Engaging the Contemporary 2020 is the seventh edition of a series of annual international conferences organized by the Department of Philosophy at the University of Malta, with the aim of promoting an interdisciplinary approach to a variety of current philosophical debates. This year’s theme - Confronting Ethics - seeks to examine and bring into discussion recent engagements with the history of ethics as well as present-day ethical theories and practices as confronted by contemporary philosophers. The aim of the conference is to bring together various philosophical traditions into a conversation that furthers our understanding of the ethical perplexities that beset contemporary times.

Accounts of human beings as essentially ethical have shaped philosophy through the different ages, from the early Greek philosophers up till contemporary times, expressed in the diverse, at times clashing, approaches and theories. The long shadow of the Modern shift towards the subject brought with it a new understanding of ethical norms and practices, which led to new theories and languages on how to articulate our encounter with the world and the other. More recently, postmodernity brought with it the rise of radical philosophical, sociological and psychological movements that continually challenge the way we understand and experience the human person embedded within a more pluralistic social context, while struggling with an ethical responsibility towards the environment, the human body, as well as the ethical implications of technology and political discourse.

We envision the conference papers to be diversified in their use of a variety of ethical theories, exploring their applications and implications in the world in which we live. Time and time again, ethics, as a vital branch of philosophy, has been imperative in challenging and shifting disciplinary margins, by investigating and addressing pressing issues in our contemporary context. We seek papers from authors working within and beyond academic philosophy, and particularly welcome contributions from intersectional perspectives.

We invite contributions on, but not limited, to the following themes: Contemporary Engagements with the History of Ethics; Contemporary Ethical Theories and Languages; Contemporary Applied Ethical Issues.

The full CfP can be found here: www.um.edu.mt/events/etc2020/callforpapers