Every week until the start of the second semester, we will post a selection of highlights from the past year so you can enjoy our events from home, as on-campus events are currently not possible. Stay safe and healthy and best of luck with your exams!

For our previous highlights, please take a look at our blogs.

World at War

In this series of talks, different thinkers explore the meaning of conflict in our times. No longer a ‘great game’ of nation states declaring war, invading, and taking land, global aggression in our time takes place through trade, hacking, and proxies. Far from home, or hidden online, it remains largely unseen by us in the Netherlands. And yet ‘war’ in the sense of conflict is everywhere. Immigration, natural resource extractivism, the war on terror, the war on corona, the rise of the Chinese economy, climate change, and a multitude of cultural conflicts beg the question: what is war in the 21st century? And why do we fight?

Monday: Conflict Resources

Dutch-Congolese author Alphonse Muambi provides first-hand knowledge and experience of the past and present conflicts in resource rich countries like Congo, Niger, and Mali.

Tuesday: The Future of War

War and technology have always been intertwined. But our high-tech age is drastically changing the landscape and the rules of warfare.

Wednesday: The Rise of China

What are the chances of a war between China and the West? What would such an open conflict look like, and how would it impact us in Europe, sandwiched as we are between the two global superpowers of China and the US?

Thursday: Capitalism, Racism, and Fascism: The Roots of Violence

Our society seems trapped in a system that on the one hand builds fantastic new technologies, and on the other hand destroys its own environment with great violence. Why do we thrive in so much conflict and not in peace? Are these conflicts somehow linked, and is there a way out?

Friday: Prometheus’ Problems | Should an engineer work for the military?

Can an algorithm be racist? If a self-driving car causes an accident, who is responsible? These are the kinds of questions that are discussed at our brand new philosophical café Prometheus’ Problems! At this event, students, professors and external experts will exchange thoughts about philosophical and ethical themes related to engineering, modern technology and its impact on society.