Annual lectures, talks and conferences

Seminars generally take place on Fridays 2:30-4 PM (Melbourne/Sydney time) over Zoom, unless noted.

To register or ask other questions, please email margot.strohminger@acu.edu.au.

The Simone Weil Lecture on Human Value is hosted by the School of Philosophy. It was first held in 2000, an initiative of Professor Raimond Gaita. It is a free public lecture held annually in Brisbane and Melbourne.

Each year, a distinguished international scholar is invited to give a public lecture and academic seminar at ACU. The lectures are inspired by Simone Weil's ethical vision that is rooted in attentive compassion and obligation to others, her unstinting desire for the Good, and her non-negotiable commitment to justice.

Past lecturers have included:

• Mr Scott Stephens, ABC's Religion and Ethics Editor, and co-host of The Minefield
• Professor Michael Morgan, Chancellor's Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Jewish Studies
• Professor Mark Alfano, Associate Professor of Ethics and Philosophy, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands and Professor of Philosophy, ACU
• Professor Robert Audi, Professorial Fellow, ACU and John A. O'Brien Professor of Philosophy, University of Notre Dame, Indiana
• Professor Eleonore Stump, Professorial Fellow, ACU and Robert J. Henle Professor of Philosophy at Saint Louis University, Missouri
• Associate Professor Jeffrey Bloechl, Associate Professor of Philosophy, Boston College.

Learn more about the Simone Weil lecture

Throughout the year, we host internationally-acclaimed scholars and experts as part of the ACU Luminaries Series. Our public lectures, seminars, short courses, workshops and research colloquia explore how social, cultural, political and religious issues impact how we understand our world.

Past luminaries have included:

• Professor Francis X Clooney SJ, Harvard University
• Professor Nancy Dubler, New York University
• Professor Thomas Murray, President Emeritus, The Hastings Center, New York.

The Simone Weil Lecture on Human Value is an annual contribution to the ACU Luminaries series.

Conferences and workshops actively contribute to the flourishing of academic disciplines and academic profiles.

Past events

Conferences and workshops hosted by the faculty in recent years have included:

• The Phenomenology of Affect international e-conference (2021)
• A Very Short History of Being Oneself: Theological, Philosophical and Aesthetic Perspectives with Professor Claude Romano (2021)
• International Conference on Comparative Theology (2019)
• Asia-Pacific Conference on Comparative Theology (2017)
• "Heidegger and Nature" Workshop (2017)
• The Annual Conference of the Colloquium on Violence & Religion (COV&R) and 6th Annual Conference of the Australian Girard Seminar (2016)
• International Ethics Conference, Reasons and Virtues (2015)
• COMIUCAP Conference, Civil Society and Human Formation: Philosophy's Role in a Renewed Understanding of the Meaning of Education (2015)
• Philosophy of Education Society of Australasia Annual Conference (2015).