International Conference on Philosophy for Children “Enlightenment today” Sapere aude! – Have courage to use your own understanding!

What is Enlightenment? According to Kant, “enlightenment is man's emergence from his self-imposed nonage” and this “nonage is the inability to use one's own understanding without another's guidance”. However, the question of enlightenment did not only arise during Kant’s time, yet it is still of the utmost relevance today. Is the enlightened, mature and autonomous subject in danger? What tends to inhibit independent and critical thinking? Are radicalizations, emotions and irrationality paramount? What purpose can a debate about enlightenment serve today?

The International Conference on Philosophy for Children addresses the topic of “Enlightenment today”. What is associated with enlightenment today? Which phenomenon does it describe? Should one still be interested in a historicized enlightenment? Or is enlightenment some kind of an educational project?

Maturity, reason, human rights, critical faculties, moral courage and the categorical imperative – these are terms that come to mind when one thinks of “enlightenment”. How do we refer to enlightenment today? Which norms and values are associated with it?

The complexity of the modern world, the multitude and variety of all kind of offers, the scientific progress, the emergence of numerous expert cultures and the highly intricate nature of relationships present us with enormous challenges. So what is the current situation when it comes to education and enlightenment?

This year’s conference has been planned as an intercultural forum which will enable philosophical discussions to be held on present-day phenomena and parallels to be drawn to other scientific disciplines. An important objective of this event is to initiate an exchange of different approaches that make a further knowledge base explicit both for educational concepts and for initiatives in education policy.

The International Conference focuses on following topics:

• the new enlightenment and digitalisation

• enlightenment and the present – the concept of enlightenment today

• the enlightened subject

• enlightenment and education

• community of inquiry

• democracy and critical thinking

• freedom and self-determination

• historical enlightenment/historicity of enlightenment

• demands of enlightenment and moral values

• human rights in view of enlightenment

Information hotline and ACPC, Austrian Center of

registration: Philosophy with Children

Phone: +43 (0) 316 90 370 201

[email protected]

www.kinderphilosophie.at

Venue: University of Graz,

Meerscheinschlössl,

Mozartgasse 3, A-8010 Graz

Conference fee: € 60,-

Members € 30,-

No fee for students and pupils

Organizer: ACPC, Austrian Center of

Philosophy with Children,

Schmiedgasse 12, 8010 Graz

Email:[email protected]

Conference language: English and German (simultaneous translation)