International Symposium ELEMENTAL PATHWAYS THROUGH NATURE: BEYOND ANTHROPOCENTRISM AND ECOCENTRISM

Opis

International Symposium ELEMENTAL PATHWAYS THROUGH NATURE:
BEYOND ANTHROPOCENTRISM AND ECOCENTRISM, Koper, 15–16 June, 2026 in ZRS Koper Centre for Humanities

The renewed philosophical focus on elemental aspects signifies a major shift in contemporary environmental thought, moving beyond traditional symbolic or resource-based interpretations of air, water, earth, and fire. These elements are now seen as dynamic fields of relation that facilitate re-examinations of embodiment, imagination, temporality, and ecological coexistence. This “elemental shift” urges philosophy to engage with the materiality of existence while avoiding reductive naturalism and technocratic approaches. It critiques modern ecological discourse’s abstractions and emphasizes interconnectedness over isolated subjects or systems. Rather than establishing a new orthodoxy, this elemental perspective fosters diverse philosophical reflections, challenging established oppositions like anthropocentrism and ecocentrism. ZRS Koper is enhancing its role in developing elemental philosophy and environmental humanities, expanding its research on air and atmosphere to broader elemental thought. The symposium, “Elemental Pathways Through Nature,” aims to unite scholars from various fields to explore new conceptual approaches to nature and coexistence amid planetary uncertainty.

SYMPOSIUM ORGANISED BY Science and Research Centre Koper, Institute for Philosophical and Religious Studies, Slovenia

The event is supported by the THuNB project – Temperamental Roots of the Human-Nature Bond (HORIZON-WIDERA-2024-TALENTS-02, project no. 101244237), funded by the European Union, and by the Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency (ARIS) within the research programme Liminal Spaces: Areas of Cultural and Societal Cohabitation in the Age of Risk and Vulnerability (P6-0279) and the project Nature-Centred Traditions in the Green Transition: Case Study of Nature Worship of Primorska (J7-70269).

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Research Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.