
Call for community-engaged research proposals
News 12 FebruaryThe Stakeholder Engaged Scholarship Unit (SESU) is now accepting expressions of interest for research projects from organisations supporting people experiencing disadvantage.
08 November 2023
Share
Associate Professor Matthew Sharpe will deliver the 2023 Simone Weil Lecture in Human Value and speak on the topic 'Beyond banality: deception, Eichmann and evil'.
The Simone Weil Lecture will be held in Brisbane on 21 November and Melbourne on 23 November.
The annual public lecture is presented by ACU’s School of Philosophy and is named in honour of Simone Weil, the French philosopher and political activist whose work focused on social justice and education.
Associate Professor Sharpe is a renowned philosopher and public intellectual who joined ACU earlier this year from Deakin University.
“It is a humbling honour to be asked to deliver the 2023 Simone Weil Lecture,” he said.
“I’m using the opportunity to explore the nature of 'evil' - a subject which will probably always be with us.
“Many people of course deny that 'evil' exists, others that it is a ruse of sorts, other still, that we should go 'beyond good and evil'.
“On the other hand, there is a long philosophical and theological heritage which has considered the nature of evil, including considering the terrible atrocities of the 20th Century.
“Using a very famous case, that of Adolf Eichmann, I want to reconsider these debates and consider especially the role of deceit - the need for evil to appear other than it is - in forms of human evil.”
Associate Professor Sharpe said the annual lecture series was an important way to elevate public discourse.
“If philosophy is the business of trying to think clearly about the world, our place within it, and what is good (worth pursuing) and evil (to be avoided), philosophy will always be relevant,” he said.
“Today, more than ever, as societies, we face big philosophical questions: around AI and its implications for our sense of human dignity; around climate change and the ways we understand our place in nature; and, around inequality and how to build better societies.
“In another sense, the old idea of philosophy as a way of life has new appeal to many in the community, as we’ve seen with the global growth of the modern Stoicism movement.”
Acting Executive Dean Theology and Philosophy Professor Richard Colledge said the Simone Weil lecture series provided a philosophical framework for contemporary moral, social and political debates.
“The lectures are inspired by the Christian intellectual and activist Simone Weil’s ethical vision that is rooted in radical attentive compassion and obligation to others,” he said.
Professor Colledge said the study of philosophy was an integral part of ACU’s mission as a Catholic university.
“The discipline of philosophy allows students to inquire into the larger questions that often go unexamined, and assumptions that often go unchallenged,” Professor Colledge said.
“In nurturing a spirit of intellectual inquiry, it allows us to address fundamental human questions, drawing on wisdom both ancient and modern, including our Catholic intellectual tradition.”
See the 2023 Simone Weil Lecture on Human Value webpage for more information and to register to attend.
The Simone Weil Lecture series was launched in 2000 by then ACU Professor of Philosophy Raymond Gaita.
The Stakeholder Engaged Scholarship Unit (SESU) is now accepting expressions of interest for research projects from organisations supporting people experiencing disadvantage.
Service Central phone support will be extended and available from 8am to 5:30pm from Monday 17 February to Friday 14 March, to support ACU staff as they begin Semester 1.
A message from Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise), Professor Abid Khan: A warm welcome back to all our ACU colleagues with best wishes for the new year.
We're streamlining access to library resources based on student feedback.
Get ready to embark on an exhilarating journey into the mysterious world of enrolments. Register now for upcoming Semester 1, 2025 enrolment information sessions.
ACU Library’s Research Engagement team are running their Research Essentials skills sessions again in 2025. Register now.
Yesterday was International Day of Women and Girls in Science. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be hearing from some of ACU’s remarkable female scientists to learn about their paths into science. This ...
ACU Library was due to transition to the new EBSCOhost user interface on 4 February. Based on feedback, EBSCO has delayed the migration until July 2025.
The library provides access to most of the resources you will come across in your teaching and research, including newspaper articles, images and videos. Make it your first stop for all your informati...
The library has expanded its support for affordable learning.
Congratulations to ACU Honorary Professor David Runia who was named a Member of the Order of Australia in this year’s Australia Day honours.
During the first week of February every year we celebrate World Interfaith Harmony Week.
The Centre for Education and Innovation (CEI) is offering six one-hour professional development sessions to prepare academics for the start of Semester 1. Register for the webinars here.
A message from the Executive Dean of Theology and Philosophy, Professor Richard Colledge: A new year provides opportunities to nurture what has been planted, and bring buds to bloom.
The Artificial Intelligence (AI) Council has been established to guide ACU’s adoption of AI in its teaching, research and engagement, and to influence good practice with university partners and stakeh...
ACU Co-Lab has proudly secured its inaugural NSW TechVoucher grant. This grant will support a cutting-edge study led by ACU researchers in partnership with Peak Medical Pty Ltd.
The Student Experience team invites all members of staff to welcome new students to their campus and into the ACU community at the start of semester one 2025.
We’d love to hear from you. Learn how to submit a Staff Bulletin story, as well as some changes to our Staff Communications Policy.
A message from Vice President Fr Anthony Casamento csma: January offers us a fresh start and the hope of a brighter future.
The Office of the Deputy Chief Operating Officer and Director, Campus Leadership, is seeking expressions of interest for male staff members, both professional and academic, to be on the staff panel fo...
Visit Service Central to access Corporate Services.