CFP

[Aribiah Attoe]

Comparative Philosophy Conference (CPC) Call for Papers (2026)

 

Theme: African Philosophy in Dialogue with Western and Eastern Philosophies

 

We invite abstract submissions for an international conference and special journal issue dedicated to exploring African philosophy in dialogue with either Western philosophy or Eastern philosophy. The aim of this initiative is to promote contemporary rigorous philosophical engagement across traditions, encouraging comparative, critical, and constructive approaches that highlight both convergences and tensions among diverse philosophical frameworks.

African philosophy has long engaged global philosophical discourses, whether through metaphysical, epistemological, ethical or political discussions. This conference seeks to create a space for renewed dialogue that emphasizes mutual exchange and conceptual creativity.

 

Possible themes include (but are not limited to):

·        African philosophy and Western politics, metaphysics, epistemology, or ethics

·        African philosophy and Eastern politics, metaphysics, epistemology, or ethics

·        African logic(s) in dialogue with Western logic

·        African logic(s) in dialogue with Eastern logic

·        African philosophy and Eastern traditions (e.g. Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, Indian philosophy)

·        Decolonial perspectives in African and Non-African traditions (Western and Eastern)

·        Environmental ethics in Western and Eastern traditions in comparison with African traditions

 

Submission Guidelines

·        Abstracts should be between 150-300 words

·        Abstracts must clearly indicate the central argument, methodology, and philosophical traditions engaged

·        Submissions should be written in English

·        Please include the author’s name, institutional affiliation, and contact information

 

Publication
Selected papers presented at the conference will be considered for publication in a special issue of the Journal of Modern & Contemporary Philosophy, published by IFCH/Unicamp, Brazil
(https://ojs.ifch.unicamp.br/index.php/modernoscontemporaneos/issue/archive)

The journal normally publishes articles in Portuguese; however, this special issue will be published in English, and possibly also in Portuguese.

Papers for the issue should be 15 pages in length, formatted in Times New Roman, 12-point font, with 1.5-line spacing.

 

Conference

The conference will be held online, and the access link will be shared together with the conference program. There is no conference registration fee.

Note the following important dates:

·        Abstract submission deadline: 1 May 2026

·        Notification of acceptance: 15 May 2026

·        Conference dates: 14 & 15 August 2026

·        Full paper submission deadline: 15 December 2026

 

Submission Process
Abstracts should be submitted to: abstractsub...@gmail.com

We welcome submissions from scholars coming from diverse philosophical backgrounds.

 

Conference Organizers

ü  Dr Vitumbiko Nyirenda and Professor Edwin Etieyibo

For further information or inquiries, please contact:

ü  Vitumbiko Nyirenda (PhD), University of the Witwatersrand vitumbiko...@wits.ac.za

 

Aribiah David Attoe, PhD

ORCID No.: 0000-0001-9786-1824

Department of Philosophy

University of Witwatersrand, South Africa

Member, The Conversational School of Philosophy, Calabar, Nigeria

Co-author: New Conversations on the Problem of Identity, Consciousness and Mind (Springer, 2019)

Guest Editor: "Special Issue on African Conceptions of the Meaning of Life", South African Journal of Philosophy (2020)

Author: Groundwork for a New Kind of African Metaphysics: The Idea of Predeterministic Historicity (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022)
Co-recipient: John Templeton Fund, via the Global Philosophy of Religion Project Grant, University of Birmingham.

IEP Entry: https://iep.utm.edu/afr-mean/

Co-Guest Editor: Special Issue on "Shifting Perspectives on Contemporary African Philosophy of Religion", Religious Studies (2022).

Co-Guest Editor: Special Issue on "African Perspectives on God, the Problem of Evil and Meaning in Life", Filosofia Theoretica: Journal of African Philosophy, Culture and Religion (2022).

Editor: African Perspectives on the Question of Life's Meaning (Routledge, 2023)
Co-editor: Conversations on African Philosophy of Mind, Consciousness and Artificial Intelligence (Springer)

Author: The Question of Life's Meaning: An African Perspective (Palgrave)