One of the aims of philosophy since Antiquity has been to offer conceptual tools and perspectives for living a good life. What are the constituents of meaningful and happy human existence? Clearly, there is no consensus on what ultimately constitutes happiness and a good life, but what matters is that philosophers have articulated the question and sustained discussion around it.
The widely used notion of polycrisis, for instance, offers a way to grasp living conditions in a world in which diverse, systemic, and escalating crises are interconnected and contribute to a weakening of resilience. Philosophically, however, a crisis does not refer only to negative situations; it also enables reflection on meaningfulness in moments when things are on the verge of change. From this perspective, striving for strengthened sustainability across nearly all areas of human practice and life can itself be understood as a crisis—one that touches human existence as a whole: intellectual, emotional, social, and beyond. Can philosophical approaches support a meaningful and, at least to some extent, good human life under conditions of uncertainty? And if so, in what ways?
The roundtable session organized by the International Institute of Applied Aesthetics brings together philosophers with different emphases and areas of expertise to discuss the possibilities of living a meaningful life in an uncertain world. The speakers include Professor of Aesthetics Arto Haapala (University of Helsinki), postdoctoral researcher Tuija Kasa (University of Helsinki), doctoral researcher in philosophy Laura Puumala (University of Turku), and University Lecturer in Practical Philosophy Simo Kyllönen (University of Helsinki). The discussion will be moderated by doctoral researcher Noora-Helena Korpelainen (University of Helsinki).
The roundtable will be held in the Basement Studio at Fellmannia.