The 11th Beyond Humanism Conference

Critical Posthumanism and Transhumanism

the posthuman paradigm shift

www.beyondhumanism.org
www.beyondhumanism2018.org

From the 9th until the 12th of July 2019
Catholic University of Lille, France
Faculty of Arts and Humanities
ETHICS EA-7446

CALL FOR PAPERS

Argument

This 11th Beyond Humanism Conference aims to intensify the debates between transhumanists and posthumanists on the impact of emerging technologies on our lifeworld. Transhumanism and posthumanism have many different meanings in the literature depending on the context, and the cultural and disciplinary background of the researchers who uses them. This diversity is both a richness and a source of misunderstanding.

Even though there are a great variety of different conceptions of transhumanism and posthumanism, what all of them have in common is an active engagement with the impact of emerging technologies on our lifeworld, and a move away from a traditional humanist understandings of human beings. This is what the posthuman paradigm shift stands for. The 11th Beyond Humanism Conference aims to map the differences between transhumanism(s) and posthumanism(s), as well as their alternatives, but it also tries to investigate possibilities of convergent approaches. These endeavours might lead to the emergence of a new way of thinking. What would a critical transhumanism or a critical posthumanism look like? By being confronted with our current existential risks and our awareness of living in the anthropocene, we need to be open for new ways of thinking in order to prepare ourselves for successfully dealing with the challenges humanity is facing today. Is a non-anthropocentric and post-humanist transhumanism conceivable? What would be the proposal and concrete content of such a synthesis? Are transhumanism and posthumanism compatible with one another? These questions also call for the investigation of alternative ways of thinking which go beyond the limits of transhumanism and posthumanism, such as metahumanism, hyperhumanism, off-centred humanism… The proliferation of such alternatives to transhumanism and posthumanism must also be questioned here. Are radically different options possible, which would not focus on convergences between transhumanism and critical posthumanism but which could provide us with a different horizon within which we could consider our current condition?

Maybe, the realm of art is needed for providing us with an initial stimulus for breaking out of the framework within which we are thinking. Consequently, artists of all kinds and on all media are strongly encouraged to get in contact with us, so that their works can also be considered for inclusion in this event.

In addition to the need to clarify ongoing debates and the evolution of contemporary trends in our reflections on the future of humanity and our place in nature, the 11th BHC will also investigate how contemporary concerns are problematized within transhumanism, posthumanism, and their alternatives. These topics of interest give rise to a great plurality of possible proposals. The 11th BHC will provide a unique opportunity for debates, aesthetic experiences, playful interventions and more. We are open to receiving your suggestions which will provide all of us with alternative ways for thinking about and experiencing the world we live in. We are very much looking forward to getting together with you in the beautiful city of Lille.

Topics

Theoretical/fundamental approaches:

Post-, hyper-, trans-…humanism(s)
Post- (gender, colonial, queer, etc.) studies and trans-, post-humanisms
Post-truth and trans-, post-humanism
Cultures of trans-, post-human acceleration or deceleration
Future, Foresight, and trans-, post-humanism
Theology, religions, and trans-, post-humanism
Religious contexts of trans-, post-humanism
Non-human cultures and communities (plants, animals, robots, things, AI)
Sociology of the trans-, post-humanist movement
Economy, work and trans-, post-humanism
Philosophy, ethics and trans-, post-humanism
Ethics of robotics and AI
Ecologies of the Anthropocene
Disabilities studies and trans-, post-humanism
Contemporary imaginations and trans-, post-humanism
Criticisms of trans-, post-humanism
Feminism and trans-, post-humanism
Technophilia, technophobia, techne crisis?
Philosophy of technology and trans-, post-humanism
Science and trans-, post-humanism
Economy and trans- post-humanism
Defence and trans-, post-humanism
Personal identity and trans-, post-humanism
Democracy and trans-, post-humanism
Science fiction literature, Cinema, TV series, video games and trans-, post-humanism
New alterities: robot, cyborg, prostheses, etc.

Applied approaches / Analysis of practices:

Education, new technologies and intelligence(s)
Automation, langage and cultural innovation
New generation of prostheses, hybridization, and subjectification
Bioart, AI art and robotic art
Interactions between human agents and artificial agents
Anthropotechnical practices and enhancement technologies
Defence, robotics and the enhanced soldier
Ethics and automated vehicles
Automated objects ethics, design, and policies
Digital health, therapeutic education, and ethics of care
Digital revolution, right to privacy, and security
Neuromarketing, freedom, and ethics of attention
Education and new technologies
A Pedagogical Culture of Posthuman Studies

Abstract Proposals

We invite English abstracts up to 500 words, to be sent in MS Word and PDF format to: posthuman.conference@gmail.com

Files should be named and submitted in the following manner:
Submission: First Name Last name. docx (or .doc) / .pdf
Example: “Submission: MaryAndy.docx”

Deadlines

Abstracts should be received by the 31st of March 2019.

Acceptance notifications will be sent out by the 30th of April 2019.

All those accepted will receive information on the venue(s), local attractions, accommodations, restaurants, and planned receptions and events for participants.

Presentations should be no longer than 20 minutes. Each presenter will be given 10 additional minutes for questions and discussions with the audience, for a total of 30 minutes.

Panel proposals may be also submitted along with a maximum number of 6 speakers selectioned by the panel proponent. Panel proposal submissions implies a panel abstract of 500 words, as well as the individual 500 words abstracts of the speakers selectioned by the panel proponent.

Organising Committee

Aliocha Wald Lasowski, Catholic University of Lille, France
Francesca Ferrando, NYU, New York, USA
Sangkyu Shin, Ewha Woman’s University, Seoul, South Corea
Evi Sampanikou, University of the Aegean, Greece
Stefan Lorenz Sorgner, John Cabot University, Rome, Italy
Alberto Romele, Catholic University ouf Lille, France
Benjamin Bourcier, Catholic University if Lille, France
Halima Mecheri, Catholic University if Lille, France
Jaime del Val, Reverso-Metabody, Madrid, Spain
David Doat, Catholic University of Lille, France