PURPOSE: The UNESCO celebrates World Philosophy Day each year, on the third Thursday of November in order to bring philosophy, that universal language of thought, into service in order to identify all the ramifications of the crisis and to clear a common path for humanity and to underline the enduring value of philosophy for the development of human thought, for each culture and for each individual. Various methods in philosophy give particular importance to intuitions, i.e. non-inferential impressions about the correctness of specific claims or general principles. For example, they play an important role in thought experiments, which employ counterfactual thinking to evaluate the possible consequences of an imagined situation. These anticipated consequences can then be used to confirm or refute philosophical theories. The method of reflective equilibrium also employs intuitions. It seeks to form a coherent position on a certain issue by examining all the relevant beliefs and intuitions, some of which often have to be deemphasized or reformulated in order to arrive at a coherent perspective. The Pragmatists stress the significance of concrete practical consequences for assessing whether a philosophical theory is true or false. Experimental philosophy is of rather recent origin. Its methods differ from most other methods of philosophy in that it tries to answer philosophical questions by gathering empirical data in ways similar to social psychology and the cognitive sciences.

FORUM: “Artificial intelligence, a tool for mental health care?.” World Philosophy Day 2023. If AI has great potential for a better understanding and treatment of mental illnesses and is likely to improve access to care, what potential pitfalls and ethical implications does it hold? In other words, can AI be a dynamic factor for the improvement of mental healthcare?; In the context of the Management of Social Transformations (MOST) programme, UNESCO’s work on philosophy aims to promote humanist thinking as a response to social transformations and encourages its use for impact on political dialogue. Philosophy allows to think collectively about the future of humanity - and to design a better world. Follow the conversation with the hashtags: #WorldPhilosophyDay, #philosophy, #16November, #Philosophicaldebates, #PhilosophyDay.

EVENTS: On November 16th; The UNESCO will organize a panel discussion on “Artificial intelligence, a tool for mental health care?" with the French National Commission for UNESCO and Paris Saclay University, to mark World Philosophy Day 2023 during the 42nd General Conference from 1.30 to 2.45pm at UNESCO Paris, Room XI). The round-table will reflect on potential contributions of AI to a human-centered approach of mental health and examine ethical repercussions and moral concerns.