Motivation
How do we know what the right thing to do is under uncertainty? More specifically, in the quest to innovate for societal goals such as sustainability, or emancipation, how do we know we are not just providing another technofix?
Over the past years, an unlikely group of scholars have gathered around these questions and variations thereof, in the context of biology, its intersection with technology, with promises of sustainability.
- How can we imagine sustainable futures with technologies when they might disrupt essential parts of our lives, and have unforeseen effects? And who gets to imagine sustainable futures?
- What can we learn from interdisciplinary collaborations about the direction of research and the formulation of ethical and philosophical frameworks?
- How are advances in ethics and philosophy help us conceptualize a good life, if not the good life?
This symposium critically examines new directions for the ethics of technology, with a focus on biology and technology.
This event is sponsored by Zoë Robaey’s VENI grant on Virtues for Innovation in Practice under project number VI.Veni.191F.010
Programme
The symposium welcomes a range of invited speakers on various topics, with three keynote speakers.
Keynote speakers
On Thursday November 20th, we welcome Maria Astolfi from the Keasling Lab at Berkeley University to tell us about her work at the intersection of synthetic biology and indigenous traditional knowledge. On Friday November 21st, the keynote speakers will take us on explorations about the biological world around us and the biological world inside us. We welcome Dr. Abigail Nieves, will present her work on the microbiome and race, and how technology and biology bring us to question our very understanding of the self, and health. We are then joined by Prof. Fern Wickson, online, for an intimate presentation and reflection on the recent IPBES report.
The keynote presentations will invite participants to reflect on the inner and outer forces of transformative change under uncertainty, through our relation with biology and technology.
Invited speakers
Coming soon
Symposium participants / application
People from all backgrounds are welcome to this event. During the event, you are invited to collaborate on a zine to express and share your reflections in another voice than academic writing. We will all be co-authors of this zine, which we will digitalize and circulate. You will also be able to prepare questions related to your research for all speakers, and in particular for the online session with Prof. Wickson.
In order to keep discussions productive, during breaks and social moments, the event will be capped for 20 participants. Financial support is available for hotel nights for participants who do not have travel funds as part of their positions and travel from other cities than Wageningen. Meals are included and participation is free of charge for all participants.
In order to join the event, please send
- a short motivation on why this event is relevant to your research
- and whether you would require hotel accommodation
to zoe.robaey@wur.nl by October 18th.
Applications sent before October 18th will be considered on a rolling basis. Late applications are considered unless capacity has been reached. Preference is given to participants who can attend both days.
Schedule
Symposium - Thursday 20 November
9:30 - Registration & Welcome
10:00 - Round of introductions
10:15 - Session 1: Introducing the event – Position Paper presentation – Zoë Robaey
11:00 - Zine making session introduction – Carla Sunol Escribano/Thijs Loonstra(?) – introduce it with FPAR & journaling & changing worldviews
11:45 - Lunch
13:00 - Session 2: Imagination and society: Dr. Mariana Hase Ueta, Sophie van der Vlugt, Sarah Kunze
14:00 Break
14:30 Session 3: Biology, Technology & Society: Dr. Enrique Asin Garcia & Prof. Vitor Martin dos Santos (TBC), Lucas van der Zee, Renske Bouma (TBC), Dr. Julia Rijssenbeek
15:20 Break & Zine making
16:30 Keynote speaker Maria Astolfi
17:30 Zine making session
18:00 Dinner
Symposium - Friday 21 November
9:00 - Coffee
9:15 - Session 4: Scientific Imagination: Sabine Winter, Dr. Ludger van Dijk, Prof. Rachel Ankeny
10:15 - Session 5: Good Life and Biotechnology: Dr. Per Sandin, Dr. Lotte Asveld, Thijs Loonstra
11:00 Keynote speaker: Abigail Nieves Delgado
12:00 Lunch
13:00 Keynote speaker: Fern Wickson – sustainability transformation - online
14:30 Break
15:00 Zine making session
16:00 Wrap up – round table
17:30 Dinner