Senter for global og komparativ idéhistorie
Global and Comparative History of Ideas (SGOKI) Contact: Dag Herbjørnsrud, dag@sgoki.org
Senter for global og komparativ idéhistorie
Global and Comparative History of Ideas (SGOKI) Contact: Dag Herbjørnsrud, dag@sgoki.org

Confucius-Aristotle Symposium in Qufu, China: «Peace of Mind, State of Peace» lecture

Publisert

On July 8-13 2024, the United Nations Sustainable Development Network (UN SDSN) co-hosted the second Confucius-Aristotle Symposium in Qufu and Beijing, China. The global historian of ideas Dag Herbjørnsrud delivered the lecture «Peace of Mind, State of Peace» at the Tenth Nishan Forum on World Civilizations, in the Nishan Lecture Hall at Mount Ni (the birtplace of Confucius), Qufu.

Dozens of scholars from around the world joined in on the Confucius-Aristotle Symposium, which in 2023 was organized in Thessaloniki, Greece.

In July 2024, the Confucius-Aristotle symposium was hosted in both Qufu and Beijing by the UN SDSN (established in 2012 by the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, and the economist and Columbia Professor Jeffrey Sachs), the China Confucius Fondation, and Nishan World Center for Confucian Studies. The symposium was co-organized by China Confucius Research Institute, and it is supported by the Academy of Athens and the Interdisciplinary Centre for Advanced Studies at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
* The Tentative Agenda of July 7-13 can be found here, at Yale Forum (PDF): fore.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/Confucius_Aristotle_Symposium_June-4-2024.pdf (see also below)
* The Program Handbook is located here: https://dikam.auth.gr/wp-content/uploads/sites/173/2024/07/Confucius-%E2%80%93-Aristotle-Symposium-Program-Handbook.pdf

JULY 8-9 2024 IN QUFU. VENUE: Ruxue Conference Hall, China Confucius Research Institute

Qufu, Confucius Institute: Professor Bryan W. van Norden et al. in High-Level Dialogue 1, July 8.
Info at the train station of Qufu
Group Picture at the Confucian-Aristotle Symposium, China Confucius Research Institute. Qufu, July 9 2024.

JULY 10: THE TENTH NISHAN FORUM ON WORLD CIVILIZATIONS, MOUNT NI (30 KM OUTSIDE QUFU)

The Nishan Conference Hall, July 10, at Mount Ni (ca 30 km outside of Qufu city)

On July 10, the global historian of ideas Dag Herbjørnsrud delivered the PowerPoint presentation «Peace of Mind, State of Peace» in Nishan Lecture Hall, at Mount Ni (close to the world’s largest (72 m) Confucius statue), shortly after the main event of the Tenth Nishan Forum on World Civilizations (an Abstract of the talk is below). The topic of the session (5) was «Modern Chinese Civilization and Renewed Traditions«.

Dag Herbjørnsrud delivers his Power Point lecture «Peace of Mind, State of Peace» in Nishan Lecture Hall, July 10 2024. Photo: Laura Guerrero/Malcolm Keating.

A video recording of Herbjørnsrud’s presentation:

Professor Malcolm Keating’s recording of the talk by Herbjørnsrud:

ABSTRACT:

July 10 2024, Qufu: The Tenth Nishan Forum on World Civilizations.
Venue: Nishan Lecture Hall, Hechang Hall (First Floor), Session FIVE, 2:30 – 6 pm
Dag Herbjørnsrud: “Peace of Mind, State of Peace”

Abstract: At the beginning of Book II of The Analects, Confucius says that if one guides “by virtue”, the common people will “reform themselves.” Receiving a question from the official Chi K’ang Tzu about government (Book XII), Confucius answers: “To ‘govern’ (cheng) means to ‘rectify’ (cheng). If you set an example by being correct, who would dare to remain incorrect.”
And: “In administering your government, what need is there for you to kill? Just desire the good for yourself and the common people will be good.”
In the 5th century BCE, Mozi (墨子) argued that the ones governing should promote “impartial care”/“universal love” (jian’ai, 兼). In this way, “states are not attacking one another” (Book 4:1), because “when everyone regards the states of others as he regards his own, who would attack the others’ states?” (4:3).
In the late 17th century, the Ethiopian philosopher Walda Heywat (c. 1627–1700), a student of Zara Yaqob (1600–1693), argued that we should use our rationality to inquire all “truths”. He wrote an Inquiry (Hatata) contending that we ought not follow those who only love their own kind: “We must understand and take seriously that all human beings are created equal.” (Ch. 14) Arguing against the abuse of authority, Walda Heywat insisted that one should not “mistreat those who live under your power” (Ch. 32).
In this talk, I’ll argue that classical philosophy could be a vital way to more understanding, balance & benevolence in the 21st century. Because, after all, a common goal for the world’s people, however far-fetched it might seem in 2024, should still be to seek “Peace of Mind, State of Peace”.

Outside the lecture hall after Session 5: Dag Herbjørnsrud, Malcolm Keating, Jonathan Flowers,

JULY 11 TO JULY 13, BEJING: THE CONFUCIUS-ARISTOTLE SYMPOSIUM MOVED TO BEIJING (SHANGRI-LA):

Question: Dag Herbjørnsrud asks a question to the speaker Afifi Al-Atiki, a Fellow at Oxford University (UK). Photo: Bryan W. van Norden.

Confucius – Aristotle Symposium Tentative Agenda

Monday, July 8

8:30 am – 9:00 am

Words of Welcome

Speakers (2 mins each)

Host: GUO Chengyan, Vice Chairman and General Secretary of China Confucius Foundation

  1. DENG Yunfeng, Deputy Governor of Shandong Provincial People’s Government
  2. Mayor of Jining
  3. Mayor of Athens
  4. ZHANG Zhiqiang, Professor and Director of the Institute of Philosophy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
  5. Phoebe KOUNDOURI, Professor in Economics, Athens University of Economics and Business & Technical University of Denmark and Chair of SDSN Global Climate Hub
  6. YU Xiaoming, Former Party Secretary of the Standing Committee of the Shandong Provincial People’s Congress, Chairman of the China Confucius Foundation

9:00 am – 10:00 am

Keynote Speech: Introduction

Host: WEN Haiming, Vice Director of Nishan Center of World Civilization and Professor of Philosophy at Renmin University

  1. Jeffrey SACHS, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and University Professor at Columbia University.
  2. CHEN Lai, Professor and Dean of Academy of Chinese Learning at Tsinghua University
  3. XUE Lan, Cheung Kong Chair Distinguished Professor and Dean of Schwarzman College at Tsinghua University, Co-Chair of the Leadership Council of UN SDSN

10:00 am – 10:30 am

Coffee Break

10:30 am – 12:00 pm

Qufu Panel ONE.The Contemporary Relevance of Confucianism Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Chair: Bryan W. VAN NORDEN, James Monroe Taylor Chair in Philosophy at Vassar College
    1. Virtue Ethics and Confucianism
  2. Youngsun BACK, Associate Professor in the Department of Confucian Studies and Eastern Philosophy at Sungkyu
    1. Two Conditions of the Confucian Self
  3. Hwa Yeong WANG, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Duke Kunshan University
    1. Confucianism and Feminism
  4. LOY Hui Chieh, Associate Professor of Philosophy, National University of Singapore
    1. Is Virtue Enough?
  5. FANG Xudong, Director of Inter-Civilizations Institute, Chinese Philosophy Professor at East China Normal University
    1. Guiding People by Virtue: Wang Yangming’s Political Theory of Virtue
  6. GONG Qun, Professor at Renmin University of China
    1. TBD

Q&A Section (30 mins)

Host: LI Yong, Associate Dean and Professor at Wuhan University

12:00 pm -1:30 pm

Qufu Panel TWO. The Contemporary Relevance of Aristotelianism and Chinese Philosophy Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Chair: Demetra SFENDONI-MENTZOU, Professor Em. of Philosophy of Science, President of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Aristotle Studies
    1. Aristotle’s Contribution to the History of Human Thought
  2. Mary Evelyn TUCKER, Co-director & Co-founder Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology
    1. Reflections on Ecological Civilization and Confucianism
  3. Bishop Marcelo Sánchez SORONDO, former Chancellor Pontifica Academy of Sciences and Social Sciences
    1. Aristotle’s Metaphysics
  4. CHEN Xia, Research Fellow of Institute of Philosophy at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
    1. Zhuangzi and McDowell on Languages
  5. ZHENG Zemian, Associate Professor at the Department of Philosophy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong
    1. Precursory Trust and Apodictic Trust in Confucianism
  6. TIAN Shufeng, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Sun Yat-sun University
    1. TBD

Q&A Section (30 mins)

Host: WANG Kun, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Sun Yat-sun University (Zhuhai Campus)

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

Lunch

2:30 pm – 4:00 pm

Qufu Panel THREE. Comparative Philosophy Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Chair: Dermot MORAN, Former President of International Federation of Philosophical Societies
    1. TBD
  2. Misha TADD, Director of the Global Laozegetics Research Center and Associate Professor of Philosophy at Nankai University
    1. Shared Hellenic and Chinese Views on Nothingness
  3. Ludwig NAGL, Associate Professor (ret.) at University of Vienna, Austria
    1. Jürgen Habermas on Confucianism, Taoism, and Greek Philosophy
  4. Laura GUERRERO, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at William & Mary
    1. The Value of Comparative Philosophy
  5. Yong WANG, Secretary-general of the Center for Chinese and Greek Civilizations
    1. Promoting Dialogue between Chinese and Greek Civilizations
  6. LIU Zengguang, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Renmin University
    1. TBD

Q&A Section (30 mins)

Host: GAO Shan, Professor of Philosophy at Soochow University

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Confucius Museum Tour and Musical Performance

6:30 pm – 7:30 pm

Special Section: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Challenges Chair: Jeffrey SACHS

Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Judge Mohamed ABDELSALAM, Secretary General of Muslim Council of Elders
    1. Religions and Peacebuilding
  2. CHEN Xinyu, Associate Professor at the Department of Philosophy and Culture, Beijing Administration Institute
    1. Weeping for Parents: Confucian Filial Piety and Catholic Faith
  3. LIU Xu, assistant professor at the Institute of East Asian Studies, Zhejiang Gongshang University
    1. Matteo Ricci’s Cross-Cultural Dialogue
  4. Marzenna Barbara JAKUBCZAK, Professor of Philosophy at Jagiellonian University in Krakow
    1. Sustaining the Mind: Hints from Early Indian Philosophy

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm

Dinner

Tuesday, July 9

9:00 am – 10:30 am

Qufu Panel FIVE. Global Ethics and Governance Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Chair: Stelios VIRVIDAKIS, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, President of Steering Committee of the Center of Greek and Chinese Ancient Civilizations (KELKIP)
    1. The Minimal Core of Global Ethics
  2. Fr. James Dominic ROONEY, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Hong Kong Baptist University
    1. Taming Our Institutions
  3. Carol ROVANE, Violin Family Professor of Philosophy and Chair of Contemporary Civilization at Columbia University
    1. Individual and Group Agency
  4. Douglas BERGER, Professor at Leiden University
    1. The ABCs of Cultivating Our Humanity
  5. LIANG Zhonghe, Director of Institute of Western Classical Philosophy of Sichuan University and University Professor at Sichuan University.
    1. The Role of Shame in the Philosophies of Education of Socrates and Confucius
  6. Jan WESTERHOFF, Professor of Buddhist Philosophy at the University of Oxford
    1. Ethical Implications of Buddhist Metaphysics

Q&A Section (30 mins)

Host: LIU Jing, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Shandong University

10:30 am – 12:00 pm (90 mins) Qufu Panel SIX. Cultural Dialogue Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Chair: LIU Qian, Managing Director of Greater China at The Economist Group
    1. China and the West: Bridges and Perspectives
  2. Katja VOGT (Zoom), Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University
    1. TBD
  3. XIN Yamin, Professor at Zhengzhou University
    1. Mythos’ as a Meta-Concept in Western Culture
  4. Golfo MAGGINI, Professor of Modern and Contemporary Philosophy & Head of The Department of Philosophy at University of Ioannina
    1. Phenomenological Reflections on Cultural Alterity and Intercultural Dialogue
  5. CUI Jianmin, Director and Professor of Center for Promotion of Culture Development at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
  • 全球视野下的中国学研究与世界文明交流对话
  • Lee Yee Cheong, President of The Academy of Engfineering and Technology of the Developing World (AETDEW)
    • Digital Displays in Museums in China on Confucius, Buddha and Laoji and their Impact on Belt and Road Civilizations

Q&A Section (30 mins)

Host: LIU Wei, Professor of Philosophy at Renmin University of China

12:00 pm- 1:00 pm

Lunch

1:00 pm – 2:30 pm

Qufu Panel Seven. Common Values of Humanity Speakers (8 mins each)

  1. Chair: Liévaux PASCAL, Director of the Department for research on Cultural Heritage at French Ministry of Culture, Chair of the Joint Programming Initiative «Cultural Heritage and Global change»
    1. Cultural Heritage: A Modern Challenge
  2. Akeel BILGRAMI, Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University
    1. What Underlies Human Cooperation?
  3. Erminia SCIACCHITANO, Senior Advisor for Multilateral Affairs at the Ministry of Culture of Italy
    1. Culture and Ancient Wisdom for Sustainable Development
  4. Phirom LENG, Professor of Comparative Education at Cambodia University of Science and Technology
    1. Buddhist Concepts of Natural Environment
  5. WANG Ying, Director and Professor of Division of Early Modern Chinese Literary Studies of Institute of Literature at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
    1. 人类文明新形态格局下的中华民族现代文明
  6. Martin Nkafu NKEMNKIA, Prof. Emeritus and President of NCDEIF Nkemnkia Community Development Empowermrnt International Foundation Africa/Europa
    1. African Worldview and Wisdom as Vitalogy

Q&A Section (30 mins)

Host: LI Tao, Associate Professor, University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

3:00 pm – 5:30 pm

Tour: Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu

6:00 – 7:00 pm

Dinner

Wednesday, July 10

9:00 am -12:00 am

Opening Ceremony: Nishan Forum of World Civilization

Keynote Speaker（10 mins）

Jeffrey SACHS, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and University Professor at Columbia University.

12:30 am – 2:30 pm

Lunch

2:30 pm – 6:00 pm

Nishan Forum Parallel Section ONE. Exchanges and Mutual Learning among Civilizations under Global Challenges

Speakers:

  1. Mayfair YANG, Professor at University of California, Santa Barbara
    1. No Nature, No Culture: Chinese Buddhist Vegetarianism, Transmigration, and Kinship.
  2. Antonia TRICHOPOULOU, Member of the Academy of Athens
    1. From Mediterranean And Chinese Diet To A Planetary Diet
  3. Jonathan TANAKA, PhD Candidate at University of California, Berkeley
    1. Topic TBD [possibly logic education?
  4. Zacharias SCOURAS, Professor Emeritus of Biology & Vice President of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Aristotle Studies A.U.Th
    1. Aristotle’s Biological Thinking: A Contemporary View
  5. Riccardo POZZO, Professor of Philosophy, Tor Vergata University of Rome and Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences
    1. TBD
  6. Alexus MCLEOD, Professor of Religious Studies at Indiana
    1. The Huainanzi’s Solution for Global Diversity

Nishan Forum Parallel Section TWO. “Axial Age” Civilizations and Contemporary Society Speakers:

  1. Aaron Dean STALNAKER, Professor of Religious Studies at Indiana University
    1. Cultivating Autonomy with the Early Confucians
  2. Tao JIANG, Professor of Chinese and Buddhist Philosophies and Director of Center for Chinese Studies at Rutgers University
  • Zhuangzi and the Politics of the Personal
  • Tamara ALBERTINI, Director of Islamic Studies and Chair Professor of Philosophy at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa
    • Deep Hospitality and a New Approach to Comparative Philosophy
  • Julianne CHUNG, Associate Professor of Philosophy at York University and Associate Editor of Oxford Studies in Epistemology
    • Creativity and the Zhuangzi
  • Nikolaos PARASKEVOPOULOS, Prof. Emeritus of the Law Faculty at Aristotle Univ. Thessaloniki Greece, Former Minister of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights of Greece
    • Aristotle on Epistemological and Ethical Elements of Justice
  • Eleftheria N. GONIDA, Professor of Educational and Developmental Psychology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
    • Global Education Challenges: Aristotelian Paideia
  • Christina PAPACHRISTOU, Dr. of Philosophy, A.U.Th. Scientific Associate at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Aristotle Studies
    • Aristotelian and Chinese Conceptions of the Heart

Nishan Forum Parallel Section THREE. Chinese Modernization and Western Modernization Speakers:

  1. Chelsea Cathern HARRY, Professor and Assistant Chairperson of Philosophy at Southern Connecticut State University (USA)
    1. TBD
  2. John GRIM, Co-founder and Co-director of Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology
    1. Indigenous Thought and the Modern Dilemma
  3. Luděk SEKYRA, Chairman of The Sekyra Foundation
    1. Topic TBD [possibly about promoting democracy and critical thinking?]
  4. Bryan W. VAN NORDEN, James Monroe Taylor Chair in Philosophy at Vassar College.
    1. Virtue Ethics and Confucianism
  5. Dimitra BALLA, Dr. of Philosophy, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh)
    1. Aristotle on the Biological Basis of Ethics and Politics
  6. Ismail SERAGELDIN, Co-Chair of the Board of Nizami Ganjavi International Center (NGIC), Emeritus Librarian of Alexandria, Former VP of the World Bank
    1. TBD

Nishan Forum Parallel Section FOUR. Inheritance and Innovation of Civilizations in the Process of Modernization

  1. Mary Evelyn TUCKER, Co-director & Co-founder of Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology
    1. Reflections on Ecological Civilization and Confucianism
  2. Jan WESTERHOFF, Professor of Buddhist Philosophy at the University of Oxford
    1. Ethical Implications of Buddhist Metaphysics
  3. Chiara ROBBIANO, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Utrecht University
  • Confucian Frameworks and Embodied Practices in Education
  • Anastasia GIANNAKIDOU, Professor of Linguistics and Director of the Center for Hellenic Studies at the University of Chicago
    • Topic TBD [possibly linguistics?]
  • Siseko KUMALO, Lecturer of Philosophy at the University of Fort Hare
    • Using the Black Archive in Contemporary Democratic Process
  • Nicholaos JONES, Professor of Philosophy at The University of Alabama in Huntsville
    • Finding the Way and Returning Home
  • Ann A PANG-WHITE, Director of Asian Studies and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Scranton
    • Decolonizing Confucian Feminism in a Transcultural Context

Nishan Forum Parallel Section FIVE. The Modern Civilization of the Chinese Nation with Renewed Traditions

  1. HU Jing, Lecturer at University of Pennsylvania
    1. Hu Shih on Universal Ethic
  2. Malcolm KEATING, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Smith College
    1. The Virtues of Debate
  3. Achilles TSALTAS, President of the Democracy & Culture Foundation
    1. Topic TBD [possibly about promoting democracy?]
  4. Dag HERBJØRNSRUD, author and a global historian of ideas at Center for Global & Comparative History of Ideas (SGOKI)
    1. Peace of Mind, State of Peace
  5. May SIM, Professor of Philosophy & Director of Asian Studies Program at the College of the Holy Cross
    1. Resources from Aristotle and Early Confucians for Human Rights
  6. Jonathan FLOWERS, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at California State University, Northridge
    1. Reconsidering Confucian Social Media

Nishan Forum Parallel Section SIX. Artificial Intelligence and Human Civilizations

  1. Yannis IOANNIDIS，Professor of Informatics & Telecom at Univ of Athens and Co- Chair of UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network Global Climate Hub
    1. ABCD Technologies: AI, Blockchain, Computation, Data
  2. L. K. Gustin LAW, Harper-Schmidt Fellow in the Society of Fellow and Collegiate Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago
    1. Topic TBD

Thursday, July 11

10:00 am – 11:30 am

Opening Ceremony Host: WANG Hui Speakers (5 mins each)

  1. President of Tsinghua University
  2. Jeffery SACHS, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network
  3. MENG Liang, General Secretary of The Mencius Foundation

12:00 pm—1:30 pm

Lunch

2:00 pm—4:00 pm

Beijing Panel ONE. Civilization in History: Principle, Transfiguration and Rebirth

The Book of Changes said, “The dragon appears in the field, all under heaven begins to be adorned and brightened.” The generation and maintenance of civilization had elevated human existence from earth to heaven and from individuality to all the people under heaven. However, as people gradually moved away from the founding moment of civilization, the core principles of civilization often became dim; they no longer had the self-evidence that could be shared by elites and ordinary people; the improvement of the physical quality of life and the disorderly growth of expert knowledge were not helpful in solving the numerous divisions in political and social attitudes and opinions; the institutions, concepts, and mentality that once supported the formation and maintenance of civilization gradually became incomprehensible. In the evolution of history, it is often through the reaffirmation of the original principles of civilization that reforms have been made, reconstructing institutions and learning to promote the rebirth of civilization. How can we put forward a constructive agenda for thinking about the clash or cooperation of civilizations through the investigation of these historical processes?

Chair: Carol ROVANE, Violin Family Professor of Philosophy and Chair of Contemporary Civilization at Columbia University

Speakers (15 mins each)

  1. ZHANG Zhiqiang, Director and Professor of Institute of Philosophy at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
    1. 通古今以究天⼈:中国⽂明的历史超越性问题
  2. Lorenzo MARSILI, Philosopher and Director of the Berggruen Institute Europe
    1. Towards a New Universalism
  3. Dominic SACHSENMAIER, Chair Professor at Göttingen University, Co-Founder of Joint Center for Advanced Studies
    1. Civilization and Globality: Comparing Visions during the 1920s and Today
  4. DING Yun
    1. TBD
  5. Dato Afifi AL-AKITI, Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies at the University of Oxford
    1. Building Bridges of Islam between Aristotle and Confucius

4:00 pm—4:30 pm

Coffee Break

4:30 pm—6:30 pm

Beijing Panel TWO. Public Dimensions in Polity: Governance, Wealth and Ethnic Groups

Since the World War II, the spread of the theory and practice of the nation-state on a global scale has changed the face of world politics, economy, and ethnic relations, but it has also been infiltrated, questioned, and challenged by these cross-border forces.

Nowadays, if the purpose of establishing a nation-state is no longer evident, how do we re-describe the division between the inside and the outside in the world order? In Of the Social Contract, Rousseau mentioned that, “no more peoples are being formed.” When we look back to the ages when polities were being formed, we find that nation-state in the modern sense did not exist yet. By observing the polities in Greece, Rome, Medieval Europe, Zhou Dynasty, Qin and Han Dynasties, we see the development of ruling activities, the circulation of wealth, and the shifting of ethnic boundaries. These polities generated different movements of centralization and decentralization, and the public dimension of the polities was also formed in this process, providing ideological and institutional preconditions for later historical development. What lessons can these inquiries provide for us to think about the future of modern nations, states, and world order?

Chair: Maria PROTOPAPAS-MARNELI, Emeritus Researcher of Ancient Philosophy at Academy of Athens

Speakers (15 mins each)

  1. Peter Fibiger BANG, Professor of Roman History at University of Copenhagen
    1. Empire in World History
  2. WU Fei, Professor and Director of Ritual Research Center at Peking University
    1. TBD
  3. Scott COOK, Tan Chin Tuan Professor of Chinese Studies and Head of Studies for History of Chinese Studies and Yale-NUS College at National University of Singapore
    1. Righteous Warfare in Ancient Chinese Thought
  4. Daniele ARCHIBUGI, Professor of Italian National Research Council and Birkbeck at University of London
    1. Cosmopolitan Democracy in a Divided World
  5. Agnieszka Karolina ROSTALSKA, FWO Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Ghent University
    1. Political Authority and Social Justice: Philosophical Insights from South Asia

7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Dinner Banquet

Welcome Remarks: PENG Gang, Vice President of Tsinghua University

Friday, July 12

8:00 am—10:00 am

Beijing Panel THREE. Sustaining the Mind: From Embodied Skill to AI Platform

Plato’s inquiry into the cognitive process in “Meno’s Paradox” resonated in twentieth- century discussions regarding embodied skills. The “tacit knowing,” eluding simple articulation, prompted reflections on the interplay of mind and body, being and tools, and the socialization of technology. The recent development of artificial intelligence has no doubt intensified such reflections. As complex coding systems lead to an increasing gap between the comprehensible behavior of a device and its actual computational process, questions arise regarding the “embodied” aspect of these intelligent black boxes. The “body” here not only involves the biomimetic and physical aspects of a terminal device, but also encompasses the massive computational power and social resources used by AI platforms. What kind of individual and communal form does this sustaining infrastructure imply, and what political, economic, and legal-ethical challenges does it face in reality?

Can the rich discussions concerning mind and technique in classical Western and Chinese thought serve as inspiration for resolving these issues?

Chair: Herta NAGL-DOCEKAL, Professor of Philosophy at University of Vienna Speakers (15 mins each)

  1. DUAN Weiwen,
    1. TBD
  2. ZHAO Tingyang, Professor of Institute of Philosophy at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
    1. ⼈⼯智能会成为经验主义者还是理性主义者？
  3. George ZHENG, Distinguished Professor of Public Law at Shanghai Jiao Tong

University

  • Human Faces of Artificial Intelligence
  • ZENG Yi
    • TBD
  • CHHEM Rethy Kieth, Professor at CamTech University, member of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
    • Buddhism-Inspired AI

10:00 pm—10:30 pm

Coffee Break

10:30 am – 12:30 pm

Beijing Panel FOUR. Indra’s Net: Ecology as a Methodology

The Avatamsaka Sutra weaves an Indra’s net where each jewel is reflected in other jewels; Zhuangzi depicts a natural world where all the myriad things are ontologically equal. Observing things on their own terms, such Eastern wisdom beyond anthropocentrism align remarkably with the recent ecological turn in the humanities. In this context, ecology is not merely concerned with contemporary environmental crisis or climate change; rather, it demonstrates a methodological significance due to its material- oriented ontology, and an interconnected, encompassing view of analysis. How does the ecological approach to thinking bring new insights into human existence, the interrelation of the myriad things, and philosophical inquiries into identity and difference? How does an ecology-based political and ethical order contribute to addressing challenges in real life, and how is it manifested in the environmental practices of China and other third- world countries? Drawing inspiration from ecological ideas in Eastern intellectual and religious traditions, this panel aims to envision a shared ecological prospect for human beings and the myriad things.

Chair: Krishna PATHAK, Professor of Philosophy at Delhi University Speakers (15 mins each)

  1. Mayfair YANG, Professor at University of California, Santa Barbara
    1. No Nature, No Culture: Chinese Buddhist Vegetarianism, Transmigration, and Kinship
  2. Zhan Ru
    1. TBD
  3. Sothy KHIENG, Associate Professor at CamTech University,
    1. Cambodia Buddhist Economics, Sustainability, and Wisdom
  4. Chelsea Cathern HARRY, Professor and Assistant Chairperson of Philosophy at Southern Connecticut State University (USA)
    1. TBD
  5. Elena LAPPA, Dr. of Philosophy, A.U.Th.
    1. Aristotle’s Conception of Nature and Contemporary Environmental Problems

12:30 pm—1:30 pm

Lunch

2:00 pm – 3:30 pm

Beijing Panel FIVE. Historical and Philosophical Perspectives and Contemporary Practices on the Commons

The world today is facing an enormous crisis of the commons, ranging from the shrinking of local and regional commons to the planetary problems of ecological diversity, climate warming, and marine pollution. The recent rise of concepts such as the Anthropocene and Capitalocene has brought the prospect of the tragedy of the commons to the forefront of public attention. Yet our ability to think and strategize is far from being adequate. The current global policy response to the climate crisis is to control carbon emissions through carbon trading, which not only makes it difficult to control carbon emissions, but also deepens inequalities between the global North and South. Can trading build a more shared destiny of humanity? Or does the logic embedded in carbon trading reveal an absence? From the Enclosure Movement in England in the sixteenth century, to the colonization of the world by the core capitalist countries in the West, to the revolutions and worldwide anti-colonial movements of the twentieth century, the process of modernity has involved dramatic transformations in the categories of gong (public) and si (private) as well as in the relationship between gong and si. While Harding’s lecture in 1968 brought the issue of the “tragedy of the commons” to the public, and Elinor Ostrom’s work in 1990 presented the possibilities of commons management, today’s grave challenges require us to remobilize historical resources and practical experiences from all over the world to further expand our strategic thinking and policy recommendations about the “commons.”

Chair: Erminia SCIACCHITANO Speakers (15 mins each)

  1. WANG Yahua, Professor & Associate Dean of School of Public Policy and Management at Tsinghua University
    1. Dialogue between Eastern and Western Wisdom in Governing the Commons
  2. Mansee Bal BHARGAVA, Entrepreneur, Researcher, Educator, Speaker, Mentor
    1. Future water crises and management learning from the historical and contemporary philosophies
  3. YE Jingzhong
    1. TBD
  4. LI Fangchun
    1. TBD

3:30 pm – 4:00 pm

Break

4:00 pm -5:30 pm

Round Table

This roundtable presents an opportunity to discuss and expand upon the previous five sessions. The discussion could be centered around the topic of whether we need new universals; how we understand the relationship between universality and publicness or commonality (as pertaining to a community with a shared destiny)? Do issues of ecology and the commons enter into the realm of communality, or do they exist only as objects that communities act upon? How do our discussions of universality or communality relate to questions about inequality and imperialism?

Speakers:

  1. WANG Hui, Cheung Kong Chair Distinguished Professor and Director of the Tsinghua Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities and Social Sciences at Tsinghua University
  2. Jeffrey SACHS, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and University Professor at Columbia University.
  3. Vania VIRGILI, interim Director General of the European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science and Technological Research Director at the Institute for Heritage Science of the National Research Council of Italy
  4. Phoebe KOUNDOURI, Professor in Economics, Athens University of Economics and Business & Technical University of Denmark, Director SDU ATHENA Information Technologies Research Center, Chair SDSN Global Climate Hub, President European AERE
  5. Sam Crane, Professor at Williams College

5:30 pm – 7:00 pm

Dinner

7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Holographic Event: Aristotle – Mencius Dialogue Speakers:

  1. Jeffrey SACHS, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and University Professor at Columbia University.
  2. Jeffrey MENG, Chairman of the Mencius Foundation, the 79th descendant generation of Mencius

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