Wanted: Faculty Scholars with 'New Visions'

A three-year UCSB project to explore a wide range of contemporary visions of human and biophysical nature, all with significant implications for understanding science and religion, has won the support of the John Templeton Foundation.

The project is now seeking scholars interested in becoming part of its international, interdisciplinary core of participants.

Starting next fall, "New Visions of Nature, Science, and Religion" will include a series of workshops, public lectures, regular and online classes, and a concluding conference to discuss how visions of nature both unite and divide science and religion. All public events will be held on campus.

The Templeton Foundation has contributed an initial $650,000 toward the project budget, which is $1.36 million.

Participating will be physical and life scientists, social and behavioral scientists, humanists, and theologians. Scholars interested in becoming participants have until Dec. 15 of this year to apply.

Director is Jim Proctor, associate professor of geography, who also served as director of the successful "Science, Religion, and the Human Experience" series at UCSB.

"Nature is a highly complex category; thus we use simple metaphors to make sense of it," Proctor said. "But a wide, seemingly incompatible, range of metaphors for nature are used in scholarly and popular culture. Each says something different about what science is, what religion is, and how they relate.

"We hope to bring these disparate visions of nature, science, and religion into closer communication with each other, ultimately to see what new visions may emerge."

Series information is available on the Web at <www.newvisions.ucsb.edu> or by contacting Proctor at x8741.