The UFV Virtue and Values Education Centre celebrates Character Week from 9 to 13 March
The Virtue and Values Education Centre at the Francisco de Vitoria University will hold “Character Week” from 9 to 13 March, a week dedicated to reflection on character, virtues and the integral formation of the person through a range of cultural and academic activities.
Throughout the week, the corridor of the Central Building (modules 3 to 5) will host an exhibition on literature and virtues, featuring a selection of texts from great classics accompanied by original illustrations. The exhibition invites members of the university community to reflect on the importance of forging character through literature and art.
Character Week will open on Monday 9 March at 12.00 with the talk–workshop “What If the Brain Needs to Give Thanks?”, in which Prof. Elena Bernabéu will explore the benefits of gratitude from a neuroscientific perspective.
On Wednesday 11 March at 12.00, the Square will host a special event organised in collaboration with It’s Time To Think, entitled “Why Not Be a Bastard?”. In this dialogue, Chema Alejos and José Luis Parada, lecturers in Humanities at UFV, will invite the university audience to question prevailing narratives and to explore more deeply the ethical meaning of personal decisions.
Bringing the week to a close, the international conference “Educating for Moral Flourishing: Interdisciplinary Perspectives from Virtue Ethics, Moral Psychology, Justice, Sociology, and Theology” will take place on 12 and 13 March. The conference will examine how education can create the necessary conditions for individuals not only to live morally, but to attain a fulfilled life, in a context marked by social fragmentation, moral uncertainty and psychological vulnerability.
The conference will bring together contributions from different disciplines (virtue ethics, moral psychology, sociology, justice and theology) in order to address the theoretical foundations, practical applications and lived experiences of moral education in diverse cultural contexts and traditions.
Highlighted topics include character development, empathy, humility and the institutional and community practices that sustain moral flourishing.
The event will also feature distinguished international experts such as Prof. James Arthur, Prof. Martín Echavarría, Prof. Glen Pettigrove, Prof. Mario De Caro, Prof. Carlos Granados and Prof. Chiara Palazzolo.
Through these activities, “Character Week” will provide a space for academic and cultural dialogue on character, virtues and the role of education in building a good life and a more just and humane society.
