Congress Held on “Philosophy Facing World Problems in the 21st Century”

The opening ceremony of the international congress titled “Philosophy Facing World Problems in the 21st Century,” organized in collaboration with the Atatürk Culture Center and the Turkish Philosophical Society, was held at the Atatürk Supreme Council for Culture, Language, and History Campus Conference Hall.

The ceremony was attended by H.E Ambassador Prof. Dr. Derya Örs, President of the Atatürk Supreme Council for Culture, Language, and History; Prof. Dr. Öcal Oğuz, President of the UNESCO National Commission of Turkey; Assoc. Dr. Zeki Eraslan, President of the Atatürk Culture Center; Prof. Dr. Osman Mert, President of the Turkish Language Association; Prof. Dr. Ioanna Kuçuradi, President of the Turkish Philosophical Society; Assoc. Dr. Ahmet Kılınç, Vice President of the Atatürk Supreme Council for Culture, Language, and History, as well as numerous national and international academics and students.

In her opening speech, Prof. Dr. Ioanna Kuçuradi spoke about the founding process of the Turkish Philosophical Society. She mentioned that in 1973, during the 25th World Philosophy Congress, she observed the absence of a stand or representative for Turkey at the congress. Realizing this gap, she conceived of establishing a similar organization in Turkey. Upon returning to Ankara, the initial steps of this process were taken with a team of six, and the Turkish Philosophical Society was officially founded in 1974.

At the end of her speech, Prof. Dr. Ioanna Kuçuradi expressed her gratitude to the Supreme Council, other institutions, and participants who contributed to the work of the Turkish Philosophical Society, wishing for a fruitful meeting. She also hoped that important ideas would emerge over the next 50 years that would contribute to the development of Turkey’s intellectual world.

Assoc. Dr. Zeki Eraslan, President of the Atatürk Culture Center, also touched upon the works carried out by the Atatürk Culture Center in his speech, stating: “As an institution working with the responsibility of a scientific and cultural academy, we have signed many activities and projects in various fields of science. In addition to publishing more than 700 source works in its field, our institution has organized over 900 national and international symposiums, workshops, and panels and has hosted 9 congresses.”

Eraslan concluded his speech as follows: “In these days of the 21st century, where war ravages the world, tens of thousands of people, including children, are being massacred, and the law of the powerful prevails instead of the law of the just, I hope that the presented papers will create the necessary reaction and contribute to all parties.”

Prof. Dr. Öcal Oğuz emphasized that the UNESCO National Commission continues to benefit from Prof. Dr. Ioanna Kuçuradi’s contributions to the National Committee, wishing her continued success. He also remarked that if Philosophy Day is celebrated today, the creator and originator of this idea, the “mother” of the concept, is Ioanna Kuçuradi.

H.E Ambassador Prof. Dr. Derya Örs, President of the Supreme Council for Culture, Language, and History, began his speech by emphasizing that new works are being produced with the mission of serving Turkish culture in line with the founding purpose of the Atatürk Culture Center. He also stated that young scholars are supported in their academic research, and comprehensive and innovative projects are being developed and collaborated on both nationally and internationally.

Stating that understanding today’s problems and building a solid philosophical foundation to address them is essential for shaping our future, Örs expressed that the ideas and contributions of the scholars attending the congress are of great importance to the success of this event. He also expressed his satisfaction with the opportunity to see the contributions of various fields of philosophy to these issues, alongside experts from different disciplines at the congress.

Continuing his speech, Örs said: “At our congress titled ‘Philosophy Facing World Problems in the 21st,’ issues such as war, human rights, global security, hunger, migration, poverty, racism, and climate change, which are fundamental problems for all of humanity in the 21st century, will be addressed through the papers presented by you, esteemed scholars.”

At the end of his speech, Örs thanked the participants and expressed his hope for inspiring discussions throughout the congress.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, a gift was presented to Prof. Dr. Ioanna Kuçuradi.