[HacktionLab] Call for Papers: Anarchism and Technology

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This may be of interest to some.

> Call for Papers
>
> "Anarchism and Technology"
> A special issue of Anarchist Studies
>
> Editors: Michael Truscello and Uri Gordon
>
> Deadline for abstracts: 1 August 2011
> Deadline for papers: 1 February 2012
>
> Throughout its history, the anarchist movement has had an ambivalent
> relationship with technology, with activists and writers approaching the
> issue on the full spectrum between celebration and abolitionism. This
> trend has continued with the revitalization of anarchist resistance and
> theory in the last decades, with phenomena as diverse and
> seemingly-contradictory as the wholesale adoption and development of
> information and communication technologies, the primitivist critique of
> civilization and rewilding practices, and the uptake of practical ecology
> applications and models by anarchsits around the world. Nevertheless,
> anarchist and anarchist-inspired writings on technological issues remain
> quite scant, especially in the scholarly rather than polemical register.
>
> The proposed special issue of Anarchist Studies seeks to address this gap,
> in bringing together a focused discussion of all aspects related to the
> anarchism/technology nexus. Naturally, this is not the first time
> activists and scholars have promoted the concept of technology in harmony
> with nature. Philosopher John Clark, for example, checklists a host of
> famous theories that demand consonance between human beings and nature:
> "what Illich calls 'convivial tools,' Schumacher labels 'intermediate
> technology,' and Bookchin (perhaps most adequately) describes as
> 'liberatory technology,' or 'ecotechnology'" (1985:196). Clark was writing
> about technology and anarchism 25 years ago. What do contemporary
> anarchists have to say about technology?
>
> Abstracts are invited for papers that would address any intersection of
> anarchism and technology. Topics might include:
>
> - Anarchist theories and critiques of technology, from any tendency within
> anarchist thought
>
> - Historical approaches to technology by anarchist movements or writers
>
> - Anarchist-inspired infrastructures and new forms of satisfying
> necessities, anarchist perspectives on the transition from oil-dependent
> capitalism to alternative energies and practices
>
> - Social media and revolution (the Iranian "Twitter Revolution," the
> Egyptian "Facebook Revolution," etc.)
>
> - Anarchist critiques of civilization and practices of rewilding
>
> - Totalitarian "technological drift" (Langdon Winner) and anarchist
> responses
>
> - Technological abilities/ableism
>
> - Anarchist dimensions of Free and Open Source Software
>
> - Technosocial assemblages and (the subversion of) regimes of domination
>
> - Anarchist readings of contemporary events/issues, such as Wikileaks and
> the Julian Assange saga
>
> Abstracts (up to 350 words) should be sent by 1 August 2011 to the editors
> by email (truscello at gmail.com, uri at riseup.net)
>
> Once an abstract is accepted, the full paper will be expected by 1
> February 2012. Papers will be subject to anonymous peer-review and the
> author may be asked to respond to comments or make additions and
> corrections.