On the occasion of World Philosophy Day, New Acropolis London organised their 10^th Happening on the street to promote UNESCO’s World Philosophy Day, raise awareness of the usefulness of philosophy for contributing to the solutions of our current global problems and engage the general public in philosophical dialogue.

People from all walks of life and many different countries responded very warmly to the opportunity to stop, reflect and have a deep, meaningful conversation with a stranger.

We invited them to pull out a card from a set with questions, such as: “What is the Good? Can happiness be a choice? What is worth striving for? Is it always better to seek pleasure over pain? Does it matter what I do? Can I change who I am?” etc. The questions started off the conversation which often developed into an experience of connection and shared humanity.

Another set of cards with universal maxims and quotes of wisdom invited them to see whether they would agree with the sentence or not, e.g.: “You are stronger than you think. Money can’t buy you happiness. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” Again, the quotes inspired people to think and try to express their thoughts in words.

Despite the grey November weather, many people agreed to stop and speak to us, and in the end people were coming to us wanting to know more about philosophy and our school. This reaffirmed the need for philosophy, dialogue and connection with others.