29. October 2007 16:23
Exploring Common Values for the Third Millenium
Copyrights - Utrecht University, Ethics Institute
From 31 October to 4 November, leading scientists from 27 nations will meet in Vadstena, Sweden to discuss concepts of human dignity and its importance for current moral and political dialogues. The conference “Pathways of Human Dignity: From Cultural Traditions to a New Paradigm” is part of the European Science Foundation’s (ESF) Research Conference Series in partnership with Linkoeping University (LiU). The event will mark the final conference of a series of workshops on Human Dignity that was organized by the ESF together with the International Union of Academies, UNESCO and other partners.
Human Dignity
The Cradle of Human Rights Human Dignity is a notion of the highest moral, legal, political and philosophical importance. While the concept of Human Rights has been widely accepted since the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights nearly sixty years ago, the idea of Human Dignity has much older roots. The aim of the ESF-LiU Conference "Pathways of Human Dignity: From Cultural Traditions to a New Paradigm" is to identify further research needs while crossing disciplinary boundaries: to consider the issues of human dignity in light of religious and philosophical traditions, scientific ethics, the history of Human Rights; sociological findings, and international justice.
Common Values in a Multicultural World
The foundations, forms and implications of the concept of Human Dignity are still in need of a thorough comparative study across disciplines and civilizations. Much needs to be understood about its historical roots, its role in the history of different religions and cultural traditions, and its internal relationship to human rights. Today, the problem is particularly acute within the various religious traditions and in the ongoing dialogue between them. Moreover, within current debates over international justice and bioethics, both the precise meaning and the implications of human dignity are deeply controversial.
Long-term Multidisciplinary Research into a New Humanism for the Third Millenium
“Pathways to Human Dignity” is the final conference in a cycle of meetings that were launched jointly on the eve of UNESCO's 60th anniversary by the European Science Foundation, the International Union of Academies, the International Social Science Council, the International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies, the Institute for Catalan Studies, the Netherlands Research School for Practical Philosophy and UNESCO. It forms the bases for a broad multidisciplinary international research project concerning the many facets of human dignity. This project is not only concerned with our present knowledge about the concept of human dignity, in its natural, historical and cultural dimensions, but will also suggest new paths for research.
For further information, please contact:
- Marcus Düwell, Conference Chair, Professor of Philosophical Ethics at Utrecht University (M.Duwell[at]uu.nl)
- Guy Stroumsa, Conference Vice-Chair, Martin Buber Professor of Comparative Religion, Hebrew University Jerusalem (stroumsa@huji.ac.il)
Media contact:
- Ms. Benita LippsE-Mail
