A Philosophical Investigation of Security: In Conversation with Prof David A. Welch
This event is open to the public. Registration is not required for this event, you may simply show up at the door.
How do we know when we are investing wisely in security? Answering this question requires investigating what things are worth securing (and why); what threatens them; how best to protect them; and how to think about it. Is it possible to protect them? How best go about protecting them? What trade-offs are involved in allocating resources to security problems? This book responds to these questions by stripping down our preconceptions and rebuilding an understanding of security from the ground up on the basis of a common-sense ontology and an explicit theory of value. It argues for a clear distinction between objective and subjective security threats, a non-anthropocentric understanding of security, and a particular hierarchy of security referents, looking closely at four in particular-the ecosphere, the state, culture, and individual human beings. The analysis will be of interest not only to students and scholars of International Relations, but also to practitioners. Professor Welch is University Research Chair and Professor of Political Science at the University of Waterloo and at the Balsillie School of International Affairs.
Date: 20 February 2025, 15:00
Venue: Manor Road Building, Manor Road OX1 3UQ
Venue Details: Sem Rm C
Speaker: Professor David A. Welch (University of Waterloo)
Organising department: Department of Politics and International Relations (DPIR)
Organiser: International Relations Society (University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address: exec.committee@oxirsoc.com
Host: International Relations Society (University of Oxford)
Booking required?: Not required
Booking url: http://www.oxirsoc.com/events25/dw
Booking email: exec.committee@oxirsoc.com
Cost: Free
Audience: Public
Editors: Haitong Du, Mirabai Venkatesh