Aretai Center on Virtues
10th Annual Conference
Applied Virtue Ethics
University of Genova, September 7-9, 2026
+++ CFP NOW OPEN +++
Conference website coming soon!
With the generous support of the Italian Ministry and the European Union – NextGeneration EU
(Project: DISCERN – Distrust in Science Reframed: Understanding and Countering Anti-Scientific Behavior, CUP D53D23019800001, PI Michel Croce)
Description
On its 10th anniversary, Aretai – Center on Virtues will devote its annual conference to the topic of Applied Virtue Ethics. The conference aims to explore how virtue ethics, traditionally focused on character and moral flourishing, can provide a robust framework for addressing contemporary challenges across diverse domains such as environmental ethics, technology, artificial intelligence, care ethics, and the arts. While much of modern ethical theory has been dominated by deontological and consequentialist paradigms, virtue ethics offers a distinctive perspective that emphasizes practical wisdom (phronēsis), moral motivation, and the cultivation of stable dispositions. This approach is particularly relevant in contexts where rigid principles or utilitarian calculations fail to capture the complexity of human experience and the moral dimensions of emerging practices.
The conference seeks to articulate how virtues such as prudence, justice, temperance, and courage can guide decision-making and institutional design in ways that promote human and ecological flourishing. Through interdisciplinary dialogue, we aim to bridge the gap between normative theory and applied ethics, offering concrete strategies for embedding virtue-oriented principles into technological development, environmental policy, artistic practice, and organizational life. Ultimately, Applied Virtue Ethics aspires to demonstrate that cultivating virtue is not an antiquated ideal but a dynamic and context-sensitive approach capable of addressing the ethical challenges of our complex and challenging times.
Confirmed keynote speakers:
Sylvie Delacroix, King's College London
Marcello Di Paola, Università di Palermo
Julia Driver, University of Texas at Austin
Ian James Kidd, Nottingham University
We are pleased to announce that, during the conference, Professor Julia Driver will be awarded the 3rd Aretai Center Prize, for her outstanding contribution to the field.
With the aim of including as many contributions as possible, the conference will be structured around plenary sessions and parallel sessions with the contributed papers selected by double blind review. The contributed papers should last 30 minutes (presentation + discussion). Abstracts of about 500 words (references included), prepared for blind refereeing, should be sent as email attachments to [email protected]
Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
Scientific Committee:
Michel Croce (University of Genoa)
Mario De Caro (Rome 3 University – Tufts University)
Michele Mangini (University of Bari)
Claudia Navarini (European University, Rome; Director of Aretai – Center on Virtues)
Maria Silvia Vaccarezza (University of Genoa; Vice-Director of Aretai – Center on Virtues)
Organizing Comittee:
Giovanna Di Cicco, Angelo Gulina, Manuele Marchelli, Manuel Marsico, Elena Ricci
Important Dates:
Deadline for abstract submission: April 1, 2026
Communication of acceptance: May 1, 2026
Accepted abstracts will be available online before the conference.
For further information, please contact: [email protected]
Participation in the conference will require registration and payment of the conference fee.
The language of the conference is English.
(Project: DISCERN – Distrust in Science Reframed: Understanding and Countering Anti-Scientific Behavior, CUP D53D23019800001, PI Michel Croce)
Description
On its 10th anniversary, Aretai – Center on Virtues will devote its annual conference to the topic of Applied Virtue Ethics. The conference aims to explore how virtue ethics, traditionally focused on character and moral flourishing, can provide a robust framework for addressing contemporary challenges across diverse domains such as environmental ethics, technology, artificial intelligence, care ethics, and the arts. While much of modern ethical theory has been dominated by deontological and consequentialist paradigms, virtue ethics offers a distinctive perspective that emphasizes practical wisdom (phronēsis), moral motivation, and the cultivation of stable dispositions. This approach is particularly relevant in contexts where rigid principles or utilitarian calculations fail to capture the complexity of human experience and the moral dimensions of emerging practices.
The conference seeks to articulate how virtues such as prudence, justice, temperance, and courage can guide decision-making and institutional design in ways that promote human and ecological flourishing. Through interdisciplinary dialogue, we aim to bridge the gap between normative theory and applied ethics, offering concrete strategies for embedding virtue-oriented principles into technological development, environmental policy, artistic practice, and organizational life. Ultimately, Applied Virtue Ethics aspires to demonstrate that cultivating virtue is not an antiquated ideal but a dynamic and context-sensitive approach capable of addressing the ethical challenges of our complex and challenging times.
Confirmed keynote speakers:
Sylvie Delacroix, King's College London
Marcello Di Paola, Università di Palermo
Julia Driver, University of Texas at Austin
Ian James Kidd, Nottingham University
We are pleased to announce that, during the conference, Professor Julia Driver will be awarded the 3rd Aretai Center Prize, for her outstanding contribution to the field.
With the aim of including as many contributions as possible, the conference will be structured around plenary sessions and parallel sessions with the contributed papers selected by double blind review. The contributed papers should last 30 minutes (presentation + discussion). Abstracts of about 500 words (references included), prepared for blind refereeing, should be sent as email attachments to [email protected]
Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
- Virtue Ethics and the Environment
- Virtue Ethics in Technology and Digital Design
- Artificial Intelligence and Machine Virtues
- Art, Aesthetics, and Moral Formation
- Education and Character Development
- Virtue and Care
- Interdisciplinary and Cross-Cultural Perspectives in Virtue Theory
- Theoretical and Methodological Innovations in Virtue Theory
Scientific Committee:
Michel Croce (University of Genoa)
Mario De Caro (Rome 3 University – Tufts University)
Michele Mangini (University of Bari)
Claudia Navarini (European University, Rome; Director of Aretai – Center on Virtues)
Maria Silvia Vaccarezza (University of Genoa; Vice-Director of Aretai – Center on Virtues)
Organizing Comittee:
Giovanna Di Cicco, Angelo Gulina, Manuele Marchelli, Manuel Marsico, Elena Ricci
Important Dates:
Deadline for abstract submission: April 1, 2026
Communication of acceptance: May 1, 2026
Accepted abstracts will be available online before the conference.
For further information, please contact: [email protected]
Participation in the conference will require registration and payment of the conference fee.
The language of the conference is English.
