Mykolas Romeris University (Lithuania) in partnership with the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Germany) as the partners in the European Reform University Alliance (ERUA), and the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Lithuania is pleased to invite the audience in Europe and around the globe to take part at the upcoming International Conference entitled ''The Drones above me and the Moral Law within me: (In)Security and Freedom in the XXI Century'".
International event which will be held on 18 April, 2024 at Mykolas Romeris University and broadcasted live is devoted to three fundamental anniversaries, namely the 300th anniversary of German moral philosopher Immanuel Kant, the 75th anniversary of NATO, and 20 years since the largest enlargement of the European Union when Central and Eastern European countries, including Lithuania, joined the Union.
Immanuel Kant's moral philosophy placed an emphasis on duty and the protection of universal law in order to sustain human autonomy. Universality of such a moral system is reflected in the lines of famous Kant’s works and well-known words ‘The starry heavens above me and the moral law within me’. However, today’s global reality dominated by numerous threats risks to replace all of these values with insecurity and unpredictability. The Conference title “The drones above me and the moral law within me”, through juxtaposition, seeks to illustrate how current insecurities, especially in Europe, affect universal values, human rights and individual as well as collective autonomy. Discussion of the event, thus, will turn around Immanuel Kant’s thought, its relevance in today’s conflicts, threats to international security and freedom.
The European Union as a peace project was itself based on the universal values of freedom and security. When the largest EU enlargement happened 20 years ago, it signified that the Central and Eastern Europe also believed in this European identity and unquestionable adherence to universal values, such as individual liberty, democracy, the rule of law and universal human rights. This reality has not stopped the rise of various ‘exit’ appeals for illiberal democracy, or the practical suppression of judicial independence, free press, which clearly reflects an entirely different agenda. The question to be posed at the Conference is whether the Kantian system is at risk to be replaced and, if so, what could be the potential consequences for the global arena. Can there be international security without the Kantian moral system that seems to be attacked alongside universal values? One of the central themes of the event will be the value system of the EU to which ten European countries joined 20 years ago, and the importance of the EU as a peace project.
As recognized by I. Kant and other scientists, only a strong legal framework and alliance of nations can bring about global peace. The North Atlantic Alliance (NATO), which celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2024, was created to protect individual liberty and security, democracy, and the rule of law values. As was agreed at the recent Vilnius NATO Summit 2023, NATO’s main purpose is to tackle global security threats to peace across the globe. Discussion of the Conference, thus, will also touch NATO’s role in assessing the international situation in the context of such global events as the Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, migration, climate change, food supply restrictions.
The International interdisciplinary conference which is organized by Mykolas Romeris University (Lithuania) and the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Germany) as the partners in the European Reform University Alliance (ERUA), also by the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Lithuania will bring together for discussion international leading scholars in law, philosophy, and political sciences, also human rights activists and law practitioners from Canada, France, Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, The United Kingdom, The United States, Turkey, Ukraine, and other countries. The Edited book written by the speakers of the event and other distinguished guests will be published later this year.
The Conference will take place on April 18, 2024, at 9 am at Mykolas Romeris University (Ateities st. 20, Room I-414, Vilnius). The language of the event is English.
Program of the event: https://www.mruni.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Programa-2024-A4-5mm-bleeds-print-1-compressed.pdf
Event will be directly broadcasted on MRU YouTube channel. Please follow the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbes9bMfdWg
All participants are kindly invited to fill a short form of registration: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfo89Sxm5-Uqt5txcodCU4lbQennIEEpUBuNXHpoJjTWWC5xw/viewform
The event is partly funded by the Research Council of Lithuania under the postdoctoral project agreement No. S-PD-22-61.