As part of the Swiss Doctoral Programme in Philosophy, I am organising for ου̉σία, the Centre for the Philosophy and Theology of Being at the University of Lucerne, a small and informal workshop in beautiful Ligerz.

Please find the full programme here.

Confirmed speakers: Philipp Blum, Ralf Bader, Martin Grajner, John Horden, Donnadh O'Conaill, Mario Schärli and Tina Röck.

CfP. In what sense do we predicate "exists" of people, chairs, God, numbers and fictional creatures? Is "exists" said in many ways and if so, what are they? How are they related? Is existence a predicate, a copula, a quantifier or perhaps all of these? Is existence “absolute positioning”? How is it related to truth and to metaphysical modality? Organised by ousia, the newly established centre for the philosophy and theology of Being at the University of Lucerne, Switzerland, this small and informal workshop in beautiful Ligerz should shed light on these and related question, in particular against the background of analytic history of philosophy.

Participation. Participants should arrive by Wednesday evening and stay at least until Sunday noon. They should commit to have a first draft / extended abstract of their paper ready a week before the start of the conference, read at least some of those of the others in advance and make an effort at reading some of the other material suggested by the other participants. They should commit to staying in Ligerz for the whole duration of the conference, except of course for the joint excursions to the regions' vineyards and the shores of the lake of Biel/Bienne.

Location. The conference takes place in the beautifully located bilingual village of Ligerz / Gléresse, on the shores of the lake of Biel/Bienne (also bilingual):

Talks and meals are at the Aarbergerhaus, where a beamer and facilities to print out handouts are available. Participants stay at the so-called "Louis Haus", where there's also a small bar for late-night drinks. When you get out of the train arriving either from Neuchâtel or from Biel/Bienne, and you face the mountain and the church (turning your back to the lake), the Aarbergerhaus is to your right (in the direction of Biel/Bienne), about 150 m along the main road. You reach it after passing by the hotel "Kreuz" and by going through a garden door located at your left (facing Biel/Bienne), just before there is a street for cars on your right going over a small bridge (in the direction of the lake). Please come there when you arrive. (The Louis-Haus, in contrast, is to your left, about 50m through the pedestrian street, on your right just before the fountain).

Reading material. It would be good if as much as possible of the reading material could be made available to participants in advance (via a dropbox folder, for which I will send participants an invitation). This includes (i) abstracts / drafts; (ii) background reading, e.g. articles by others specifically discussed or older texts not easily available.