Workshop on Applied Philosophy of Wellbeing (APW)

The first ever Workshop on Applied Philosophy of Wellbeing (APW) will be held at the Australian National University (ANU) on Thursday 22nd and Friday 23rd August this year. Valerie Tiberius has been confirmed as a keynote speaker, and we expect to announce further exciting keynote speakers very soon.

Workshop abstract
In ethics a distinction is often made between normative ethics, which asks which is the correct ethical theory, and applied ethics, which aims to answer practical ethical questions of importance to the wider world. Philosophy of wellbeing is overwhelmingly concerned with a question analogous to that of normative ethics, the question of which is the correct account of wellbeing. While answering that question is an important task, there’s a need for more work in applied philosophy of wellbeing, which aims to answer practical questions about wellbeing that are also important outside philosophy. There are philosophers doing great work in this area. But there is plenty of room for more philosophers to do applied philosophy of wellbeing, for those engaged in it to work together more closely, and for philosophers of wellbeing to do more work with non-philosophers. There’s also room in philosophy for applied philosophy of wellbeing to be a more recognized and well-supported part of the discipline. This workshop brings together philosophers working in this area and those who’d like to get involved, to share our work and discuss ways of advancing the field of applied philosophy of wellbeing.

The APW will include talks presenting work in applied philosophy of wellbeing and talks about how best to do applied philosophy of wellbeing. There will also be a panel-led discussion on applied philosophy of wellbeing, including how philosophers can best contribute to work on wellbeing in the sciences, in public policy, and elsewhere, and how to best foster interdisciplinary work.

The workshop will be free and fully catered, and the cost of the conference dinner will be covered for registered participants. We are hoping that funding will become available to assist some participants’ attendance costs, but this has yet to be confirmed.

The ANU is located in the heart of Canberra, Australia’s beautiful “Bush Capital.” There’s amazing wildlife on campus and throughout the city, especially around its central lake, and great day hikes very close by on Black Mountain and Mount Ainslie, or at wildlife reserves a short drive away. Canberra is also home to a number of Australia’s national museums, libraries, and galleries. For those wanting to see more of Australia, Canberra is a 2½ hour drive from Sydney or from the beautiful beaches of the New South Wales coastline, and just a one-hour flight from both Sydney and Melbourne.

The workshop will take place during ANU’s famous Visitor Season (July-August), which hosts dozens of philosophers from around the world. ANU has two well-attended departmental talks each week, as well as reading groups, discussion groups, works-in-progress groups, and multiple weekly social events. If you’d like to attend the APW and stay at ANU before or afterwards as a visitor, please let us know, and we’ll do what we can to facilitate that.

This conference will be online as well as in person, so if you would like to present or participate online please do let us know.