2014 Conference Theme: "Individual, Community, Society: Conflict, Resolution and Synergy"

Conflict from earliest times has been a characteristic of the human condition. The struggle between our individual selves and our social selves arises from what makes us unique on the one hand, being challenged by our being part of an interdependent structure of relationships on the other.

The specific blend of experiences, abilities, attitudes, and aspirations, that helps to define us, can sit sometimes uncomfortably alongside our commitments to those closest to us, our communities and our cultures. This can lead to conflict at different levels.

Conflict within communities and societies is inevitable given that these groups are based on commonality of geography, values, attitudes, and beliefs that help to differentiate one from another. The dialectic engendered by diversity, however, although it may lead to conflict, can play an important role in the expansion of ideas in communities and societies. One major challenge of modern society is to harness the synergy that emerges from the interactive dialectic generated by these differences.

As it enters its fourth year, The Asian Conference on Sustainability, Energy and the Environment will again include a variety of presenters representing a wide range of social science disciplines, expressing divergent views, searching for common ground, and creating the synergies that can inspire multi-disciplinary collaborations. In developing these relationships among ourselves, the role of the social sciences is strengthened as we take our place at the table, along with scholars in the STEM disciplines (i.e., science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), in seeking solutions to the complex issues and problems of the 21st century.

ACSEE 2014 will address these various dimensions of human sustainability as we invite scholars from around the world to address questions and search for synergies and solutions to the complex issues surrounding sustainability in a forum encouraging serious and thoughtful exchange between academics, members of the global business community, and practitioners in the fields of human endeavor that link these. We call on scientists from around the globe to meet and share our respective outlooks and collective wisdom on a critical issue of common concern: the pursuit of a sustainable world.