitating Socratic group dialogue. The common denominator of all these philosophers’ work is their quest to allow the wisdom, experience and conceptual rigour that characterise philosophy to bear upon the solution of everyday individual or organisational problems, dilemmas and issues.
Apart from becoming a profession, philosophical practice is generating another impact, which has not been sufficiently addressed so far. It is impacting the mainstream academic philosophy in ways that need to be critically explored so that the interaction of philosophical practice and the philosophy limited to teaching and research is made fruitful. Namely, philosophical practice is opening entirely new areas and themes of philosophical insight that require novel methods and new resources to be invested in the traditional philosophical exploration of the actual pre-requisites, contexts and consequences of the application of philosophy to everyday life. This is an exciting area of research which promises to emancipate some aspects of traditional academic philosophy from its main problem these days: its removed position from the public and the everyday concerns of ordinary people. At the same time, philosophical practice is establishing itself as a genuine discipline of academic philosophy, as the practical application of philosophy leads, as in all areas of philosophical life, to the opening of new philosophical questions. Philosophical practice is thus both a profession and a philosophical issue in itself. This is so much the case that the impact of the lessons learned in philosophical practice deserves the name of a new discipline of research and teaching philosophy itself.
The aim of the 13th International Conference of Philosophical Practitioners is to bring together, in a highly inclusive way, philosophical practitioners from around the world and generate a series of sessions which will show the public what philosophical practice is and how it is growing into both a profession and a new philosophical discipline. Demonstrations prevail. However, the conference also provides accredited master classes for philosophical practitioners, opportunities for exchange of experience among practitioners, lessons for students or lay public, and free consultations by practitioners from all over the world.
The conference will be held at the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, University of Belgrade, in central Belgrade. Sessions and workshops will run at several locations in central Belgrade.
The registration fee for the conference is EUR 150 if paid by 15 April 2014, EUR 200 between 15 April 2014 and 15 July 2014, and EUR 250 if paid between 15 July 2014 and the beginning of the conference including the registration session ad the commencement of the conference on 15th August 2014. The fee includes conference materials, coffee breaks and a cocktail at the conclusion of the conference.
Participants are advised to arrive to Belgrade on 14 August 2014 and plan to depart on 19 August 2015.
Belgrade offers a variety of accommodation, most of which is reasonably priced and good in quality, close to the centre of the city and to all venues of the conference. For those participants who are interested in student accommodation the organisers will make every effort to explore such options, but anyone interested in this type of room should contact Aleksandar Fatic (aleksandar.fatic@gmail.com) as soon as possible.
The working language of the conference is English.
Conference Organizer: Aleksandar Fatic, PhD, Research Professor, University of Belgrade,aleksandar.fatic@gmail.com
Advisory Committee:
Constantinos Athanasopoulos, PhD, FHEA, Research Affiliate, Department of Philosophy, OU (UK); President of the Hellenic Society for Philosophical Practice (Greece).
Oscar Brenifier, Chairman, Institut de Pratiques Philosophiques (France).
Viktoria Chernenko, Philosophical Practitioner, member of Institut de Pratiques Philosophiques (Russia).
Guido Giacomo Gattai, Philosophical Counselor, member of Institut de Pratiques Philosophiques (Poland).
Ora Gruengard, PhD, Philosophical Practitioner; Senior Lecturer, Shenkar College Shenkar College of Engineering and Design (Israel).
Peter Harteloh, Ph.D., Philosophical Practitioner, Erasmus Institute of Philosophical Practice. Rotterdam (The Netherlands).
Lou Marinoff, Professor & Chair, Department of Philosophy, The City College of New York (USA); President, APPA — American Philosophical Practitioners Association.
Jose Barrientos Rastrojo, Professor of Philosophy, University of Sevilla (Spain).
Young E Rhee, Professor, Department of Humanities Therapy, Humanities Institute, Kangwon National University (Korea).
David Sumiacher D’Angelo, National Autonomous Universtity of Mexico (Mexico).
Detlef Staude, Philosophical Practitioner, President of Network for Practical Philosophizing philopraxis.ch (Switzerland).
