April 18-19, 2008
Pacific University
Forest Grove, Oregon

Keynote speaker: Jerry Fodor (Rutgers University)

The 12th annual Pacific University Undergraduate Philosophy Conference will be held April 18-19, 2008 on the campus of Pacific University, in Forest Grove, Oregon. The purpose of this conference is to provide a forum for the presentation of philosophical work of undergraduates to their peers. Papers are required to be of philosophical content, but there are no specific restrictions on subject matter within the arena of philosophical discussion itself. Papers should be approximately 3000 words (10-12 pages). Electronic submissions, including paper and abstract (Word documents), are preferred and can be sent to: boersema@pacificu.edu Hard copy submissions are also welcome. In this case, please send two copies of paper and abstract to: David Boersema, Department of Philosophy, Pacific University, Forest Grove OR 97116. (Phone: 503 352 2150; fax: 503 352 2242.) Group papers and suggestions for panel discussions are also welcome. Submission deadline is February 1, 2008. Final decisions will be made by February 28, 2008.

Volunteers for paper commentators are also welcome.

This year’s keynote speaker at the conference banquet is Jerry Fodor from Rutgers University.

The conference schedule will be as follows:

Friday, April 18:

• Conference banquet 6:30-8:00pm;
• Keynote talk 8:00-9:00pm.

• Breakfast 7:00-8:00am;
  
• Paper sessions 8:00-1:00;
• Conference luncheon 1:00-2:00;
• Paper sessions 2:00-6:00.

Travel and lodging information can be found by going to the conference web site at: www.pacificu.edu/as/philosophy/conference/index.cfm

Registration costs: $30, payable at the conference. Three meals will be provided: Friday night banquet, Saturday breakfast and lunch.

For further information, contact Professor Boersema at the address above.

Submission Deadline: October 1, 2007
Conflicts and controversies about energy have become familiar features of the political and economic landscape around the globe. The environmental consequences of energy production, distribution, consumption, and policy invite consideration of the ethical implications of both practice and policy. At Energy & Responsibility: A Conference on Ethics and the Environment, we invite ethicists, legal theorists, energy policy makers, energy entrepreneurs, and environmental activists to engage in a conversation about ethics and responsibility in the contested terrain of energy and the environment. Keynote speakers include:

• R. K. Pachauri, Chairman, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
• Henry Shue, Merton College, Oxford University
• Dale Jamieson, New York University
• Richard Morgenstern, Resources for the Future
• Dale Bryk, Natural Resources Defense Council and Yale University

The conference planning committee is seeking abstracts for papers, panel sessions, and workshops on the topics mentioned above, as well as related themes and specific issues. (For example, a panel session on the environmental effects of mountain top removal mining is being organized, as is a panel on best practices in the oil industry.)
We invite submissions on such questions as:

• What are our ethical obligations with respect to energy as individuals, stakeholders (such as governments, producers, distributors, owners of energy resources, and consumers), businesses, communities, and workplaces?
• How can ethical concerns inform policy on energy?
• How should our ethical obligations towards the environment be institutionalized in the administrative structures of energy policy?
• Do we have a vision of the ideal energy policy—one that expresses our ethical obligations to the environment?
• What would it mean to encourage integration of ethics into energy policy? How would practices change?

Types of Submissions:
1. Abstracts of papers for presentation should be 8001,000 words in length and include the following information:

• Title
• Statement of the problems or issues to be considered
• Statement of thesis and summary of argument
• Explanation of relevance of thesis to ethics of energy
• Overview of the relevant literature
• Authors’ or presenters’ names, addresses, telephone numbers, affiliations, email addresses, and biographies. (Biographies should be no more than 200 words.) This information should be listed on a separate page and not included in the word count.
• Indication of whether you plan to submit your paper for publication in the conference anthology (please see “publication opportunity” below).

Please note:
(a) In general, presentations should be based on scholarly papers. In selected instances, however, other presentations on contemporary, highly significant topics will be accepted.
(b) Presenters are requested to send their conference papers for inclusion in the materials to be distributed at the conference.

Publication opportunity:
An anthology containing the keynote addresses and selected, previously unpublished conference papers will be published by a major academic press. Conference papers previously published or under review elsewhere will not be considered. Final papers to be considered for publication must be received by May 5, 2008. Length should be 8,00012,000 words. Complete papers should be emailed to Dr. Denis Arnold at darnold1@utk.edu. Acceptance notification will be given by June 16, 2008. Note: these dates are firm. Every effort will be made to ensure that the volume appears in print as soon as possible after the conference. Papers not submitted on time will not be considered for inclusion in the anthology.

2. Proposals for panel sessions that engage conversation among ethicists, practitioners, policy makers, and activists. We welcome session proposals offering (a) three or more different perspectives on a single topic, or (b) interactive workshops that provide analytical tools, methods, skills, or processes related to the conference themes.

Panel session proposals should be 8001,000 words in length and include the following information:

• Title of session and title of each presentation
• Description of issue(s) to be addressed
• Explanation of relevance to ethics of energy
• Description of design of the session
• All panelists’/presenters’ names, addresses, telephone numbers, affiliations, email addresses, and biographies. (Biographies should be no more than 200 words.) This information should be listed on a separate page and not included in the word count.

Deadlines:

Deadline for receipt of abstracts for papers and proposals for sessions is October 1, 2007. Acceptance notification will be given by December 15, 2007. Presenters will be asked to confirm acceptance and indicate audiovisual equipment needs by February 1, 2008. Papers to be included in the program materials must be received by March 24, 2008. Final papers to be considered for publication must be received by May 5, 2008.

Location and Registration:
The conference will take place in Knoxville, Tennessee, home to the main campus of the University of Tennessee, nearby Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the headquarters of the Tennessee Valley Authority, and gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. All presenters are expected to register for the conference which will take place at the University of Tennessee and the recently refurbished Knoxville Hilton. Information regarding registration, special hotel rates, and scholarships will be posted to the conference website in the coming months.

Submission Information:
Submissions should be sent electronically in Word format to:
Administrative Assistant Susan Williams: swilli40@utk.edu
Philosophy Department, The University of Tennessee
(865) 974 3255
For further information, please consult the conference web page: http://isse.utk.edu/energy_and_responsibility/
Questions not answered here may be directed to: Dr. Denis Arnold at darnold1@utk.edu or Dr. Mary English at menglish@utk.edu.