Providing a timely contribution to the ongoing questions surrounding topics which are by definition subject to varying stakeholder interpretations, this book addresses "the missing link" between theoretical CSR concepts and everyday management practice. It acts as a guide to awaken managers to the advantages of adopting a CSR "mindset" when developing sustainable business strategies. The book consists of three parts: 1) A theoretical realm which establishes the key concepts and rationale for the adoption of a sustainable CSR approach, 2) A (...) practical realm which addresses putting CSR and sustainability into business practice, 3) An educational realm which proposes how to incorporate the concepts into teaching and training. Contents Theoretical realm Practical realm Educational realm The Editors Linda O'Riordan is a Professor of Business Studies and International Management and Director of the KompetenzCentrum for Corporate Social Responsibility (KCC) at the FOM University of Applied Sciences (FOM), Essen, Germany. She researches, writes, and lectures on responsible management and sustainable entrepreneurship with a focus on an inclusive approach to organising business in society. Piotr Zmuda is a Professor of Business Studies and International Management and a Research Associate of the KompetenzCentrum for Corporate Social Responsibility (KCC) at the FOM University of Applied Sciences (FOM), Essen, Germany. He teaches Master's and Bachelor's students in Corporate Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), International Management, Strategic Management, and Management Consulting. Stefan Heinemann is a Professor and Vice-Rector for Cooperations and Sustainability Representative at the FOM University of Applied Sciences (FOM), Essen, Germany. He is also a committed member of the work group "tertiary institutions" of the UNESCO World Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, Director of Business Ethics at the FOM KCC KompetenzCentrum für Corporate Social Responsibility and Member of the Board of Trustees of sneep - student network for ethics in economics and practice.. (shrink)

The interest of the contemporary companies is not only in the fulfillment of social responsibility rules but also in the ways to reliably inform the community about their ‘ethical face’. Such possibility is created by, functioning in economy, systems of awarding certificates, distinctions, prizes etc. (e.g. Przejrzysta Polska, SA 8000, Filary Polskiej Gospodarki, Gender Index, Firma Fair Play etc.). The article characterizes and performs a comparative analysis of the most important initiatives of this kind in Poland.

En este artículo se analiza la noción de la fe explicita y la fe implícita que desarrolla santo Tomás de Aquino, al hacer la referencia al modo de conocer los misterios de Cristo. Al analizar los comentarios bíblicos del Aquinate se descubre una teología de la fe que sirve como adecuado acceso a conocer la humanidad de Cristo, evitando los reduccionismos. El estudio muestra que conocimiento de Cristo se realiza en el contexto eclesiástico y en el que destaca el valor (...) de la caridad del Señor que es capaz de ‘convencer’. In this article the notion of explicit and implicit faith is discussed in the light of Thomas Aquinas’ thinking, particularly in the perspective of the mysteries of Christ. In analyzing the biblical commentaries of Aquinas, we can discover the theology of faith that serves as adequate access to know the humanity of Christ, avoiding any reductio-nism. The study shows that knowledge of Christ is done in the ecclesiastical context, in which highlights the value of charity the Lord that is able to convince the people. (shrink)

"Oddajemy w ręce czytelnika kolejny tom „Dysput Nawarryjskich”, które od czasów swej pierwszej edycji w roku 2009/2010 zdołały na trwałe wpisać się w zakres współpracy dwóch miast, Torunia i Pampeluny, oraz regionów, województwa kujawsko-pomorskiego i Nawarry. Przyczyniły się do budowania intelektualnych mostów pomiędzy dwoma środowiskami naukowymi, które odgrywają ważną rolę w swoich krajach. Owe mosty zainicjowane przez Wydział Teologiczny Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika i Wydział Teologii Uniwersytetu Nawarry połączyły ludzi, wydziały, zespoły badawcze, ale także ostatnio całe uniwersytety, które w 2013 roku (...) podpisały porozumienie o szerokiej współpracy na polu badawczym i dydaktycznym." [...] Ze Słowa Wstępnego. (shrink)

The picture of the beginnings of humankind presented by natural science is often contrasted with what is conveyed in Scripture. It has been pointed out that the Edenic state before sin – which we refer to as original justice – was a time of absolute perfection in which there was no room for any deficiency. According to Thomas Aquinas, however, this picture conflicts with what Paradise was as a state on the way to Heaven. For Aquinas, the difference between Paradise (...) and the present situation is not an ontological one but a change of circumstance, because original justice was not a period of salvation. This means that Paradise was a period of development, thanks to the grace received, which is reconcilable with the principled account of natural science. The key is the distinction between Paradise and Heaven, which sets religion–science reflections in their proper context. Contribution: The article drew attention to notions of original justice, emphasising the Paradise time as the development of virtues, including the theological virtue of faith. This helps to build an adequate theological framework for a fruitful dialogue with the natural sciences, as recommended by Buitendag. (shrink)

The process of continuing education of paramedics is based on gaining educational credits during five-year educational periods. One of the forms of self-improvement are Internet-based educational programs. The lack of regulations concerning the organizational and technical aspects of e-learning made the authors attempt to analyze the phenomenon. The aim of the article is to present an initial analysis of the role of online educational programs in comparison with other forms of professional training of paramedics. One in three respondents has recently (...) used one of the methods of distance learning. Despite the low awareness of the effectiveness of e-learning, almost 70% of the interviewees expressed a positive opinion about it and over 50% were willing to use such forms in the future. The respondents preferred online trainings in the asynchronous version, containing audio-visual materials and providing the possibility to obtain a certificate issued to the participant after completing the course. The demand for topics in the area of professional training included mainly the fields of Drug Therapy, electrotherapy, electrocardiogram evaluation, medical segregation, and help in delivery in pre-hospital conditions. Modern forms of distance learning do not make it possible to acquire practical skills, yet their role in professional training of paramedics is still significant. According to the authors, online educational programs constitute an effective complement to traditional training through the performance of tasks in a mixed form, known as blended-learning. (shrink)

The general ideas of this book are of double origin. One source is akin to the relatively recent current of biological thought named Evo-Devo. Second source belongs to a more ancient French philosophical tradition represented, among others, by Bergson and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. Few words about the Evo-Devo research program. Its creation was prompted by the analysis of the developmental processes in the embryos of different species. About fifteen years ago some discoveries related to the dynamics of the embryological (...) development demonstrated a striking structural identity/stability of homeoboxes in different living forms. Homeoboxes are just small genes determining a strictly specific aminoacid sequence of short polypeptides which „act" like hormones, „regulating" the dynamism of the gradually developing body. The parentheses were used deliberately, to stress the arbitrary character of the „signalling". (shrink)

The general ideas of this book are of double origin. One source is akin to the relatively recent current of biological thought named Evo-Devo. Second source belongs to a more ancient French philosophical tradition represented, among others, by Bergson and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. Few words about the Evo-Devo research program. Its creation was prompted by the analysis of the developmental processes in the embryos of different species. About fifteen years ago some discoveries related to the dynamics of the embryological (...) development demonstrated a striking structural identity/stability of homeoboxes in different living forms. Homeoboxes are just small genes determining a strictly specific aminoacid sequence of short polypeptides which „act" like hormones, „regulating" the dynamism of the gradually developing body. The parentheses were used deliberately, to stress the arbitrary character of the „signalling". (shrink)

Since the discovery of the Neandertal bones 1856, the extremely old, fragmentary fossil remains of hundreds of man-like bodies have been discovered in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Even the oldest ones - usually the most incomplete - look man-like and „un-apish", even to a layman, if compared with a modem apish and human correlate. Sometimes, in the vicinity of these remains, primitive stone tools or the evidence of their production have been found. At present, it seems absolutely certain — within (...) the limits of our present physical and biological knowledge - that at least four million years ago, in Africa, some creatures resembling modern man were living, and that at least two and half million years ago, in Africa, stone tools were produced. In contrast with the firm, scientifically-arguable belief that all modem human tribes - however different they are - belong to a single species, in paleoanthropology an equally firm scientific belief is maintained that the extinct man-like forms belong to several different, „presapient", „prehuman'', more ape-like species. (shrink)

Główną tezą tekstu jest uznanie tzw. modelu coachingowego za pierwotny i wciąż żywy sposób uprawiania filozofii. Twierdzę, że filozofia akademicka, która od kilku stuleci tkwi w tradycji scholastycznej, może być uprawiana w modelu coachingowym. W drugim paragrafie przedstawiam odróżnienie dwóch rodzajów filozofowania: Sokratejskiego – określonego w tekście mianem „coachingowego” – oraz Arystotelesowskiego, nazywanego tutaj „scholastycznym”. W trzecim paragrafie pokazuję, w jaki sposób Wiktor Frankl nawiązuje do coachingowej tradycji uprawiania filozofii w swojej praktyce terapeutycznej. W czwartym przedstawiam przykłady zastosowania modelu coachingowego (...) w dydaktyce filozofii. (shrink)

The main thesis of this book - written by a well known epistemologist and philosopher of sciences is rather sceptical. Both parties of the conflict defend a complex set of beliefs, both a priori accept many narrow, but controversial assumptions, both often ignore the primary arguments of the opponent.

The sciences, from their ancient beginnings, use a double way of investigation. One was applied to mineral and astronomical bodies, another to living ones. A ruling, tacit, common sense methodological or epistemological principle was this: The method of description should respect the inner essential properties of the object. For instance, neither the movements of the astronomical bodies, nor the behavior of the living bodies should be described in the scale of subatomic interactions. In modern times quite another methodological principle has (...) been enthroned. The cosmos, astronomical, mineral and alive bodies altogether, have, allegedly, to be considered as a single natural whole, ruled by essentially the same set of principles. The properties of the mineral world are accepted as a universal model of descriptive concepts, and the explanatory concepts proper to the mineral world are accepted as a universal model of explanation in biology. So, up to now, the academic sciences have been dominated by the philosophical option of materialist monism, or panmaterialism. This option—we may call it antiteleologism and fragmentarism—has a profound impact on empirical research and the way biological phenomena are described. This strange, unnatural, arbitrarily imposed conceptual framework ignores the most fundamental biological dynamisms, and precludes our intellect from seeing the right questions and striving towards the right answers. Consequently it arbitrarily reduces the range of “scientifically acceptable” explanations. This antiteleological methodology of sciences, imposed on biological mind by philosophers, led to major change in the ideas of philosophers of nature. The physiology and anatomy of the fully developed living bodies has become their central object of study. Much less attention is paid to developmental processes such as biosynthesis, morphogenesis, embryogenesis, phenotypic adaptation and regeneration. The fully shaped structures and their functional properties are considered a hopeful basis of all the necessary explanations. For instance the structure of tile DNA molecule has become more important than the problem of its origin, and the structure of the brain more important than the developmental processes which lead to its construction. However, the enormous progress of biological sciences in spite of the widespread, dominating antiteleological and fragmentarist approach corroborates the very ancient, Aristotelian insight, which put the principal stress on the developmental aspect of life. Aristotle, and his more modern followers, was fascinated by the integrated and intrinsically heterogenous tendencies visible in the course of life. Today, we can say that at least eight such tendencies are universal, i.e. appear in every single form of life : The tendency to select the proper kind of raw material and the proper kind of raw energy present in the environment. The tendency to synthesize new, highly selective forms of chemical structures. The tendency to utilize biological material in the process of building the nano-, micro-, and macro-machines. The tendency for a relatively rapid, continuous production and replacement of all the elements of the functional structures of the body. The tendency for a relatively rapid, continuous modification of the functional structures in a way which makes them more efficient within a changing environment. The tendency to repair and to regenerate the damaged elements of the functional structures of the body. The tendency for multiplication, which means the production of such structures and the depots of the biological material as seeds, eggs, spores or buds. These structures, providing the environmental conditions are favorable, are starting points of new instances of the above described tendencies. The tendency—possibly universal—to provide all the structures of the body with the “recognition marks” which help to eliminate all the, “alien” bodies and to recognize members of the own kind. These tendencies are not homogeneous. Homogeneous tendencies can be illustrated by the tendency of bodies to attract one another. This kind of tendency was the empirical source of such abstract concepts as gravitation, electrostatic force or magnetic force. Biological tendencies are heterogeneous and, at the same time, integrated. Human intellect is capable of recognizing the fundamental indivisibility of the set. A great number of observations and experiments have revealed and verified the fundamental indivisibility of the whole set of these tendencies. The concrete, bodily outcomes of these tendencies, however, are quite different in different families and orders of living things. Because of these differences the existence of different kinds of integrative principles was postulated. In this way a plurality of living substances was assumed. (shrink)

The principles of the physical patterns of self-organization are numerous, different upon various levels of the scale of complexity. The integrated pattern of the changes going on in a living body indicates an integrated nature of its principle - whatever it might happen to be. Aristotle called this kind of principle „psycho", H. Driesch called it „entelecheia", sociobiolo- gists believe that D N A is the right name for it. The fundamental problem consists in seeing - not just deciding a (...) priori - if the empirical data do require - in a living organism - a single, integrating agency. If such a requirement originates in an illusion, the whole problem is fictitious. If this requirement is well founded, then we must to search for such an agent. (shrink)

Pierwsze trzy części mają charakter wstępny. Ich zadaniem jest, na podstawie filozofii procesu Whiteheada, zdefiniować podstawowe terminy, takie jak cielesność, osoba ludzka, świadomość, jedność osobowa, etapy, fazy i wymiary procesu stawania się osobą. Szczególnie istotne dla rozumienia pojęcia osoby ludzkiej okazuje się właściwe rozumienie pojęcia Boga. Wskazano różnice pomiędzy Platońską i Arystotelesowską teologią oraz psychologią, szczególnie w aspekcie duszy pożądliwej. W kolejnych częściach omówione są etapy stawania się osobą ludzką: dzieciństwo, dorosłość i dojrzałość. Każdy z nich przedstawiony zostaje z perspektywy (...) łączącej wymiar cielesny z duchowością. W ostatnim rozdziale podjęto próbę wysłowienia niektórych Platońskich intuicji psychologicznych w języku współczesnym. Przede wszystkim zrekonstruowano Platoński opis stawania się osobą dojrzałą poprzez rozwój duchowo-psychologiczny opisany w Państwie. Prowadzi to do ukazania Platonizmu jako podstawy nowoczesnej praktyki terapeutycznej. (shrink)

W swojej przełomowej pracy „Denotowanie” Bertrand Russell wprowadza rozróżnienie pomiędzy prymarnym i sekundarnym użyciem zwrotów denotujących. Rozróżnienie umożliwia opis wieloznaczności niektórych zdań zawierających zwroty denotujące. Jak zauważył Saul Kripke, chociaż rozróżnienie Russella wydaje się być dychotomiczne, niektóre wieloznaczne zdania zawierające zwroty denotujące można interpretować na więcej niż tylko dwa sposoby. W niniejszym artykule argumentuję, że istnieją jeszcze inne możliwe interpretacje, niewzmiankowane ani przez Russella, ani Kripkego. Ponadto pokazuję, że te inne możliwe interpretacje różnią się również od tzw. odczytań Fodor.

The problem of the cognitive penetrability of perception pertains to whether perceptual processing may be impacted by higher-order cognitive processes. It may be understood in a twofold sense: 1) whether what a perceptual system computes may be altered in a way that is semantically coherent to one’s cognitive states; 2) whether perceptual experience may be influenced by cognitive processes. It has been argued that the cognitive penetrability problem is not scientifically tractable since we have no direct access to other persons’ (...) subjective experiences and, therefore, we have to rely on their reports, which are mediated by higher-order processes (e.g., judgments). In this paper, I analyze the scope of methods harnessed in contemporary work on the penetrability of perception, focusing particularly on methods from experimental psychology and neuroscience. Among them, I indicate the most promising techniques and paradigms, as well as those that are inadequate to successfully tackling the problem. I also discuss experimental results which unequivocally suggest direct influences on perception which have not been addressed to date by supporters of the view that perception is impenetrable. I also describe the predictive processing theory of cognition, focusing on how it contributes to our understanding of cognitive penetrability, and discuss scientific results validating the theory. In conclusion, converging empirical evidence seems to suggest that perception is cognitively penetrable and we seem to be at the dawn of the ultimate solution of the problem. (shrink)

Celem artykułu jest analiza trwającej w środowisku filozoficznym debaty na temat możliwości wykorzystywania najnowszych osiągnięć naukowych z zakresu farmakologii, psychiatrii czy technologii informatycznej w zamiarze usprawniania sfery emocjonalnej człowieka. Perspektywa przedstawicieli ruchu transhumanistycznego uznaje, że wzmocnienia afektywne niosą ze sobą potencjał uwolnienia wszystkich świadomych istot od cierpienia oraz zapewnienia im szczęścia przez całe życie. W artykule analizowane są główne argumenty transhumanisty i filozofa Davida Pearce’a i jego programu Imperatywu Hedonistycznego. Następnie podejmuje się refleksję nad rolą i strukturą emocji w ludzkim (...) życiu, a także nad warunkami, które musiałyby spełnić środki umożliwiające osiągnięcie „permanentnego uśmiechu”, to jest nad metodami wzmocnienia afektywnego, które ograniczałyby negatywne oddziaływanie emocji na jednostkę. Analiza teoretycznych założeń projektu transhumanistycznego zostaje rozszerzona o przegląd obecnie dostępnych środków farmakologicznych oraz informatycznych, które przyczyniałyby się do wzmocnienia afektywnego człowieka i innych istot świadomych. Prowadzona analiza skupiać będzie się na dwóch rzędach ludzkiej sfery afektywnej: (1) emocjach i (2) metaemocjach. Wykazuje się, że wszelkie interwencje transhumanistyczne powinny uwzględniać kwestię autentyczności sądów wydawanych na poziomie metaemocjonalnym. (shrink)

In this paper I first briefly outline the difficulty of maintaining a realistic interpretation of religious discourse in the context of religious pluralism. Then I present two attempts to reconcile religious realism and pluralism. The first is John Hick’s proposal, the second the 'internalist pluralism' developed by Victoria Harrison on the basis of Putnam's internal realism. I point out the weaknesses of these theories. Finally, I outline my own proposal, based on a slightly different interpretation of internal realism than Harrison’s (...) internalist pluralism, namely by using the pragmatic aspects of Putnam's thought. He argues that pragmatic-realistic pluralism avoids the weaknesses of Hick’s and Harrison’s conceptions while at the same time sharing their strengths. (shrink)

The paper revises the biographical data about Michel Foucault’s stay in Poland in 1958-1959. The main inspiration comes from the recent very well documented literary reportage book by Remigiusz Ryziński, Foucault in Warsaw. Ryziński’s aim is to present the data and tell the story, not to analyse the data within the context of Foucault’s work. This paper fulfills this demand by giving additional hypotheses as to why Polish authorities expelled Foucault from Poland and what the relation was between communism and (...) homosexuality. The Polish experience, the paper compels, might have been inspiring for many of Foucault’s ideas in his Madness and Civilization, Discipline and Punish, and The History of Sexuality. On the other hand the author points to the fact that Foucault recognized the difference between the role of the intellectual in the West and in communist countries but did not elaborate on it. In this paper the main argument deals with the idea of sexual paranoia as decisive, which is missing in Foucault's works, although it is found in e.g. Guy Hocquenghem. (shrink)

This paper depicts my conception of the philosophy of religion. I think that there nothing like religion in general. The world of what is customarily called religion is a very different and analogous reality. I make Catholic Christianity the starting point of this philosophy of religion. I treat it as the main analogy to the world of religion. The objective aim of the philosophy of religion is threefold: 1) description of religion, 2) justification of religion, 3) epistemology of religious beliefs. (...) In the philosophy of religion understood in this manner I use methods proper to general metaphysics, philosophical anthropology, and theory of knowledge. (shrink)

Affective knowledge of God is a kind of knowledge which follows human affectivity. This knowledge takes place on two levels: the level of the natural inclination of man towards God and the level of the religious bias of man towards God. What is the nature of affective knowledge of God? It seems there are three problems in question. First of all, as there is a natural inclination towards God in man, one will be restless unless one recognizes or finds God. (...) Secondly, one who loves God has a new deeper knowledge of the divine things through connaturality and inclination. Thirdly, as the result of one's encounter with God and of uniting with Him, man experiences certain subjective states which cannot be expressed by words. (shrink)

Affective knowledge of God is a kind of knowledge which follows human affectivity. This knowledge takes place on two levels: the level of the natural inclination of man towards God and the level of the religious bias of man towards God. What is the nature of affective knowledge of God? It seems there are three problems in question. First of all, as there is a natural inclination towards God in man, one will be restless unless one recognizes or finds God. (...) Secondly, one who loves God has a new deeper knowledge of the divine things through connaturality and inclination. Thirdly, as the result of one's encounter with God and of uniting with Him, man experiences certain subjective states which cannot be expressed by words. (shrink)

The affective knowledge of God is this kind of knowledge that follows human affection. This knowledge comes about on two levels: on the natural human inclination to God and on the religious level of man’s orientation towards God. What is the nature of the affective knowledge of God? What does the passage of ex affectu circa divina in intellectum consist in? It seems that there are three matters: – firstly, since there is a natural inclination towards God in man (desiderium (...) naturale vivendi Deum), man will be “restless” as long as he does not recognise or find God, – secondly, who loves God gains a new and more profound knowledge of Divine matters through con-naturalness and inclination, – thirdly, as a result of meeting with God and unification with Him, man experiences certain subjective states that cannot be expressed in words. (shrink)

What determines whether the procedures for proving the affirmative statement of God's existence may be called a proof? Certainly, it is necessary that all premises be true and that a reliable inference schemata be applied. One premise appears to be the most critical in the theistic argument. This premise is the principle of sufficient reason. I hold the view that the principle of sufficient reason cannot be found among the premises of any metaphysical explanation of reality, so I suggest that (...) the terms “proof” and “argument” not be used. Instead, we could speak of ways of acquiring discursive knowledge of God and ways of indirect substantiation of God's existence. (shrink)