Today, on the day of our foundation’s third anniversary, we are excited to launch a new prize competition!
The prize question for the years 2022-23 is:
How to Orient Oneself in Time of Multiple Crises?
FPO provides the following prize awards:
1st prize award: $5,000
2nd prize award: $4,000
3rd prize award: $3,000
Special student award: $2,500 (if no student is among the top 3).
We will also offer for the winning essays to be collected and published by Orientations Press. Link in bio for more info.
About our prize question:
Several serious crises have now come upon the world: The looming climate catastrophe, which may result in worldwide famines and mass-migrations; the Coronavirus pandemic; the energy crisis, which may increasingly lead to social unrest; rising inflation around the world and the threat to the international financial system; and on top of all this, a new war in the middle of Europe, which could develop into a nuclear world war. All these crises are closely intertwined in their origins and consequences. They create an orientation situation of hitherto hardly known complexity, and there seems to be no one who could sufficiently survey it.
The Foundation for Philosophical Orientation calls for clarification: We ask how society and individuals can orient themselves in such a situation of multiple crises. Is the philosophical concept of orientation useful when dealing with multiple crises? Are our human orientation abilities themselves altogether at stake? Or are there historical examples from which we can learn? What footholds does one follow in such situations? How can one attain an overview? What uncertainties must one reckon with?