#10 Nerd Nite Hamilton – 10th June, 2024
Talk 1: Avoiding Chairs to Feel Better: Insights From Smart and Design-Based Environments
From recreational activities to work spaces, we spend most of our lives sitting. This talk will challenge the opinion that sitting is a good idea. Recent estimates suggest that sitting time is linked with increased risk of all-cause mortality (for example, the mortality risk 34% is higher for 10 h/day sitting [1]). Given this concern, we will look at various strategies to avoid falling into bad sedentary habits. We will shift our perspective from considering our habits as pre-wired and inflexible to understanding them as unfolding in relation with the social and material environment. In this way, the problem of sedentary habits becomes about the ways we engage with our (in-built) environments, or, more precisely, in the ways we do not engage with them. Potential solutions have to do with attuning with the environment, thinking of new ways to engage with surfaces, playing with materials, and so on. The main idea is that avoiding excessive sedentary habits means engaging with our environment in more diverse and active ways. Supporting examples and insights will come from philosophically informed architectural projects and ongoing research on ambient smart environments, to aim for a more fun and healthier lifestyle.
Speaker Info: Valeria Becattini holds a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Florence and a M.A. in Cognitive Science at the Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt University. Her interests span across philosophy of mind, embodied cognitive science, phenomenology, contemplative research, and active inference theory. Over the past few years, she has been conducting empirical and theoretical research on meditation, sense of self, and well-being, in collaboration with the Centre for Philosophy of Sciences at the University of Lisbon. Valeria has presented her work at conferences and seminars hosted by academic centres such as Berlin’s Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, the University of Toronto, and the University of Sussex, as well as on digital platforms like the “ActInf GuestStream”. Currently, she is co-program chair of the 2nd Annual Web Conference of the International Society for the Philosophy of the Sciences of the Mind, and pursuing a doctoral degree in contemplative research.
Talk 2: Foundations and Future of Health, Safety, and Environmental Management
This talk provides an introduction to Health, Safety, and Environmental (HSE) management, highlighting its significance and transformative potential. Emphasizing the human element, we’ll delve into the impacts of a safe and compliant workplace. The role of businesses in environmental stewardship is examined, showcasing initiatives that promote sustainability and ecological benefits. The talk also navigates regulatory frameworks, emphasizing the importance of compliance and effective risk management strategies. We’ll also explore innovations in HSE technology, and the metrics used to measure success, and global challenges and future directions in the field.
Speaker Info: Jenn Stratemeyer studied philosophy at McMaster. After she realized the philosophy factory wasn’t hiring, she headed to Niagara College to study environmental, health and safety. Now, almost 15 years later, Jenn has worked in various parts of Canada, and acquired a diverse background in both fieldwork and management. Her expertise includes soil, water, air and occupational hygiene sampling. She has overseen program development and fostered cultural change in municipal and private workplaces. Outside of her professinal life, Jenn teaches yoga and meditation. She lives in Hamilton with her husband and cat.
Talk 3: Sacred Earth: the Buddhist View of the Environment
Since its beginning, Buddhism has been a diverse set of traditions embedded in different environments. The heterogeneous practices across the Himalayan regions contributed to constructing local spiritual environments. These practices included stories about prominent Buddhist figures in different periods and particular places. This presentation focuses on historical ecocritical literature and its foundation of Buddhist philosophies of creating such places and practices in the Himalayan Buddhist communities, including pilgrimage, ritualism, and local practices that contribute to transforming the spiritual and material environment into a sacred space promoting spiritual environmentalism.
Speaker Info: Thinley Gyatso is a PhD candidate in the Study of Religion, in conjunction with the Doctoral Collaborative Specialization in Environmental Studies, School of the Environment, University of Toronto. He received an MA and M.Phil from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU New Delhi). Previously, he was an assistant professor at the Centre for Teachers’ Education, Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, Varanasi, India. His research interests include environmental psychology, philosophy of religion and ritualism, and environmental hermeneutics. His doctoral project explores the social-theoretical understanding of nature and the social construction of nature, space, and place in the Himalayan regions.