Conference:
From the Big Bang to Our Lives
Being Human in an Evolving Universe
Une soirée avec le cosmologue Dr. Brian Thomas Swimme
Monday, 28 September 2026 (8 p.m.) at l’Arbre qui Pousse
Nearly 100 years ago, in 1927, Belgian physicist Georges Lemaître asserted that our cosmos was in fact a cosmogony — a living process in expansion, unfolding and continuously evolving. This claim profoundly shook the scientific community, then led by Einstein, as it shattered the prevailing consensus that the universe was static and eternal. Many cosmologists consider Lemaître’s intuition to be the most important discovery of all time.
As we approach the centenary of this scientific revolution, humanity finds itself at a new threshold. Just as Lemaître transformed our understanding of the Universe, our era invites us to renew our perspective on the Earth: to recognize it as a living, finite and deeply interconnected world of which we are a part.
A question emerges: how can we be human in a living universe?
We are delighted and honored to welcome, for his first visit to Belgium, evolutionary cosmologist Brian Thomas Swimme at l’Arbre qui Pousse. He will share the fruit of fifty years of research and reflection on the great story of the Universe and our place within this cosmic unfolding.
He will invite us to explore several key questions:
How can the 14‑billion‑year history of the Universe help us understand the moment we are living through?
In the vast cosmic story, humans appear in the last millisecond. What do they bring to this unfolding? What is our most meaningful contribution within Earth’s community of life?
A shift in consciousness seems essential today. Why? And how might such a transformation radically reshape the trajectory of the Universe?
About Brian Swimme
Dr. Brian Thomas Swimme is a professor at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco and co‑founder of the Philosophy, Cosmology and Consciousness program.
He is the co‑author, with his mentor Thomas Berry, of the landmark book The Universe Story (1992). In 2022, he published Cosmogenesis: An Unveiling of the Expanding Universe, an autobiographical essay in which he shares the evolution of his own consciousness of the unfolding cosmogony.
His work focuses on the cultural, ecological and spiritual implications of contemporary evolutionary cosmology, carrying forward the legacy of Georges Lemaître, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, and cultural historian Thomas Berr.
Practical information
20:00 – Start of the conference (doors and bar open at 19:30)
22:00 – End of the conference
Important: this conference will be held in English. It is therefore preferable to have a good understanding of the language in order to fully benefit from the content.
In addition to the conference, a one‑day exploratory seminar with Brian Swimme and Gauthier Chapelle will take place the following day, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at l’Arbre qui Pousse.
Address: Chemin du Griffon 1, 1340 Ottignies‑Louvain‑la‑Neuve - Access Map
Access:
By bike: you can lock your bicycle on site.
By train and on foot: Ottignies station — go up to the footbridge (from the platforms) and follow this route (25 min).
By car: park near the barn or close to the farm on Rue du Corbeau. As parking spaces are limited, and in order to respect nature as much as possible, please prioritise carpooling. Here is a link to help you find people to carpool with.
CONFERENCE FEES
Sprout: €20 (fair price)
Tree: €30 (supporting price that helps others join)
Seed: €12 (solidarity price, or AqP member – 20 places available)
« The challenge of our time is to develop an imagination that can see beyond the chaos to the creative processes at play in our world.» — Dr. Brian Thomas Swimme