Dear colleagues,
together with Christian Katzenbach I am organizing a workshop on the role of future imaginaries in the making and governing of digital technology.
It will take place on 27 April 2018 at the Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society in Berlin.
We are happy that Sally Wyatt (Maastricht University) will hold a keynote. See further details of the workshop below and in the attachment.
If you'd like to participate in the workshop, please send an english language abstract (300-500 words) until 2 March 2018.
We encourage you to also submit work-in-progress.
Please contact me off-list if you have further questions!
We're looking forward to your contributions!
Thanks! Best, Astrid
“We are on a mission”. Exploring the role of future imaginaries in
the making and governing of digital technology
Call for Abstracts
Deadline: 02.03.2018
Workshop
Friday, 27 April 2018
Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society
Französische Straße 9,
10117 Berlin, Germany
Keynote: Sally Wyatt (Maastricht University)
“We are on a mission to build a more open, accessible, and fair
financial future, one piece of software at a time” promises the software
platform Blockchain. “Imagine if everyone could get around easily and
safely, without tired, drunk or distracted driving” envisions the
self-driving car company Waymo(a subsidiary of Google's parent company,
Alphabet Inc.). “The Regulation is an essential step to strengthen
citizens' fundamental rights in the digital age and facilitate business
by simplifying rules for companies in the Digital Single Market” claims
the European Commissionwith regard to the General Data Protection
Regulation.
These examples show how imaginaries of future societies are enacted to
promote digital innovations or legitimate certain modes of internet
governance. They illustrate how software providers, tech companies and
legislators dig into the rich pool of cultural norms, visions and values
to support (or question) digital tools, rules and regulations. Future
prospects seem to be central for making decisions in the present.
What role do future imaginaries perform in the making and governing of
present digital technology? How are they mobilised to push or oppose
digital innovations such as artificial intelligence, the internet of
things, blockchain technology or open source/open data projects? How are
prospective imaginaries shaped in policy discourses and governance
practices regarding networked technology and global data flows? What
significance do European specificities have in global technology
imaginations? Can different mechanisms be identified in mainstream
discourses and counter-narratives? What happens if future scenarios are
contested and digital promises become contradictory?
Themes of the Workshop
These are central questions to be discussed in our workshop. We welcome
theoretical, methodological and empirical contributions that help us
understand how the future is mobilized to make and govern digital
technology in the present.
The workshop is organized around three central themes:
1.
Theories and concepts to analytically grasp future visions and their
roles in the making and governance of digital technology
2.
Methods and tools to analyze the nexus between future imaginations
and their functions in and impact on policy-making and technology
development
3.
Empirical research and case studies on future imaginaries and their
roles in the making and governing of present digital technology
Submission
We welcome theoretical, methodological and empirical contributions from
various disciplines that speak to the themes of the workshop. Please
send an english language 300–500 word abstract including titlethat
describes your contribution to the workshop. We encourage you to submit
work-in-progress.
Abstracts are submitted via e-mail to astrid.mager@oeaw.ac.at
before 2 March 2018. We will send out
notifications on 13 March 2018.
Organisers
Astrid Mager
Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA), Austrian Academy of Sciences
astrid.mager@oeaw.ac.at
Christian Katzenbach
Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society
katzenbach@hiig.de
--
Dr. Astrid Mager
Institute of Technology Assessment (ITA)
Austrian Academy of Sciences
NEW ADDRESS: Apostelgasse 23, A-1030 Vienna
astrid.mager@oeaw.ac.at
Tel.: +43 (0)1 515 81-6598
Fax: (+43-1-) 51581-6570
http://www.oeaw.ac.at/ita/mager
http://www.astridmager.net
[demime 1.01d removed an attachment of type application/pdf which had a name of Workshop_ We are on a mission. Exploring the role of future imaginaries in the making and governing of digital technology.pdf]
___
EASST's Eurograd mailing list
Eurograd (at) lists.easst.net
Unsubscribe or edit subscription options: http://lists.easst.net/listinfo.cgi/eurograd-easst.net
Meet us via https://twitter.com/STSeasst
Report abuses of this list to Eurograd-owner@lists.easst.net
