Join this Critical Tech Talk Pop-Up event to hear Anne Pasek, CRC in Media, Culture and the Environment at Trent University.
About the talk
This talk will survey two trajectories for computing in North America. The first, grounded in an energy history of major players in the tech sector, explores how energy efficiency has been both a driving economic force of our digital present and an insufficient means to mitigate its rapidly growing environmental impacts. The second, drawn from artists and hackers experimenting in degrowth computing, 'small tech,' and solar-powered networks, explores how energy constraints are producing an alternative and dissonant path. Thinking these trajectories together, the talk will outline a politics and practice of digital energetics.
About the speaker
Anne Pasek is an Assistant Professor at Trent University, dividing her time between the Department of Cultural Studies and the Trent School of the Environment. Her work explores the environmental impacts of digital technologies, the cultural politics of climate change, and critical making/artistic practices that might provide new avenues through these tricky problems. Her books include Digital Energetics (Meson Press 2023) and Low-Carbon Research Methods (Goldsmiths, forthcoming 2025).
Moderator
Dr. Marcel O'Gorman, University Research Chair, professor of English, and founding director of the Critical Media Lab (CML), University of Waterloo. Professor O'Gorman leads collaborative design projects and teaches courses and workshops in critical media studies and responsible innovation. He has published widely about the impacts of technology on society, and he has an international portfolio of exhibitions and performances.
Please register for this event