Workshops

The presentation and the workshops deal with the “inner person” in order to strengthen trust and faith in its capabilities to walk through times of uncertainty. Therefore, general thinking from a spiritual background is needed, addressing the topics of uncertainty, ambiguity, but also decision-making and even calling in a religious sense. Walking this path raises a lot of questions:

• What is the ground of uncertainty – from a religious point of view? Here, views of the German sociologist Hartmut Rosa offer some suggestions which open the door for considering the gifts of religion to find unique ways of dealing with uncertainty.
• Turing uncertainty into certain decisions: What do religious processes of decision making and even discernment look like? Here, dealing with Ignatius of Loyola (founder of the Jesuits) will provide some answers.
• Help or obstacle: Which role does community play when it comes to dealing with uncertainty? Here, considering the relationship between the individual and the common search for sense share insights coming from monastic theology.
• Hints for the “inner person”: How does qualitative silence and silent prayers help to endure and understand uncertainty and the question lying beneath it? Of course, here, analytical thinking requires additional practical experiments.

The presentation and the workshops consider these four points in the context of visual perception:

• Our senses do not give us access to their source, and they are no basis for understanding whether we live in a material world. Stepping out of our own senses is impossible.
• Devising ways to make measurements and comparing our experiences of such measurements with our direct experiences shows that the two relate in a variety of ways, from the simple and direct to the very complex and indirect.
• My sensory experiences are not the same as those of another and that there is a continuum of differences from small to large. Inferring what another experience is therefore not consistently possible based on my own senses.
• The words I use to describe a given experience may not be the same that another would use to describe that same experience, and, that conversely, I and another may use the same words to describe different experiences.

Such fundamental uncertainties are inherent in our senses, and any beliefs, views or opinions formed on their basis inherit them. What does that mean for the empirical basis of our positions? How does that impact dialogue? Questions like these, and an exploration of the bases and consequences of the uncertainties listed above will be the subject of the workshops in this track, with the aim of building a richer understanding of the sense of vision together.

I would like to show you dances from different countries, such as Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Israel and the USA... We will take a closer look at the different styles. There are spectacular and difficult dances, but there are also simple ones that you can flow with immediately without learning much.

In spite of carefully didactic and methodical teaching, insecurities will arise: Discomfort with the dance steps, with one's own body, with being overchallenged or underchallenged, or at most with tensions in the group. It is important for me to give these uncertainties space and to discuss them. Disturbances take precedence, most ominously when they are not named and discussed.

Above all, it is about creating trust in oneself and in one's fellow dancers. The awareness that I am leading and accompanying the group or dance partner in joint movement, but at the same time being led and accompanied, creates this feeling of happiness, joy and security in the circle, in the community.

In my workshop we consciously go into the nature that surrounds us. Knowing that we are nature ourselves. We will explore nature, starting from a cosy campsite at the edge of the forest. The approach of our encounter with nature is that we follow the following aspects in a mindful, observing and questioning way:

• The biological aspect
• How do I experience the landscape, the place?
• What aspects of insecurity can be observed in plants, animals?
• How do they protect themselves? What is visible?
• How do they deal with injuries?
• The aspect of time and insecurity, living and dying, being born - what do we observe?

The psychological aspect
You look for your personal place in the environment where you feel safe. You take time to reflect why you have chosen this place, why you have not chosen another place. You have the opportunity to reflect on where in your life you experience safety or insecurity and what this has to do with your place. You make a small documentation of this place for the time after the Summer Academy. The general question is: What can you deduce from your observations for your personal life, what gives you security?

The spiritual aspect
How can I move respectfully in nature? Where do I destroy something without wanting to? How do we deal with this dilemma? Or is it not a dilemma?

I The proposed activities aim to open a discussion on how to deal with all the uncertainties – scientific, economic and political – that affect the health of our planet – with particular reference to global warming – in search of an innovative economic model for a real development of our societies, with particular attention to Europe, guided by courageous, just and far-sighted policies. Our method will be transdisciplinary: not only will the complexity of our society be addressed in an interdisciplinary way, but we will try to cross the boundaries of the various disciplines by discovering new levels of reality and that sometimes "tertium datur" (the third is included). Content:

• Research on ecological keywords/variables, with special attention to uncertainty in their definition/evaluation.
• Peace is green: global warming generates social uncertainty that eventually results in armed conflicts.
• Religions and ecology: faith-based approaches are uncertain by definition, but could help care for our common home.
• Preliminary study to make the "Spes Center" more sustainable: although the global energy market is particularly uncertain, energy efficiency and renewable resources could help the facility hosting Summer Academy 2023.

We will give the opportunity to relate to each other starting with self-knowledge through exercises, games and by playing a character: the participants will be immersed in a metropolitan scene in which everyone will discover both the light and the dark in each individual. It will also be fun to do a few dance steps that one of the characters will initiate.

The achievement of at least three objectives:

• learning to SHARE THE SPACE (a space where no one is judged).
• recognizing THE IMPORTANCE OF THE OTHERS WITH WHOM I SHARE THE SPACE.
• knowing how to manage CLEAR AND DIRECT COMMUNICATION.

Above all, our presentation will be made from our concrete experiences, made up of profound encounters, challenges, strong emotions and great hope, in the relationship with so many young people around the world with whom we have the opportunity to share our artistic experience.

Knowing that everyone has his or her own view on this question, if not a formulated answer, let us turn to the question of what culture is. One possible answer may lie in the fact that culture is an important part of ourselves, or rather we are a part of it, and is thus a key factor in defining personal, national and broader social or civilisational identity and belonging.

In the workshop, we are going to discuss following topics:

• Content of culture
• Relationship between culture and art
• Analysis of the Pope Francis’ speech about culture and science (in Budapest)