Many of us find ourselves worried about grand scale problems, whether that's pandemics, economic failures, wars, ecological collapses, something else entirely or an eerie cocktail of 'all of the above.' These can leave us enraged, anxious, alone or paralyzed, but perhaps also encouraged, engaged or compassionate; forming the background or even the foreground of how we spend our days.
For some of us this volatile interplay of global crises and daily life is a familiar thing, bothersome but part of life; for others it might be a newer, hazy presence. It's in this context that we (NEWConnective) ask you to join us in conversation about the interaction of global crisis and the everyday. We strongly feel we can be of help to each other, with experiences to share and kinship to be found.
During this program we create space for you to share your experiences with the back and forth of global events and your daily life. We hope to build on our collective understanding of the many ways in which big developments can hit the people with whom we share a campus. For example, how effects of a pandemic can linger on; how engagement with political topics can alienate you from your peers; and how a sunny day in early spring can foster feelings of loss, instead of joy. We join in a dialogical conversation based on statements about the topic and close considering ways to shape your everyday relation to global crises.
Detailed program:
3:15 p.m.: doors open
3:30 p.m.: round of introductions
3:40 p.m.: sharing experiences
4:00 p.m.: discussing statements
4:15 p.m.: space for open conversation
4:35 p.m.: break
4:45 p.m.: subgroup conversations
5:15 p.m.: sharing group findings
5:25 p.m.: rounding up
5:30 p.m.: the end
The program is moderated by Thirza Snoek and Marc Lamain, both program makers at NEWConnective. NEWConnective is VU's platform for Life's Big Questions. This program is part of our thematic dialogues. The program takes place in English and is aimed at the academic community of VU. Nevertheless, we explicitly open this space for other people willing to join us for this conversation, too. If you have any questions, please contact us at newconnective@vu.nl.