Theme 2015 : Plurality of languages and places of philosophy.
Statement from Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director General on World Philosophy Day 2015.
The conviction that philosophy can make an essential contribution to human well - being, to ad dressing complexity, to advancing peace stands at the heart of World Philosophy Day .
The historian Henry Brooks Adams once joked: “ Philosophy: unintelligible answers to insoluble problems .” Against this, UNESCO puts philosophy forwa rd as a force for individual and collective emancipation . For to think, while reflecting on what it is to think, is to philosophize, and all of us do it constantly, driven by the truest motor of all human ingenuity – wonder.
Philosophy is dialogue of wonder, across the ages, with art and literature, in social debates, on political questions, practiced by al l, without specialized training, far beyond the classroom. This is UNESCO’s message today – we must raise the flag for philosophy as high as possible, to engage every woman and man, and especially every girl and boy.
We need to share the wonder of philosophy more widely and differently. This is the goal of the new UNESCO Chair on Philosophy with Children , at the University of Nantes in France, the result of long - standing cooperation between UNESCO and networks of philosophy teachers.
We are working to make p hilosophy, the most ancient of disciplines, reach broader audiences thanks to cutting - edge technologies – for instance, through online teaching tools b ased on the 2015 UNESCO South - South Philosophical Manual . All a ctivities celebrat ing this year’s World Philosophy Day will, for the first time, emphasize the use of new communication technologies to engage global audiences. In September, world leaders agreed on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development . This is a new vision for people, prosperity, peace, and the planet , for the next fifteen years.
Taking this to fruition requires all the skills philosophy can hone, includi ng rigour, creativity and critical thinking. Sustainability calls for new ways of thinking about ourselves and the planet. It requires new ways of acting, producing and behaving. Here again, p hilosophy and all the humanities will be essential . UNESCO was created seventy years ago in a world rebuilding after a devastating war, inspired by a new vision of peace, drawing on the intellectual and moral solidarity of peoples .
Philosophy has always been at the core of this mandate, to provide women and men with openings for self - discovery and the discovery of others, to understand change in order to shape it towards a better future for all. Mahatma Gandhi once said: “All our philosophy is dry as dust if it is not immediately translated into some act of living service” . This has always been UNESCO’s message, and it has never been so important.Irina Bokova
FORUM : World Philosophy Day - 19 November.
UNESCO is organizing in Paris a Roundtable on plurality of languages and places of philosophy
Send us your questions, comments and suggestions – starting now – by email to the following address to: wpd@unesco.org
or on Twitter: #unesco_wpd
LIVE WEBCAST
EVENTS : World Philosophy Day 2015: roundtable on plurality of languages and places of philosophy.
When, local time: Thursday, 19 November 2015 - 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Where: France, Paris Type of Event:
Category 8-Symposium
Contact: John Crowley, j.crowley@unesco.org
A roundtable debate is being organized on the issues of the plurality of languages and places of philosophy. The full programme will be broadcast live on the internet, and an effort will be made to ensure the presence of philosophical themes in social media. The meeting will bring together philosophers from different countries and aims to address issues concerning three major topics: - Knowledge and dissemination of philosophical thought of non-Western cultures, especially through new technologies; - Philosophy outside of the academic enclosure, using new places and formats; and - The variety of places and forms of teaching and learning philosophy. The UNESCO Chair on the Practice of Philosophy with Children, being established at the University of Nantes (France), will also be presented.
UNESCO Dakar
UNESCO Brasilia
AROUND THE WORLD
Links:
- UNESCO and philosophy
- Philosophy Day at UNESCO
- UNESCO and philosophy - Webcast (Thursday 19 November 2015, 2pm-5pm, Paris time)
Resources :
- Teaching Philosophy in Europe and North America [PDF, 1.8 MB]
- Teaching Philosophy in Latin America and the Caribbean [PDF, 699 KB]
- Teaching Philosophy in Africa: Anglophone Countries [PDF, 439 KB]
- Teaching Philosophy in Asia and the Pacific [PDF, 529 KB]
- Teaching Philosophy in the Arab Region [PDF, 940 KB]
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