The Institute of Philosophy\, Zagreb\, the Plato Society of Zagreb\, and the City of Hvar
\nin cooperation with Hvar Heritage Museum and the Hegel Society \;of Zadar
\ninvite submissions for the
\nInternational Symposium: \;
\nTourism and Culture in Philosophical Perspective
\nHvar\, October 14-17\, 2019 \;
\nTourism as a &ldquo\;profoundly human&rdquo\;[1]activity is a relatively recent phenomenon. For the part of the world&rsquo\;s population possessing the requisite means\, travel \;for pleasure or business is taken for granted today as a constitutive part of ordinary life and an integral aspect of the fulfillment of one&rsquo\;s purpose as a human being\, complementing the aims of family\, work\, and education. The business of attracting\, accommodating\, and entertaining tourists provides a major source of income for many economies\, generating revenue in the form of payment for \;goods and services\, as well as opportunities for employment \;in the service sector. \;
\nWhile human populations have been mobile since the beginning of history\, the reasons for moving about differed greatly from those of modern tourism. \;The word \;tourist \;(from Fr. &ldquo\;tour&rdquo\; or &ldquo\;tourner&rdquo\;\, Old English \;turian\, Old French \;torner\, Latin \;tornare\; 'to turn on a lathe\,' Ancient Greek \;tornos- &tau\;ό&rho\;&nu\;&omicron\;&sigmaf\;\, a turning lathe or a &ldquo\;carpenter's tool for drawing a circle\, \;like our \;compasses\, \;probably [consisting of] a pin at the end of a string\,&rdquo\; Liddel-Scott)\, was first used in 1772\, and the word \;tourism \;in 1811. Nevertheless\, travelling for pleasure existed in \;Egypt \;as early on as 1500 B.C. (Casson\, Lionel 1994. \;Travel in the Ancient World. Baltimore: JHU Press\, 32). \;During the \;Roman Republic\, \;spas \;and coastal resorts were popular among the rich. By the Middle Ages\, traditions of religious pilgrimage had been established\, producing classics in the genre of pilgrimage literature\, such as Chaucer&rsquo\;s \;Canterbury \;Tales \;and Wu Cheng&rsquo\;en&rsquo\;s \;Journey to the West. \;These appear alongside secular \;travel accounts \;such as those of Su Shi (11th century) and Fan Chengda (12thCentury). Francesco Petrarch wrote an allegorical account of his ascent of Mt. Ventoux in 1336 (Epistolae familiares \;IV\, 1) in which he praises travelling and criticizes the \;frigida incuriositas \;of those who do not see its worth.
\nModern tourism can be traced to what was known as the &ldquo\;Grand Tour&rdquo\;\, a traditional journey undertaken as a sort of rite of passage by young men of means from the European upper classes\, beginning in the 17th \;and continuing into the 18th and 19th centuries\, intended for their intellectual\, moral\, social\, and political formation. The Grand Tour involved travel to places of natural beauty\, and centres of Classical art and culture from Antiquity to Renaissance\, typically including France\, Germany\, Switzerland\, Italy and Greece. \;
\nWith the advent of rail and steamship travel in the second half of the 19th century\, tourism gradually became accessible to the middle classes and mass tourism began to develop\, as pioneered in the UK by Thomas Cook. Today\, a wide diversity of &ldquo\;niche&rdquo\; specialities\, from agro- or ecotourism to extreme sport and medical tourism\, have come into existence\, and ever new variations continue to appear. \;
\nThe \;Manila Declaration on World Tourism of 1980 aimed to &ldquo\;clarify the real nature of tourism in all its aspects and the role tourism is bound to play in a dynamic and vastly changing world&rdquo\;\, along with the &ldquo\;responsibility of States for the development and enhancement of tourism in present-day societies&rdquo\;. The Declaration emphasized the role world tourism could play as &ldquo\;a vital force for world peace&rdquo\;\, capable of providing &ldquo\;the moral and intellectual basis for international understanding and interdependence&rdquo\; and of contributing to &ldquo\;establishment of a new international economic order\,&rdquo\; in which &ldquo\;the widening economic gap between developed and developing countries&rdquo\; would be eliminated. Its vision foresaw that \;&ldquo\;spiritual elements&rdquo\; would &ldquo\;take precedence over technical and material elements&rdquo\; in \;&ldquo\;the practice of tourism&rdquo\;. \;The aim of the proposed ideal of world tourism was the &ldquo\;total fulfilment&rdquo\; and &ldquo\;liberation&rdquo\; of human beings in a &ldquo\;spirit of respect&rdquo\; for their identity and dignity and \;an ever increasing contribution to their education\, as well as &ldquo\;equality of destiny of nations&rdquo\;\, and affirmation of the &ldquo\;originality of cultures&rdquo\; and &ldquo\;moral heritage of peoples&rdquo\;. \; \;
\nIn the decades since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declared \;freedom of movement \;and \;the right to leave and to return to a country\, together with \;the right to rest and leisure\, universal human rights (Article 13\, 24)\, it is questionable whether we have moved any closer to realisation of the Manila Declaration&rsquo\;s ideals for development of world tourism. \;It is doubtful\, too\, whether tourism has moved us any closer to its &ldquo\;ultimate aim&rdquo\; of improving quality of life and creating better living conditions for all peoples. It is clearly \;not \;the case that every human being \;&ldquo\;has access to creative rest and holidays and enjoys the freedom to travel within the framework of free time and leisure.&rdquo\; A large part of the world&rsquo\;s population does not possess the means to enjoy these rights. \;
\nTourism thus reflects the fundamental division of humanity into advantaged and disadvantaged which has plagued our world from ancient times until today. More recently the phenomena of mass tourism and &ldquo\;overtourism&rdquo\; have further brought into relief the negative tendencies of the culture of tourism itself\, as the balance continues to tip in tourist destinations world-wide between sustainable numbers of visitors\, and numbers which threaten the integrity of natural and cultural legacy and the life of the local communities. \;
\nIn 2018\, the City of Hvar\, Croatia celebrated in 150 years of organized tourism. It is \;in Hvar\, and in \;cooperation with the City of Hvar\, \;Hvar Heritage Museum\, and \;other civic and cultural institutions and businesses from the City of Hvar\, \;that the Institute of Philosophy\, Zagreb\, together with the Plato Society of Zagreb and the Hegel Society of Zadar\, will organize the International Symposium: \;
\nTourism &\; Culture in Philosophical Perspective
\nWe propose to consider tourism from a philosophical and interdisciplinary standpoint\, in cooperation with our hosts\, the City of Hvar\, its citizens and its civic and cultural institutions\, whose first-hand experience in organized tourism and insights into the relationship between community and the economy of tourism\, between host and guest\, as well as into the pressing issues of overtourism\, sustainability\, and moral responsiblity will provide an invaluable contribution to our dialogue.
\nWe invite submissions which consider from a philosophical perspective or from an interdisciplinary standpoint topics dealing with the relationship of tourism and culture in today&rsquo\;s world. These may include\, but are not limited to\, the following thematic clusters:
\nHuman Beings as Tourists - Epistemological\, Psychological\, Anthropological and Sociopolitical Aspects of Tourism
\nLeisure\, Time\, Place &ndash\; Physicality and Metaphysical Aspects of Tourism
\nResponsibility\, Sustainability\, Accountability &ndash\; Moral and Ethical Aspects of Tourism
\nBeauty\, Identity\, Community\, Legacy &ndash\; Aesthetic and Cultural Aspects of Tourism
\nTourism and education &ndash\; Ascent from the Cave?
\nSubmissions should be made using the conference management system EasyChair and the submission web-page: \;https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=tcpp2019
\nFor instructions on how to submit via Easy Chair please consult the Easy Chair &ldquo\;How to submit&rdquo\; page at \;https://easychair.org/help/how_to_submit
\nOrganisational committee
\n
Dr. Marie-É\;lise Zovko\, Institute of Philosophy\; Prof. Dr. Filip Grgić\, Leiter\, Institute of Philosophy\; Zagreb Doc. Dr. Nives Tre&scaron\;čec\; University of Zadar Prof. Dr. Jure Zovko\, Institute of Philosophy\; University of Zadar\; MA Renate Kroschel\, Freiburg i. Br.\; MA Nives Tomasović\, Curator\, Hvar Heritage Museum
[1]Manila Declaration on World Tourism&ndash\; \; \;https://www.e-unwto.org/doi/pdf/10.18111/unwtodeclarations.1980.6.4.1
ORGANIZER;CN=Institute of Philosophy Zagreb;CN=Filip Grgic;CN="Marie-Élise Zovko";CN="Nives Delija Treščec";CN=Jure Zovko: METHOD:PUBLISH END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR