CFP: Philosophy in the Public Sphere

PHILOSOPHY IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE

Jindal Global Law School, Sonipat (NCR Delhi) India,

6 & 7 November, 2014

Keynote speaker: Brian Leiter Karl N. Llewellyn Professor of Jurisprudence and Director, Center for Law, Philosophy, and Human Values, University of Chicago.

Abstracts are invited for the conference ‘Philosophy in the Public Sphere’ organized by the Jindal Global Law School. The conference broadly aims at bringing together scholars to reflect on contemporary issues in the public sphere. These could include persistent moral, political, social, and legal issues—preferably relating to, but not limited to Asia. Participants will draw upon philosophical methods, tools, and insights to explore various dimensions of the following themes around which the conference sessions will be organized:

a) Justice (equality, affirmative action, global justice, immigration, frontiers of the free market)

b) Moral limits of the law (legal prohibition of sexual relations between consenting adults, paternalism and the state, regulation of free speech for offending religious sentiments or maintaining public order)

c) Pluralism and the state (What does pluralism demand of the state? How do we understand issues emerging out of pluralism? What justifies policies that states employ to address issues emerging out of pluralism, e.g., federalism, minority rights, personal laws, or secularism? What approaches should states design or adopt? )   

d) Dealing with moral disagreements in the public sphere (How do we understand moral disagreements? Which institutions can legitimately address these and how? )

Important Dates

Abstracts of not more than 1000 words are requested to be submitted by 30 June 2014 by email to Shivprasad Swaminathan and Pritam Baruah at [email protected]

Authors of selected abstracts will be contacted by 15 July 2014. Selected participants will submit draft papers (5000-10000 words) by 15 October, 2014.

Edited Volume

The organizers hope to bring out an edited volume of the conference papers published by a reputed publishing house. Participants wishing to have their papers included in the collection will submit the paper by 15 February 2015. 

Accommodation & local transfers

Jindal Global Law School will provide participants with accommodation at the university guest house. It will also arrange for local transfers to and from the Delhi airport.