WELCOME MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF FISP

It gives me great pleasure to extend this invitation, on behalf of the International Federation of Philosophical Societies, FISP, to all lovers of philosophy to participate in the 23rd World Congress of Philosophy, which is to be held from August 4-10, 2013 in Athens. This will be the first World Congress to take place in Greece, the cradle of Western philosophy. And it promises to be especially memorable, in the already long history of these quinquennial events, for many reasons.

Concerning the glories that are (and not only were) Greece, our hosts can write more knowledgeably and eloquently than I. And it is certainly true that to have the opportunity to enjoy these glories, whether it be for the first time or once again, is an extremely strong incentive to attend this World Congress. But there are other incentives as well. Quite a few very distinguished philosophers – a group that no doubt includes a number of you who are reading these words – have already agreed to make contributions in various forms: in plenary sessions, symposia, and endowed lectures, a full listing of all of which is to be found in this circular; and in invited sessions (some of which will be posted on the World Congress website), member society sessions, round tables, and sessions of sections organized around individual submissions. Indeed, the list of names of chairs and co-chairs of these sections, which is also to be found on the pages of this circular, is itself, as you will see, extremely distinguished. That the range of offerings in all of these various configurations will be highly diverse is perhaps best reflected in the fact that there will be 75 sections, the largest number ever, from which those submitting papers will be asked to choose the one that seems most appropriate for them.

Beyond the benefits of listening to presentations by many of the world’s most astute thinkers, both well known and less widely known, that the World Congress affords to all participants lie the subtler, less easily definable, but for some more profound benefits of social interaction with colleagues from around the world at a level and on a scale that no other gathering can match. Past World Congresses of Philosophy have proved to be milestone events for many of those who have attended, as I have heard it said so often, and as has been my own experience; it is inconceivable that our 2013 event will be any less remarkable in this respect.

Finally, there is the contribution that the forthcoming World Congress promises to make to the flawed, incomplete, but nevertheless real sense of a world philosophical community, which has increasingly, as shown by statistics in recent decades recording participants’ countries of origin, become genuinely and not just nominally global. This community, members of which are capable of appreciating other approaches to philosophy while not abandoning their preferences for their own approaches, has, it seems to me, both an intrinsic and an instrumental value. Its intrinsic value has to do with philosophers’ unique, shared dedication to the life of the mind, which means striving to understand our world in all of its aspects. But there are today many powerful forces that disdain any such dedication, and that work to diminish or dismiss the importance of philosophy in institutions and in public and private life; the very existence of our philosophical community, however partial and imperfect it may be, can serve as an important practical barrier to the triumph of such forces.

So, whatever reasons you may find strongest for coming to Athens in early August 2013 and profiting from the hard, greatly appreciated, organizational work of our Greek hosts, I urge you to act on those reasons and to come to what could be the grandest of World Congresses of Philosophy yet held – one worthy of a still-new century and millennium that have begun, it is true, under less than ideal conditions, but that remain full of the promise, which it is to be hoped will be reflected in this gathering, of a more enlightened world of the future

William Leon McBride

PRESIDENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION

OF PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETIES