REVISIT THE 2020-2021 "FUTURES" SYMPOSIUM
Time: 8 a.m. September 7 - 5 p.m. May 7
Part of the Syracuse Symposium series.
FUTURES have been imagined as utopian and dystopian. Temporally, they are shaped both by what comes into being and by what/who is gone, lost, or eradicated (languages, peoples, species, communities, landscapes, cultures). Futures can be thought of as uncertain, open-ended, indeterminate—or tied to fate, destiny, and prophesy. Confronting futures means coming to terms with impermanence, disappearance, and extinction—and daring to yearn for and conjure something different. Ideas about futures (who should inhabit them, what they should entail) have justified violence but also sparked creativity (including new knowledges, new artforms/design, and speculative fiction). More equitable futures (for peoples, lands, and more) are not guaranteed—they come into being via action, and must be imagined, pursued, and crafted (artistically, intellectually, and politically). Futures may inspire change and spark action yet also beget nihilism, angst, or inaction. Either way, thinking about futures prompts asking: why are we here, what are we called to do, to whom/what are we accountable or responsible? Our 2020-2021 partners explored this theme in multi-faceted ways.
View or download the archived flyers for "Futures"