[Air-L] Digital Technology and Sustainability: Call for chapter abstracts

[Roy Bendor]

Call for Chapter Abstracts
Working Title: Digital Technology and Sustainability: Acknowledging Paradox,
Facing Conflict, and Embracing Disruption
Edited collection to be published by Routledge

Editors:
Mike Hazas, Lancaster University, UK
Lisa Nathan, University of British Columbia, Canada

Important dates
28 May 2016 ­ Extended chapter abstracts due (2,500 words, plus references)
30 June 2016 ­ Acceptance notification
31 August 2016 ­ First full draft of chapters due (5,000-6,000 words)
Sept 2016-March 2017 ­ Feedback, Revisions, Contributor Conversations and
Book Workshops 
21 April 2017 ­ Final drafts of all chapters, responses, etc.

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Digital technologies are hailed as revolutionary solutions to the problems
of environmental sustainability; smarter homes, more persuasive
technologies, and a robust Internet of Things hold the promise for
maintaining our lifestyles and sustaining our ecosystems. Yet, deployments
of interactive technologies for such purposes often lead to a paradox: the
tools algorithmically "optimize" heating and lighting of houses without
regard to the dynamics of daily life in the home; they collect and display
data that allows us to reflect on energy and emissions, while raising our
expectations for comfort and convenience; we can share ideas for sustainable
living through social networking and online communities, yet these same
systems enable entirely new forms of consumerism. By acknowledging these
paradoxes we make room for critical inquiry into digital technology¹s
longer-term impacts on ideals of sustainability.

This text brings together diverse scholars, researchers and practitioners
willing to study, critique, and reorient dominant narratives and approaches
to designing interactive digital technologies that support sustainability.

Objectives
-  To articulate and address the conundrums (theoretical, methodological,
practical) for digital technology, and sustainable HCI in particular, in a
single definitive volume;
-  To advance an iterative, interactive process (e.g., virtual workshops and
one-to-ones) between scholars in the field;
-  Create a touchstone that scholars, students and interested members of the
broader public can use to develop their understandings of sustainability in
a digital future;
-  To initiate accessible and engaging modes of broad dissemination to
coincide with the release of the book (e.g., video shorts and animations).

A list of possible content areas for which we are seeking chapter
contributions are listed below; but topics are not strictly limited to
these.  For more information on the content, participants, and the unique
process we envision for this book, please see the full version of the call
at:  http://tinyurl.com/jrtvlcz

Please send enquiries and submissions to lisa.nathan at ubc.ca and
m.hazas at lancaster.ac.uk

Critical Ethical Reflections - Who Are We To Decide What Is Of Value, What
Is Worth Sustaining?
Politics/Economics ­ Fundamental To Any New Tool, Yet Rarely Explicitly
Addressed
Shifting Orientations: Lengthening Temporal Scales/Accepting The Unknown:
With The Uncertainty And Unpredictability Of Effecting Change.
Shifting The Norms Of IT Development/Practice: Developing Ways Of
Fundamentally Shifting Current Trajectories Of ICT Development And Education
Proxies For Sustainability (Emissions, Energy, Reliance On Natural
Resources), And Approaches For Addressing These Infrastructure
Considerations
The Role Of Activism In Scholarly Work Tied To Environmental Concerns
Relationships Between Sustainability And Social Justice
Criteria of Excellence: Development of a broad set of expectations for
future research in sustainable HCI.