Intellectus Prize In Philosophy (IPiP) 2022 For Nigerian Students

Deadline: September 30, 2022

They invite postgraduate Philosophy students (MA/PhD) and undergraduate philosophy students in the third or fourth year of undergraduate study to apply for the maiden edition of the Intellectus Prize in Philosophy (IPiP).

The Prize is designed to focus on some contemporary issues facing Nigeria and the African continent. IPiP is part of Intellectus Mentoring (InteM), a project of Intellectus: The African Journal of Philosophy powered by the Rosey International Foundation.

Categories

There are two levels of participation: Postgraduate level and Undergraduate level.

Postgraduate Level

Topic: The Philosopher King and Leadership in Nigeria

The topic is developed from a statement credited to Socrates: “Until philosophers are kings, or the kings and princes of this world have the spirit and power of philosophy … cities will never have rest from their evils…” (Republic 5.473; Jowett 1991, p. 203).

Note: Students are free to address the topic from any philosophical perspective and/or method but with a clear focus on contemporary Nigeria and the consistent challenges surrounding leadership. Submission should be no more than 6500 words, excluding references and abstract.

Undergraduate Level

Topic: Social Media and Traditional Virtues: a Quandary for Modern African Youth

The topic is developed based on the possible merits and demerits of social media in its encounter with African traditional virtues. Since social media can be a channel for the influx of cultures, norms, and values that are foreign, though not necessarily bad, how do we make a balance whenever the influx is tantamount to eroding traditional norms and values? If we have contemporary (social media generation) youths as political leaders in Africa, to what extent would African traditional virtues be sacrificed?

Note: Students are free to address the topic from any philosophical perspective and/or method but with a clear focus on Africa and/or Nigeria and the consistent extant issues ongoing on social media. Submission should be no more than 4500 words, excluding references and abstract.