Navigating Bildung's Epistemic and Ethical Tensions in the Anthropocene: Emerging Perspectives

The Anthropocene epoch compels education to rethink foundational concepts, such as Bildung, knowledge, responsibility, and what it means to be human, in light of global ecological crises and cultural shifts. This roundtable provides an open forum for scholars, educators, and practitioners inspired by the EBAN (Education and Bildung in the Anthropocene) network to collectively explore the challenges and transformative possibilities at the intersection of Bildung theory and Anthropocene education.

Participants will engage in a dialogic exploration of key questions: How can Bildung evolve beyond its human-centered origins to include relational and eco-centric views? In what ways can education balance disciplinary expertise with the integration of planetary and global complexity? How might individual self-development and collective ethical and cosmopolitical responsibilities intersect and sometimes conflict in Anthropocene pedagogy?

This session invites contributions that reflect diverse philosophical, pedagogical, and theoretical approaches, as well as empirical and didactical perspectives, including those from Indigenous knowledge systems and process-relational philosophies. By sharing ongoing research, ideas, and experiences, attendees will collaboratively examine how Bildung can be a catalyst for aesthetic-ethical imagination, systemic transformation, and sustainability in education.