res futura

res futura is a Toronto-based collective of workers, artists, and students.

res futura hosts Q&A, a weekly in-person educational forum.

res futura publishes online articles and a semiannual print issue.

Q&A is an educational forum. Every Thursday at Q&A, an expert delivers a lecture, then hosts an open discussion and question period. All our events are free. No background required.

Q&A meets every Thursday at 6 pm at the OISE Building (252 Bloor St. W), rm. 8200.

Please note that our room number has changed!

May 14 (Robin Dineshkumar): The world as categories: Kant’s first principles

May 21 (Jonathan Russell | Transindividuality): Gilbert Simondon’s critique of cybernetics

May 28 (Susanna Hermanns): The history of pigeons and their fellow travelers

June 4 (Naseem Rine Reesha | Topics in Psychoanalysis): The problems of interpretation

(Interested in more details? Subscribe to our mailing list.)

Current Q&A series

Topics in Psychoanalysis. Psychoanalytic theory lies at the root of modern forms of psychotherapy. It also remains an essential foundation for many contemporary therapists’ understanding of their vocation. But psychoanalytic theory is not only relevant to therapists: it has exerted—and continues to exert—powerful influence upon political, historical, philosophical, and literary thought. This lecture series will cover diverse topics in classic and current psychoanalytic theorizing, weaving together thinkers from psychoanalysis’s international traditions, including those inaugurated by Freud, Jung, Klein, Fairbairn, Lacan, and Laplanche. Lectures are led by Naseem Rine-Reesha, a psychotherapist and former university instructor.

The (Dis)illusion of the Self: Philosophy of Transindividuality. What is it to be an individual, truly? Where does the individual start and end? Something of the image of the rugged loner, capable of all that they need, entirely of their own doing, doesn’t ring true. The promise of that way of life seldom seems to come true, never mind come about. Perhaps what we sense as false in this is more fundamental than a critique of media images might suggest. Join us as we explore the philosophy of transindividuality, a concept that suggests that connection is fundamental to our experience as beings, and that we can only know ourselves through one another.

Current seminars

Hegel: An introduction. Registration is now open. See our dedicated page for more info.

FAQ

I would like more info and updates about Q&A lectures. Subscribe to our mailing list.

How do I get in contact? General inquiries may be directed to q-and-a@resfutura.ca. Contact our Members Officer (members@resfutura.ca) for matters relating to Members and Executives of Res Futura, our Financial Officer (finance@resfutura.ca) for financial concerns, and our University Officer (university@resfutura.ca) for relations with students and student groups.

I would like to lecture at Q&A. The key criterion for our selection of lectures for Q&A is its relevance to the community that attends Q&A. Thus, if you are interested in lecturing at Q&A, we invite you first to learn about the community for whom you will be lecturing, by attending regularly at Q&A for a period of time. Talk to an Executive of Res Futura at Q&A to get the ball rolling on your own lecture.

Are there recordings/livestreams of Q&A lectures? We do produce recordings of Q&A, including both the lecture and the discussion period. Recordings are private, and may be shared with you on an individual basis with the lecturer’s consent. Email us to request a particular lecture recording. As a rule, we do not livestream Q&A sessions.

What are my donations at Q&A used for? Res Futura is an unincorporated not-for-profit association, which means that none of our revenues are used to pay our Executives. Lecturers are unpaid as a rule, but invited guest speakers may receive an honorarium. Donations received at Q&A, as well as proceeds from our journal sales, are used entirely to fund expenses associated with Q&A, as well as to support Res Futura’s journal.

How do I become a Member or Executive of Res Futura? View the rights and responsibilities of our Members and Executives, as well as our membership procedures, here.