Current environmental and ethical challenges to the preservation and governance of natural resources have generated numerous directions of research, among which: sustainability studies, conservation practices and community-based conservation, socioecological systems, and environmental justice. Despite controversies in the literature about the best suited approach to environmental sciences and ethics – biocentrism, anthropocentrism or ecocentrism – the relation between nature and culture, mediated by our shared values, continues to be the bedrock of research.

The concept of biodiversity, “coined at the intersection of science, applied science, and politics” (Maclaurin and Sterelny 2013, 6) carries within itself the idea of interconnectedness of all living things. Thus, it implies axiological categories guiding practical reasoning: what are the intrinsic and instrumental values we build into our understanding of biodiversity? Can we think of biodiversity itself as having intrinsic value? (Baard 2022) What frameworks would help addressing the pervasive and evolving relations between nature and culture? What challenges do the discourses born in the laboratory of social sciences raise for the scientific work on biodiversity? In addition to the role of communities in establishing practices that reflect respect and care for nature, or the intergenerational transmission of knowledge about the living world, the concept of heritage has also been used to bring together nature and culture and emphasize the dynamics between them. Landscape is such an example of “holistic system in which nature and culture co-evolve” (Wu 2010, 1149), which can also be understood in the light of “biocultural diversity”, with biological, cultural and linguistic dimensions “interrelated within a complex socio-ecological adaptive system.” (Maffi 2005, 602). Considering the in-built relational dimension of biodiversity, the main objective of this conference is to provide a platform for bringing together philosophical perspectives and scientific approaches to concepts and narratives, fostering dialogues between various disciplines.

We invite abstracts (300 words) for 20-minute presentations addressing theoretically- and empirically-oriented topics that enrich our understanding of biodiversity and of the various narratives about it, with a focus on the inter-relation between nature and cultural values. The event is available both online and in-person.

Possible topics include (but are not limited to):

• Theoretical frameworks, epistemological shifts and conceptual challenges to understanding biodiversity; human-nature relations; the role of scientific models in ecosystem conservation;
• Conservation and management practices; governance of environmental resources;
• Integrating approaches to biological diversity and sustainability;
• Social-ecological systems; the role of communities in managing biodiversity;
• Contemporary debates on biodiversity in environmental ethics;
• Values, beliefs and cosmologies of communities in preserving biodiversity; knowledge, skills and practices concerning nature;
• Nature and experience; phenomenological perspectives on biodiversity;
• Conceptualizing biodiversity in Eastern and Western philosophies of nature;
• The interrelation between biodiversity and cultural diversity; cultural landscapes; environmental aesthetics; biodiversity and cultural diversity in the context of sustainable heritage management;
• The role of communities in maintaining biodiversity; the intergenerational transmission of environmental values; environmental education; biodiversity and democracy.

References:

Baard, Patrik. 2022.Ethics in Biodiversity Conservation. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.

Maclaurin, James and Sterelny, Kim. 2013. What Is Biodiversity? The University of Chicago Press.

Maffi, Luisa. 2005. “Linguistic, Cultural and Biological Diversity”. Annual Review of Anthropology. 29:599-617.

Wu, Jianguo. 2010. “Landscape of culture and culture of landscape: does landscape ecology need culture?” Landscape Ecology (2010) 25:1147–1150

300-word abstracts should be sent to biodiversityconference25@gmail.com by 30 April 2025. Please enclose a very short bio (max. 100 words) indicating your name, institutional affiliation and research interests in a separate document. Notifications of acceptance will be sent by 20 May 2025.

Organizers: Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest, UNESCO Chair in Interculturality, Good Governance and Sustainable Development, Professor Constantin Stoenescu, Dr. Ileana Dascălu, Dr. Lilian Ciachir.

Conference format: on-site/hybrid, 20-minute presentations followed by 10 minutes of Q&A.

Conference venue: Faculty of Philosophy, 204, Splaiul Independenţei, 6^th district, Bucharest.

Participation fee: There is no participation fee. Certificates of participation can be issued on request after the conference concludes.

Language of the presentations: English.