Natural Resources and Flourishing in Ancient Greece

This conference is dedicated to exploring issues pertaining to natural resources and their relation to individual happiness and successful political organization, as treated in ancient Greek literature, art, history, law, religion and philosophy. We welcome presentations on topics such as the following:  

1. Ancient Greek views on the amount and kinds of natural goods suitable for individual and political flourishing, and on the influence of such goods on human character and behavior.
2. Ownership of, and rights to, natural resources in Greek law and political theory.
3. Greek religious views on the divine dispensation (or withdrawal) of natural resources.
4. The depiction and personification of natural resources in Greek mythology and art.
5. The influence of the availability or lack of natural resources on lifestyle and migration in the ancient Greek world.
6. The just distribution of natural goods in ancient Greek thought.
7. Discussions and evidence concerning the contribution of natural resources to social cohesion and identity in Greek antiquity.

Keynote speaker: Lin Foxhall (University of Liverpool)

Please send an anonymized abstract of 200-250 words to [email protected]. Presentations of accepted papers are expected to be approximately 30 minutes long (20 minutes for the paper itself, followed by 10 minutes of q&a). The conference is planned to be held in a hybrid format.

This event is hosted by the Interdisciplinary Center for Hellenic Studies and the Department of Philosophy, University of South Florida.