Stoic Week 2016 Starts Monday!

Today as this post appears, STOICON 2016 will very shortly be starting in New York City.  It provides one of the high points of the year for the worldwide Modern Stoicism community.  STOICON is not only a wonderful conference with a lineup of engaging speakers providing talks, workshops, and discussions, but it also effectively kicks off International Stoic Week 2016!
 

The Stoic Week Course

What we might call the “main main event”, the entirely FREE online Stoic Week class – providing a beautiful new class site, complete with handbook, audio files, forums for discussion, just to mention a few features – is still enrolling (so, if you’re finding out about this late, don’t fret about it – there’s still time for you to sign up and get in the class!)  It starts on Monday, October 17, and ends on Sunday, October 23.
Having participated in the class myself, I highly recommend it to anyone.  As a teacher and a scholar, I can attest that what you’re getting in this this one-week course Donald Robertson has designed and developed is a brilliant adaptation of classic Stoic philosophy to the context of modern life – precisely the sort of thing the ancient Stoics would be doing were they around to do so today.  It’s eminently accessible for beginners, but has a lot to offer intermediate and expect-level students and practitioners.  I know that I learn quite a bit doing the course myself each year.  So if you’re someone who reads this blog, this is definitely a course you’ll want to take.

Institutions or Organizations Engaging In the Class

The Stoic Week online class offers opportunities to meet, learn, and interact with people all over the world.  In certain locations, there is also another great opportunity, provided by local organizations or institutions, to work through the Stoic Week class together.  At present, here are the organizations and institutions that
Grand Valley State University Classics Department – the contact person is Peter Anderson
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania – the contact person is Andrew Winters
Marist College Honors Program – the contact person is James Snyder
Bates College – the contact person is Michael Hanrahan
Manchester Stoics Meetup – the contact person is Brenda Lanigan
Brisbane Stoics Meetup – the contact person is Alex Magee

In-Person Events:

There are several events already scheduled during Stoic Week itself to commemorate, celebrate, and continue building community.  If you know of any other events that belong on this list, feel free to contact me, or even better, enter them into this form.  I’ll be updating this post over the course of Stoic Week, to include any new events that come to my attention.
16 October, 2 PM: Post-STOICON/Pre-Stoic Week Meetup (New York City, USA). To celebrate the end of STOICON ’16 and the beginning of Stoic Week ’16, the New York City Stoics Meetup will host a Stoic Walking tour through parts of NYC, with wha promise to be some engaging thematic conversations held along the route. – the organizer/contact person is Greg Lopez.
16 October, 3 PM: Stoicism and Love (London, UK).  The London Stoics Meetup will be hosting a discussion on that very topic (the theme for Stoic Week this year) – the contact person/organizer is Carmello Di Maria.
18 October 12:00 PM:  Stoicism Across the Disciplines: A Panel Discussion (Lewiston, ME, USA) – Bates College faculty will lead an informal discussion of Stoicism across intellectual disciplines at the Benjamin Mays Center- the organizer/contact person is Michael Hanrahan.
18 October, 6:00 PM:  Struggling With Anger? Useful Stoic Perspectives and Practices (Milwaukee, WI, USA).  For local residents of my home city (a place where it’s clearly needed), I’ll be providing the same workshop I’m leading out at STOICON – the organizer/contact person is me, Greg Sadler.
19 October, 5:00 PM: Vidas Estoicas (Bogata, Columbia)  The members of the research group, Peiras, will be providing a discussion focused on classical Stoicism, its doctrines and figures, and its potential for transforming contemporary everyday life at the Edificio de Posgrados de Ciencias Humanas, Salón Oval, Universidad Nacional, Miércoles – the organizer/contact person is Andrea Lozano Vasquez.
19 October, 7:30 PM: What is The Place for Stoicism in Today’s Society? (Oxford, UK).  The Philosophy In Pubs, Oxford Meetup is hosting a discussion with Daniel Robertson about Stoicism Today – the organizer/contact person is Ben Clark.
20 October, 7:00 PM: Stoic Week Discussion (Slippery Rock, PA, USA)  Professor Andrew Winters will be discussing with the public what it is like to live as a Stoic in a modern world – the organizer/contact person is Andrew Winters
20 October, 6:30 PM: Discussing Stoic Daily Habits (Manchester, UK). The Manchester Stoic Meetup will be holding its monthly discussion, discussing precisely that, daily habits that help one live the Stoic life – the organizer/contact person is Brenda Lanigan.
20 October, 6:00 PM It’s Stoic Week: When Should I Assent? (Chicago, IL, USA). The Chicago Philosophy Meetup is having a session about Stoicism – the organizer/contact person is Ivan.
22 October, 2:00 PM-7:30 PM: Stoic Guidance for Troubled Times (London, UK). A smaller, but looking-to-be-excellent STOICON conference at Queen Mary University, with presentations by Jules Evans, Christopher Gill, Tim LeBon, Donald Robertson, and Gabrielle Galuzzo – the organizer/contact person is Jules Evans.
23 October, 5:00 PM: Stoic Week Wrap-Up (New York City, USA).  The New York City Stoics Meetup will host a meeting for an hour of open discussion and followup – the organizer/contact person is Greg Lopez.
23 October, 2:00 PM, Stoic Week Catch-Up (Brisbane, Australia).  The Brisbane Stoics will also be hosting a meeting to discuss and compare experiences from Stoic Week – the organizer/contact person is Alex Magee