C&T 2017: Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies
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- Conference PaperShare Yourself First: Exploring Strategies for the Creation of Locative Content for and by Low-literacy Communities(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Silva, Cláudia; Nisi, Valentina; Straubhaar, Joseph D.This paper explores motivations and strategies for fostering the production of locative storytelling among underserved communities, specifically the demographic group of Latinos facing the legacy of racial segregation in central Texas. We report on the findings from ethnographic fieldwork conducted in the context of a community computer training program provided by a non-profit organization that partnered with us. We trained a group of adults in locative and mobile media and asked them to choose meaningful locations in the neighborhood in which they live and produce related written stories. Results from the study shed light on the motivations (or lack of) for participating in locative media practices, highlighting in particular that individual mentorship and rapport-building through the sharing of personal content are key strategies in engaging these communities in locative media in general and content sharing specifically.
- Conference PaperCivic Intelligence in an Uncertain and Threatening World(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Concilio, G.; De Liddo, A.; Schuler, Douglas; Smith, J.This workshop is intended to help explore a variety of often disconnected viewpoints, experiments, research efforts, and computer programs with the explicit purpose of developing more coherent approaches that help support the maintenance and enhancement of civic intelligence under our current and somewhat ominous circumstances.
- Conference PaperGood for Whom?: Unsettling Research Practice(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Nathan, Lisa P.; Kaczmarek, Michelle; Castor, Maggie; Cheng, Shannon; Mann, RaquelThrough this paper, we join others concerned by the rhetoric that research and technology design contribute to a common good. We argue that framings of commonality obfuscate the detrimental effects of accepted research practice, particularly for disenfranchised communities. Claims of a common good are in alignment with a colonial perspective---a single all knowing entity, in this case personified by the researcher, who has the expertise and experience necessary to identify what is of benefit to all. Our argument is informed by our engagement with four Indigenous community|academic partnerships. We describe our efforts to avoid perpetuating problematic (yet common) research dynamics through questioning, critiquing and adjusting our practices as a research team. We offer understandings gained through attempts to unsettle our approach to research, grounded by the diverse experience and envisioned futures of our partners. We argue for the continued need for spaces where the short and longer-term implications of research practice can be articulated, discussed and acted upon.
- Conference PaperCentralized Crowdsourcing in Disaster Management: Findings and Implications(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Auferbauer, D.; Tellioğlu, HildaComputer supported cooperative work (CSCW) has become an important aspect in crisis and disaster management. Volunteers undertaking relief efforts in affected areas are increasingly using information and communication technologies to coordinate their work. Relief organizations are recognizing this trend and have started to adapt new communication channels to interact with citizens. In this paper, we describe the crowdtasking approach, a centralized form of crowdsourcing for crisis and disaster management. We present a prototype implementation of the approach and report on our findings from the system's first field trial. We conclude by discussing implications of this approach for CSCW and community building in crisis and disaster management. Lastly, we give an outlook on future research based on our experience with crowdtasking.
- Conference PaperDesign for Existential Crisis in the Anthropocene Age(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Light, Ann; Powell, Alison; Shklovski, IrinaWhat should be our orientation to the socio-technical as climate predictions worsen; ecological crises and wars escalate mass migration and refugee numbers; right-wing populism sweeps through politics; automation threatens workers' jobs and austerity policies destabilize society? What is to be done when it is not "business as usual" and even broken concepts of progress seem no longer to be progressing? We ask how to design for the common good, focusing on human needs for meaning, fulfillment, dignity and decency, qualities which technology struggles to support but can easily undermine. We juxtapose the design of computing that offers hope with that which offers only distraction, propose four modes to design for (being attentive, critical, different and in it together) and conclude with a plea to avoid tools that encourage a blinkered existence at a time of great uncertainty and change.
- Conference PaperParticipatory Design, Beyond the Local(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Teli, Maurizio; Antoniadis, P.; Bassetti, C.; De Paoli, S.; Apostol, I.; Allegretti, G.; Secchi, M.This workshop aims at stimulating and opening a debate around the capacity of Participatory Design (PD) and other co-design approaches to deliver outcomes and methodologies that can have an impact and value for reuse well beyond the local context in which they were originally developed. This will be achieved by stimulating the submission of position papers by researchers from the PD community and beyond. These papers will be discussed during the workshop in order to identify challenges, obstacles but also potentials for scaling up PD processes and results from the local to the global.
- Conference PaperInterpersonal Influence in Viral Social Media: A Study of Refugee Stories on Virality(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Mansour, Osama; Olson, NasrineThe expansion of social media use has enabled massive and rapid spreadability of content, which is often referred to as virality. Earlier studies have examined various aspects of virality such as the attributes of stories that become viral. In this on-going study we aim to make a better sense of the role of interpersonal influences in the spreadability of viral social media content. In this, we are inspired by Tarde's views on interpersonal processes and the notion of imitation. Considering the recent mass migrations, and numerous viral stories that have related to the plight of refugees, we chose a group of Syrian refugees consisting of men and women as the participants for this study. In twelve in-depth qualitative interviews we learned about the participants' views on viral stories as well as the way in which their interpersonal influences may play a role in their interaction with viral stories. The findings show that the views on migrant-related viral stories varied among the participants, but a common view seemed to be somewhat of scepticism about the agenda behind the spread of these stories. As part of the study, we identified four key interpersonal influences including community conversation, formative consciousness, community boundaries, and retrospective experiences. A main conclusion in the study is that although back-end technical issues, content attributes, emotions and so on may play a role in virality, still human agency, connections and interpersonal ties play a major role in shaping the process that leads to content spreadability, hence virality.
- Conference Paper3D Printing/Digital Fabrication for Education and the Common Good(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Stickel, O.; Aal, K.; Fuchsberger, V.; Rüller, S.; Wenzelmann, V.; Pipek, Volkmar; Wulf, Volker; Tscheligi, Manfred3D printing has 1 become an area of intense interest in many disciplines ranging from industry through education, humanitarian and innovation contexts to research. At the same time, technologies, materials, usages and appropriation are in constant flux. 3D printing is but one of the many facet of digital fabrication, the digitalization of more sectors, "Industry 4.0" and increasing community-based innovation and (open/commons-oriented) engineering practices. This workshop is intended to illustrate and discuss cases, positions, concepts and experiences related to such developments in digital fabrication, especially in 3D printing. We specifically look for contributions highlighting the role of digital fabrication and 3D printing for the common good and the education sector. This is in line with C&T's socio-technical focus, research suggesting the immense potential in digital fabrication and education as well as growing practices in using digital fabrication/3D printing in humanitarian efforts.
- Conference PaperThe Role of Participatory Social Mapping in the Struggle of the Territory and the Right to the City: A Case Study in Buenos Aires(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Portela, Manuel; Paz Errandonea, LucíaWe present a case study of Social Mapping and Participatory Cartography over a shaded territory in Buenos Aires City, Argentina. The project "Caminos de la Villa" was possible thanks to the collaboration of multiple NGOs that worked together to provide visibility on development issues in poor neighborhoods, commonly called "Villas" and "Asentamientos". We take a critical perspective on how developing such tools are embedded of expectation, negotiations and interactions between actors. Doing ethnographic research and documentation analysis, we found that the value for residents is not in the tool itself but in the appropriation process and empowering, led by acquiring new knowledge at working collectively.
- Conference PaperDesigning Participation for the Digital Fringe(Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017) Davis, Hilary; Hespanhol, Luke; Farmer, Jane; Fredericks, Joel; Caldwell, Glenda A.; Hoggenmueller, MariusDigital participation is emerging as a key issue for researchers, designers, educators, industry and others as government policy increasingly seeks to include people in decision-making about all aspects of their lives. Yet, that tends to focus predominantly on mainstream communities of highly urbanized settlements, often neglecting segments of society lacking access to resources, digital technology or telecommunications infrastructure. Likewise, people from diverse and marginalised backgrounds, or who are socially excluded, such as people living with disability, the elderly, disadvantaged youth and women, people identifying as LGBTI, refugees and migrants, Indigenous people and others, are particularly vulnerable to digital under-participation, thereby compounding disadvantage. This workshop proposes to identify practical, innovative, and sensitive design solutions to support digital participation for disadvantaged communities in urban and regional environments; foster digital skills within and across communities; investigate the role of proxies in digital inclusion; and discuss design strategies for sustaining digital inclusion in the long run.