Public invited to take part in philosophy gathering

From homelessness to sovereignty, refugees to pilgrims, transgender rights in North Carolina to the rights of indigenous people in the Pacific, the idea of place will underscore deep conversations when 300 prominent philosophers gather in Manoa for the East-West Philosophers’ Conference from Wednesday through May 31.

But don’t think for a moment the event is only for academics, says Roger Ames, co-director of the conference and a University of Hawaii-Manoa philosophy professor who just retired after 38 years. Not only does Ames want members of the public to feel welcome, but he also said they can ask questions during the conference, which is free and being held for only the 11th time since its creation in 1939.

“These discussions are not egghead kinds of technical discussions,” Ames said. “They are discussions about our everyday problems as human beings. So the community is welcome. This is their event.”

Since its inception the conference has been a way to further East-West dialogue by synthesizing Eastern ways of thinking with Western thought. The discussions it generated led to the founding of the East-West Center at UH Manoa in 1960.

Good ideas will come out of the eight-day conference, according to Ames. Papers that were presented at previous conferences have been published afterward, and that will happen this time as well.

This edition of the conference, which is being held at the East-West Center, will draw participants from 40 countries. The wide array of topics might initially sound abstract, Ames said, but they’re not.

“They’re connected in the sense that we are always trying to find our place and the human experience is taking place,” said the 68-year-old Ames, who teaches American pragmatism and Chinese philosophy. “These big questions have to be asked and responded to if we are going to live in a better world.”

“Philosophy” is simply a word for “serious conversation,” he explained, adding that philosophers are not confined to universities — they are everywhere.

“I think we are all philosophers as human beings,” Ames said. “Philosophy is the pursuit of wisdom.”

And Ames is convinced that audience members will help with that.

“Anyone who wants to raise their hand can join the discussion,” he said. “We will probably learn a lot from them. Professional philosophy sometimes gets in a rut. Sometimes the questions that come from outside are liberating.”

But the most important discussions won’t happen during the presentations, when participants have only a half-hour to present a paper. Instead, they’ll take place at lunch or at a bar later on.

“That’s philosophy,” Ames said. “When the beer is gone and it’s late at night, that’s when you start talking philosophy.”

For a schedule and more information on the East-West Philosophers’ Conference, visit bit.ly/25bIXzb.