The Political Economy of Hacking – Accelerate, Augment, or Abolish the Markets?
Circle 6: Appropriating Technology for Societal Change
26th of July - 2nd of August, Saulkrasti, Latvia
Deadline for applications: 1st of May
Theme of the symposium
Technology disrupt markets. It is open to debate, however, what this implies for the future of the market economy. Some hackers and activists look forward to the day when technological progress has abolished the need for
market exchanges. For instance, self-acclaimed pirates strive to make intellectual property unenforceable with file sharing protocols. Hobby-engineers develop self-reproducing 3D printers under the slogan: “wealth-without-money”. The digital currency Faircoin
has been launched as a more equitable alternative to the existing monetary system. Peer production, exemplified in free software development, is showcased as a non-coercive model for organizing work. Towering above these initiatives is basic income as a redistributive
principle, arguably better adjusted to the age of full automation.
The post-capitalist future envisioned by some hackers and activists contrasts with the “accelerationist” vision. According to the latter viewpoint, it is not markets but monopolies, guild privileges, and state regulations
that are unsettled by technological breakthroughs. Virtual reality paves the way for “augmented property”, block-chain technology unlocks new areas of the lifeworld to just-in-time monetary flows, and computerization allows work to be parceled up in ever finer
tasks and micropayments. Whose utopia will carry the day – you are invited to take part in the discussion!
Relevant themes for presentations may include, but is not limited to, the following questions:
·
Is peer production still on the agenda after the rise of the “sharing economy”?
·
Is basic income the answer to automation and jobless growth?
·
What are the identities of future workers: employees, turkers, makers?
·
How is wealth distribution affected by platform capitalism?
·
What new avenues of marketization will be opened-up with block-chain technology?
·
Can alternative currencies be designed to fix the monetary system?
·
Historical perspectives on the rise of peer production/platform capitalism/sharing economy
·
Theoretical perspectives at the intersection of hacking, high-tech markets, and labour
Format of the presentation
Presentation of work:
We wish to facilitate debates and therefore encourage free oral presentation rather than reading from a paper. A presentation should aim for 20-30 min., leaving time for discussions.
Text:
You can offer to present a text (own writing or a published text) which has been distributed beforehand to the participants. The text should not exceed 25 pages. The presentation must give a short introduction of the argumentation
allowing participants to engage in discussion.
Submit via email. Deadline, 1st of May, 2017:
1. A written proposal
(ca 350 words) with a title, its format its duration.
2. A short bio (ca 100 words).
Submit to: [email protected] and
[email protected]
If you would like to attend the symposium without presenting, please email a short bio. Participants with presentations will be given priority. Preliminary program will be announced on 15th of May on www.nordic.university.
Late submissions will continued to be considered, until the maximum number of participants is reached.
Application process and registration
The application process has two steps:
(1) Application to coordinators for acceptance of presentation or participation without presentation.
(2) After you have been accepted, the next step is registration and payments, which
closes on 1st of June. All registration and payment will be done electronically.
Note if you apply for participating late, payment must still be completed 1st of June.
Keynote speakers at NSU
Sigridur Thorgeirsdottir, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Iceland.
Cecilia Malmström Olsson, freelance dance researcher, writer, lecturer.
Cost and accommodation
The NSU summer session is held from 26th of July to 2nd of August 2017 in Minhauzena Unda, Saulkrasti (Latvia)
For more information about the place, please visit:
https://nsu2017.wordpress.com/
Total cost per adult person, including accommodation and full pension, ranges from 200-550 € depending on the accommodation of choice. Grant and scholarship are available under certain conditions. See further on combination
of categories and prices here: https://payment.nsuweb.org/
To Doctorate Candidates
Despite its name, Nordic Summer School is not a summer school targeting doctorate candidates. It invites participants on all levels of the university as
well as from outside academia. That being said, doctorate student is on request awarded 5 credits for participation and presentation at NSU.