Education, Purpose and Human Flourishing in Uncertain Times (EPHF)

The three-year project explores new understandings of education, purpose and human flourishing through an annual public seminar series, residential visiting fellowships, conferences and publications.

The pathways to human flourishing are staggered and, though data demonstrates we are living longer and healthier lives, our futures are increasingly uncertain.

The project probes the concept of human flourishing and the focus to date on very narrow outcomes such as income, health or measure of positive affect. It engages with scholars who have suggested that human well-being or flourishing consists in a much broader range of states and outcomes that also encompass happiness and life satisfaction, meaning and purpose, character and virtue, and close social relationships. It examines the purposes of education in the face of current uncertainties and explores how education could support pathways to human flourishing in different contexts, proposing that education in a constantly changing world is dynamic, its purposes varied, and it’s form multifarious.

A seminar series will be held each Hilary Term on a different related theme.

This project was made possible through the support of a grant from Templeton World Charity Foundation, Inc. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Templeton World Charity Foundation, Inc.

• Seminars Year 1: 2020-2021

  Education and Human Flourishing: Personhood and Society – This theme explores the dialectical relationship between mind and environment. It looks at what is meant by ‘Human Flourishing’ and explores amongst others such concepts as character, wellbeing, and virtue.

  For full seminar details and links to past seminar recordings, please click on this link: Education Purpose and Human Flourishing in Uncertain Times Seminar Series

• Seminars Year 2: 2021-2022

  Education and Human Flourishing: Culture and Context – This theme explores the relationship between the desire to ‘become’ and cultural and contextual adversities. Here we look at concepts such as motivation, grit, determination and capability, and what different cultures and contexts can teach us about education and human flourishing amidst adversity.

  For full seminar details and links to past seminar recordings, please click on this link: Education and Human Flourishing: Culture and Context

• Seminars Year 3: 2022-2023

  Education and Human Flourishing: History and Politics – This theme examines human flourishing against the backdrop of history and politics. It looks at a variety of countries to examine notions such as ‘national happiness’ (Bhutan), ‘truth and reconciliation’ (South Africa, Rwanda), or transitional justice (Chile, Columbia). Human flourishing is studied as a concept of collective endeavour, of collective struggle, collective endurance, and collective fortitude. Here there is much to learn from development agencies and NGO’s who tirelessly and over long periods of time work with the most marginalised populations who are a constant reminder that human flourishing is not an individual privilege.

  For full seminar details and links past seminar recordings, please click on this link: Education and Human Flourishing: History and Politics