April 14, 2026
Online at 7pm EDT
With Chen Xia, Mary Evelyn Tucker, and Stephen Posner
Ecological Civilization in China often draws on traditional philosophical lineages to articulate what “living well” might mean within ecological limits. Among these, Daoism offers a distinctive orientation: attention to harmony, restraint, interdependence, and the cultivation of a way of life aligned with the patterns of the natural world.
In this Forum, Chen Xia (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences) explores how Daoist thought can inform—support, complicate, and deepen—the project of Ecological Civilization today. Moving beyond slogans, we’ll examine Daoism as a living intellectual and ethical tradition with relevance for contemporary challenges: environmental governance, cultural renewal, and the formation of ecological values in public life.
In conversation with Stephen Posner and Mary Evelyn Tucker, we’ll consider questions such as:
- What elements of Daoist philosophy are most relevant to today’s ecological realities—and what gets misunderstood when Daoism is translated into modern policy language?
- How do Daoist ideas of cultivation (of self, society, and relationship with the more-than-human world) connect to the “inner–outer” demands of systems change?
- Can Daoist concepts such as gongsheng (symbiosis / co-flourishing) help reframe modern narratives of progress and development?
- What might Daoism contribute to global conversations on ecological ethics—without flattening cultural specificity?
This event is part of “Roots of Renewal: Ecological Civilization in China and the Confluence of Tradition and Modernity: A Garrison Institute Webinar Series on Ecological Civilization.”
Co-sponsored by the Pathways to Planetary Health initiative at the Garrison Institute and the Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology Conservation in China for Ecological Civilization.