THE GREATER PHILADELPHIA PHILOSOPHY CONSORTIUM CELEBRATING OUR 23RD ANNIVERSARY Bryn Mawr College • Drexel University •Haverford College •LaSalle University Rosemon College Pennsylvania State University • St. Joseph's University • Swarthmore College • Temple University University of Delaware •University of Pennsylvania •Villanova University •West ChesterUniversity   The Board of Governors of the GPPC and the Global Dialogue Institute present: The 9th Annual Public Issues Forum A Dialogue on Science and Spirituality II: Exploring the Emerging Integrative Paradigms & The New Science Chair & Coordinator: Ashok Gangadean (Philosophy, Haverford College, and Co-Founder/Director of The Global Dialogue Institute) FEATURING Dr. Ervin Laszlo – (Renown author and a foremost expert on systems theory and general evolution theory, Founder/President of the Club of Budapest, Founder/Director of the General Evolution Research Group) “The Connectivity Hypothesis- Foundations of Integral Science of Quantum, Cosmos, Life and Consciousness” T. Irene Sanders – (Author: Strategic Thinking and the New Science: Planning in the Midst of Chaos, Complexity and Change, Executive Director/Founder of the Washington Center for Complexity & Public Policy) “Strategic Thinking & The New Science of Wholeness” Coffee Break Dr. Ralph Abraham (Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, University of California at Santa Cruz) “Chaos, Fractals and the New Mathematical Mysticism” Each presentation will be about 45 minutes, followed by brief discussion. After all three presentations, there will be a more extended dialogue between the panelists that will open up to involve the audience. This Event is free and open to the public. Audience participation in the dialogue is encouraged. Haverford College Saturday, March 29th 2003 l:00pm to 5:00pm Sharpless Auditorium (Reception at 5:00, Second Floor Lounge, Gest Center) THE GREATER PHILADELPHIA PHILOSOPHY CONSORTIUM PRESS RELEASE THE 9TH ANNUAL PUBLIC ISSUES FORUM A DIALOGUE ON SCIENCE AND SPIRITUALITY II In the past two decades there have been exciting developments at the frontiers of Science and Spirituality. Frontier scientists have been in quest of the fundamental laws and patterns of the universe, and this quest has led them to an emerging Integral Science and explorations in the Unified Field of Nature. At the same time trends in global spirituality have sought to uncover the ultimate patterns of consciousness and common ground across religious and spiritual worldviews. This fundamental quest for Unifying Forces, Common Ground and the Unified Field that links all realities together has opened profound issues in the convergence of Science and Spirituality as we enter the 21st Century: Is there a fundamental common ground between science and spirituality? Are there fundamental patterns of the universe that connect nature and consciousness? Is Nature an “Integral” or “Holistic” field or “system”? Is the Unified Field of Physics and Nature the very same Unified Field of Reason and Consciousness? What is “New Science”? What is Integral Intelligence? Are the diverse disciplines of the Liberal Arts linked in any coherent way? Is there a fundamental connection between Mathematics and Consciousness? Is there a common deep structure between Mathematics and the structures of awareness? Can Mathematics link Nature and Rational awareness? What does it mean to say that Nature is a Living Integrative and Learning System? Does Consciousness pervade Nature? What is Chaos and Complexity? Can Evolutionary Biology make significant links between the patterns of Nature, human consciousness, and structures of Life? Is there an integral narrative/story here? What is the link between mind, body and religious experience? Can new knowledge of the functioning of the brain illuminate spiritual life and religious experience? Can mind and consciousness play a role in healing? These are some the leading questions that will be explored in this exciting dialogue that brings together certain leading figures in the frontiers of Science and Spirituality (See attached flyer for details) Ashok Gangadean, Forum Coordinator and Chair Professor of Philosophy (Haverford College) Co-Founder-Director of Global Dialogue Institute BIO NOTES ON FORUM PRESENTERS Dr. Ervin Laszlo- Considered the foremost exponent of systems philosophy and general evolution theory, Ervin Laszlo is likewise noted for his work in the futures and management fields. He has a PhD from the Sorbonne and is the recipient of four honorary PhD’s, the Japan Peace Prize (Goi Prize) and other distinctions. Formerly Professor of Philosophy, Systems Science, and Futures Studies in various universities in the US, Europe, and the Far East, Laszlo is the author or co-author of thirty-six books translated into as many as sixteen languages, and the editor of another thirty volumes including a four-volume encyclopedia. Laszlo is Founder and President of The Club of Budapest, Founder and Director of the General Evolution Research Group, Administrator of the Interdisciplinary University of Paris, Fellow of the World Academy of Arts and Sciences, Member of the International Academy of Philosophy of Science, Senator of the International Medici Academy, and Editor of the international quarterly World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution. T. Irene Sanders - Executive Director and Founder of the Washington Center for Complexity & Public Policy (<http://www.complexsys.org>www.complexsys.org) and author of Strategic Thinking and the New Science: Planning in the Midst of Chaos, Complexity and Change (The Free Press, 1998), pioneered the application of chaos theory and complexity science to the much-needed skill of strategic thinking. A great deal of her current work is focused on promoting complexity science literacy through the integration of art and science, and the use of complexity science and nonlinear thinking as it applies to the war on terrorism and national security. She has provided strategic thinking and planning services to committees and individual members of the U.S. Congress as well as to a wide-range of businesses and nonprofit organizations. Her work has been featured in a number of publications including, Art Education, Continental, Investor's Business Daily, Management Review, The InnerEdge, The Rocky Mountain News, Urban Land and The Washington Post. She is a graduate of Duke University and the Medical College of Georgia and she completed a fellowship in organizational change at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Ralph H. Abraham- has been Professor of Mathematics at the University of California at Santa Cruz since 1968. Ralph has been active on the research frontier of dynamics in Mathematics since 1960, and in applications and experiments since l973. He has been a consultant on chaos theory and its application in numerous fields (medical physiology, ecology, mathematical economics, psychotherapy, etc) and is an active editor for the technical journals World Futures, and the International Journal of Bifurcations and Chaos. He has held visiting positions in Amsterdam, Paris, Warwick, Barcelona, Basel, and Florence, and is the author of more than 20 texts. In 1975 he founded the Visual Mathematics Project at the University of California at Santa Cruz, which became the Visual Math Institute in l990. Dr. Abraham has been concerned about the loss of Soul and Spirit in modern science and is passionate about the recovery of Spirit in contemporary science. Some of his published titles include- The Evolutionary Mind (l998, with Terence McKenna and Rupert Sheldrake) and Chaos, Gaia, Eros (l992)   Forum Chair, Ashok Gangadean, Department of Philosophy, Haverford College • 370 Lancaster Avenue, Haverford, PA 19041- (phone) 610-896-1030 • (fax) 610-896-4926 • (e-mail) agangade@haverford.edu