ISUD 2026 Virtual Colloquium:
Philosophical Hope in Dark Times: Dialogue, Identity, and the Future of Multiplicity
Session 1, April 22, 10:00 AM EDT (UTC−4)
Theme: Re-enchanting a Wounded World — Imagination, Ecology, and the Human in the Anthropocene.
(moderator: PUCP, Perú)
How do we metabolize ecological trauma and reimagine the human within a fragile, interdependent world? What philosophical, artistic, or Indigenous frameworks can help us to think from within crisis, and not merely about it?
1) Ikechukwu Anthony Kanu, PhD, Department of Philosophy, Veritas University, Abuja, Nigeria:
“Colonialism and the Legacy of Ecological Trauma: The Promise of Healing through the Igbo Conservation Strategy”
2) Sandeep Amar Guppta, Professional Speakers Association of India:
“From Thought to Action: The S.H.E. Framework for Re-enchanting a Wounded World”
Wednesday, May 27, 10:00 AM EDT (UTC−4)
Session 2 Theme: Cultural Anxiety — Identity, Multiplicity, and the Return of Political Extremes.
(moderator: PUCP, Perú)
How can we understand the contemporary resurgence of nationalism, fundamentalisms, and identity-based politics in a world that is increasingly plural, mobile, and entangled? How might philosophy and art respond to the tension between the desire for coherence and the demands of multiplicity?
1) Krzysztof Przybyszewski, Adam Mickiewicz University (UAM), Poznań, Poland:
“The Renaissance of Nationalisms: Between Globalization and Local Fear”
2) Marie Pauline Eboh, Philosophy Department, Faculty of Humanities, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria:
“Gynist Philosophy Primed for Navigation of Hope in Dark Times”
Wednesday, June 24, 10:00 AM EDT (UTC−4)
Session 3 Theme: Digital Power and Epistemic Fragility — Control, Belief, and Public Reason in the Age of the Algorithm.
(moderator: UCAB, Venezuela)
In an era of algorithmic governance, surveillance architectures, and digital saturation, the conditions of public reasoning and political agency are being transformed. How does digital mediation reshape belief, commitment, and collective judgment? If new forms of soft totalitarianism operate through visibility, attention, and datafication, what resources remain for epistemic humility, collaborative deliberation, and democratic repair? This session explores both the structures of digital control and the practices that might counteract them.
1) Krzysztof Przybyszewski, Adam Mickiewicz University (UAM), Poznań, Poland:
“Soft Totalitarianism: From the Panopticon to the Synopticon”
2) Don Faust, Professor Emeritus, Northern Michigan University, USA
“Tools for Building Futures with Greater Humility and Respect, and More Efficacious Collaborations”
Wednesday, July 29, 10:00 AM EDT (UTC−4)
(moderator: UCAB, Venezuela)
Session 4 Theme: After the Rupture — Futures, Repair, and the Possibility of Hope.
In this closing session, we ask what kind of human stance becomes possible once crisis has been acknowledged. If our age is marked by fragmentation, alienation, and algorithmic acceleration, what resources remain for rebuilding ethical orientation and meaningful community? Moving beyond diagnosis, this session turns toward responsibility, examining how leadership, care, dialogue, and philosophical practice can cultivate forms of action that are both sustainable and humane.
1) Judith Puncochar, PhD Professor Emerita, Northern Michigan University, Michigan, USA:
“A Leadership Problem-Solving Model to Generate Ethical, Sustainable Actions”
2) Nmesoma Michael Okeke, Department of Philosophy, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria:
“The Human Condition and the Navigation of Hope in Dark Times”
*All sessions will last 90 minutes (20-25 minutes per presenter and approx 45 minutes discussion with the audience).
To Attend
Please send your expression of interest to attend our Virtual Colloquium to Adzijn@outlook.com, using the subject line: VIRTUAL COLLOQUIUM/Attendance.
We look forward to coming together for an inspiring series of conversations.
Warm regards,
The ISUD 2026 Virtual Colloquium Organizing Committee
Victor Krebs – vjk5555@gmail.com
Lorena Rojas Rarma – diotima29@gmail.com
Maria Di Muro Pellegrino - mdimuro@ucab.edu.ve
Group Book Review Project 2026
Title: Radical Universalism: Beyond Identity
Author: Omri Boehm
Publisher Link: Penguin Random House (external link)
All members and friends of ISUD are invited to read and review this 2025 publication of Omri Boehm, teacher at the Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts of the New School for Social Research (New York City, USA). An open forum to discuss Boehm's book, hosted by ISUD, will be scheduled for a future date.
