Data Colonialism and a Path Towards Data Sovereignty and Digital Sustainability

Mittwoch, 26.05.2021, 13:30 Uhr

The online conference «Data Colonialism and a Path Towards Data Sovereignty and Digital Sustainability» on Wednesday, 26 May 2021 addresses the challenge that much of today's data and digital infrastructure is controlled by the private tech industry leading to the new threat of «data colonialism». This phenomenon is being introduced in a presentation by Nick Couldry and Ulises A. Mejias, the authors of the book «The Costs of Connection - How Data Is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating It for Capitalism». To illustrate how this issue impacts environmental data used for climate change research and other global challenges, Fatine Ezbakhe and Andreas Heinimann present insights from their research with water and earth observation data. A new study of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) summarizes these challenges of digitalization and sustainability and is thus presented by their authors and reviewers Matthias Stürmer, Jasmin Nussbaumer, Morgane Bousquet, and Yvan Keckeis. In a concluding discussion round, the audience has the opportunity to ask questions to the speakers and reflect on their statements.