Fudan University’s School of Philosophy plans to hold the 19th “Fudan University Doctoral Academic Forum — Philosophy” in November 2025. The forum’s theme is “Philosophy for the Era of Digital Intelligence,” and we hereby invite submissions from master’s and doctoral students at universities across China.
Fudan’s School of Philosophy, guided by the founding principles of “integrating Chinese and Western thought, rooting scholarship, safeguarding ideas, leading the age, passing on the torch, and serving society,” boasts a strong faculty and a vibrant academic atmosphere. Thanks to the dedicated work of several generations of philosophers, the School now has a full range of disciplines, solid foundations, distinctive features, and a particular emphasis on research in contemporary philosophy and dialogue between second-level subfields. Since 2006 the School has successfully held eighteen sessions of the “Fudan University Doctoral Academic Forum — Philosophy.” This year, coinciding with Fudan University’s 120th anniversary, the doctoral forum adopts the theme “Philosophy for the Era of Digital Intelligence.” Grounded in an academic tradition that connects the past and present, the forum both cultivates the classical traditions of Chinese and Western philosophy and embraces the innovative mission of “crafting a new chapter of intelligence.” It aims to respond to frontier issues arising from technological revolutions, civilizational exchange, and the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity, fostering interdisciplinary dialogue among philosophy, artificial intelligence, ecological ethics, cross-cultural studies, and related fields.
Since its founding, Fudan philosophy has gathered the wisdom of predecessors such as Feng Youlan, Chen Wangdao, and Hu Quyuan, and has developed four important academic traditions: (1) breaking down disciplinary barriers and emphasizing dialogue between disciplines; (2) valuing the history of philosophy and foundational texts; (3) balancing scholarship with thought, with particular emphasis on the leading role of ideas; and (4) proactively engaging with contemporary issues and promoting the relevance of theory to practice. The theme “Philosophy for the Era of Digital Intelligence” identifies the forum’s core temporal coordinate. At a time when technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, and blockchain are profoundly reshaping how people live and work, philosophy is no longer confined to traditional theoretical domains; it must face ethical dilemmas, cognitive transformations, and forms of existential alienation brought about by digital-intelligent technologies. Philosophy should delineate ethical boundaries for technological development and provide a framework of meaning for human existence and flourishing in the digital-intelligence era, thus embodying its responsibility as an intellectual expression of the spirit of the times.
The 19th “Fudan University Doctoral Academic Forum — Philosophy” invites submissions from master’s and doctoral students at universities nationwide. We welcome active participation and paper submissions.
01 Forum Theme：Philosophy for the Era of Digital Intelligence
02 Suggested Topics (for reference)
(1) New forms of labor alienation in the digital-intelligence era and contemporary responses within Marxist labor theory
(2) Existential predicaments in the digital-intelligence era from the perspective of Heidegger’s critique of technology
(3) Reconstructing the ecological-ethical boundaries of digital-intelligent technologies from the viewpoint of the “unity of heaven and humanity” (tian-ren heyi) tradition
(4) The ethical foundations and implementation paths of algorithmic justice in the digital-intelligence era
(5) Aesthetic subjectivity and the reconstruction of the philosophy of art in AI-generated art
(6) Reflections in the philosophy of technology on how digital-intelligent technologies reshape human cognition
(7) The phenomenon of “digital religion” in the digital-intelligence era and new developments in the theory of religion
(8) A defense of the logical validity of inductive inference in big-data contexts
(9) Reflections on the application of Habermas’s theory of communicative action to the digital-intelligence public sphere
(10) Ethical attribution and the reconstruction of justice in algorithmic discrimination
Note: The above topics are examples mapped to the sub-disciplines of philosophy; submissions are not limited to these topics and may be freely proposed. Both published and unpublished papers are acceptable.
03 Forum Basic Information
•Dates: 22–23 November 2025
•Participants: Master’s and doctoral students from schools of philosophy and related departments at universities nationwide
•Organizers (Hosts): Graduate School of Fudan University; Graduate Work Department of the Party Committee, Fudan University; School of Philosophy, Fudan University
•Organizer (Organizing Committee): Graduate Student Union, School of Philosophy, Fudan University
04 Forum Features
#1 Rigorous and effective organization; rich and creative formats
The doctoral forum integrates individual reports with seminar-style dialogue. The organizing mechanism includes paper submission, expert review, one-on-one feedback, revision after review, and on-site discussion. Formats include scholar keynote lectures, a compilation of outstanding papers, presentation and discussion of selected papers, expert summary comments, and a career-development panel for early-career teachers.
#2 Expert guidance and review; emphasis on academic quality
Submitted papers will be reviewed by disciplinary faculty using a blind review process to ensure fairness. All papers entering the second round of review will receive expert feedback for revision; authors may resubmit revised manuscripts before the forum’s opening to ensure quality. The forum will also feature lectures by specialist scholars to promote academic exchange and mentorship.
#3 Identifying academic potential and tracking academic development
The forum emphasizes a combination of individual reporting and seminar dialogue to comprehensively and continuously enhance students’ academic abilities. Each year, early-career faculty are invited to participate throughout the forum to share experiences of academic work and support graduate students’ professional growth.
05 Submission Requirements
All submissions must be formatted according to the document “2025 Fudan University Doctoral Forum — Philosophy: Paper Format Requirements” and both Word and PDF versions must be submitted.
•Submission email: fduphilforum@163.com
•Valid Word filename: Please name the Word file as “School–SubforumDirection–Name–Contact–PaperTitle.” For example: “Fudan University–Marxist Philosophy–Xiang (student)–13326581606–‘The Critique of Political Economy by Marx and Its Contemporary Significance’.” The Word document may contain author information.
•Valid PDF filename: Please name the PDF file as “SubforumDirection–PaperTitle.” For example: “Marxist Philosophy–‘The Critique of Political Economy by Marx and Its Contemporary Significance’.” The PDF content must not contain author information, including institution, major, name, or contact details.
•Email subject: Please use the same format as the Word filename: “School–SubforumDirection–Name–Contact–PaperTitle.” For example: “Fudan University–Marxist Philosophy–Xiang (student)–13326581606–‘The Critique of Political Economy by Marx and Its Contemporary Significance’.”
•Deadline: 24:00 (midnight) on 19 October 2025
•Length: 8,000–15,000 characters
06 Additional Information
•Format of the forum: The forum will be held offline. For accepted external (non-Fudan) participants, accommodation and travel expenses will be reimbursed at a certain proportion; dinner during the forum will be provided by the organizers (all reimbursements are handled in accordance with Fudan University financial regulations).
•Contacts:
Zheng (student) — 19827804310 (WeChat ID same as number)
Yang (student) — 18628016266 (WeChat ID same as number)
