WEF-FABI Online Seminar Series – I’m Because We’re: Understanding the African Ubuntu Philosophy

WEF-FABI Online Seminar Series

Presentation 1: I’m Because We’re: Understanding the African Ubuntu Philosophy

Robert Senath Esuruku (University of Makerere, Kampala)

The African philosophy of Ubuntu encapsulates a profound understanding of interconnectedness, empathy, and communal identity. Originating from various African cultures, Ubuntu emphasizes the inherent worth and dignity of every individual within the context of community relationships. This seminar presentation delves into the rich tapestry of Ubuntu philosophy, exploring its historical roots, core principles, and contemporary significance. Through local African examples, I elucidate the unique insights Ubuntu offers into the issue of cooperation for human flourishing. By fostering a deeper understanding of Ubuntu, we seek to inspire dialogue and reflection on how its principles can inform and enrich our global community in an increasingly interconnected, but divided world.

Zoom Link: https://uni-freiburg.zoom.us/j/66244057843?pwd=eU5rOTlpSTJjcERmUUVnUWhZYmpDZz09

Ubuntu, Social Contracts, UBI, WEF-Nexus,
Social Protection, and Empirical Research

Together with our partners at UNAM the WEF-FABI TEAM will host an online seminar series on “Ubuntu, Social Contracts, UBI, Water-Energy-Food Nexus, Social Protection, and Empirical Research,” starting on 21/03/2024. With assorted guests, the series will create a path of interconnections and differences between these topics and ask how their elements fit together. We want to examine how Ubuntu can be used in social experiments. Finally, the workshop findings will be incorporated into joint work (e.g. joint papers or field studies).

“Ubuntu” is a bond of unity amongst the people of Africa (Asike 2016, p. 7). In this sense, ubuntu is a philosophy that justifies norms and deliberate rules. With that, it touches common ground with the tradition of the social contract theory. In our series, we will follow various questions connecting these two traditions of thought: What are the main positions in these philosophical traditions? What are the similarities/differences between ubuntu and social contract theory? How can the shared features of the two of them be connected? We will then confront philosophical insights with the idea of a universal basic income and further link the various strings to possible impacts on social policy interactions. We take a look at the trade-offs between different policies and sharpen our awareness of the water-energy-food nexus and social protection. Finally, we will see how we can use empirical methods to normative justify policies and contribute to solving trade-offs.