Tales from the CyberSalon – #3 Future Communities
Cybersalon presents: Tales from the Cyber Salon; a series of interdisciplinary, technology and policy investigations through science-fiction storytelling. Spanning four events across the year, ‘Tales from the Cyber Salon’ will feature newly commissioned, speculative short stories written for the exploration of Healthcare, The High Street, Digital Communities and Political Representation.
This event will be held at 6.30pm on the 21st September 2021 as a Zoom Event.
The Internet’s role as a force for rapidly changing our experience of community was provided some surprise competition this past year, in the form of Covid-19. We’ve met our neighbours clapping for the NHS, sometime for the first time, and stayed in touch through hyper-local, social media and chat. We’ve traded hugs for high-definition video calls and the euphoria of crowds for the endless recycling of cardboard delivery packaging. As we emerge from our lockdowns and self-imposed isolations into the world again, is this our chance to choose our communities anew? Who might they be next? What could they look like? Have we discovered Covid-19 ‘keepers’ or developed ones we should never want again?
In their seminal 1986 study, McMillan and Chavis identified four elements contributing to a “sense of community”: Membership, Influence, Reinforcement, and Shared Emotional Connection. As our territorial and technological landscapes continue to evolve, we invite you to explore that definition with us and to offer new visions of community in our near-future.
- Expert Panel Lead: Rachael Armstrong (@livingarchitect), Professor of Experimental Architecture in the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape at Newcastle University, 2010 Senior TED Fellow & Metabolism Lead Coordinator for the Living Architecture Systems Group.
- Expert Panel: Edward Saperia (@edsaperia), Dean of The London College of Political Technologists at Newspeak House, Wikimania 2014 Conference Director, Community Strategist and Game Designer.
- Expert Panel: Yen Ooi (@yenooi), Visiting Lecturer MA Creative Writing University of Westminster, Councillor & Member British Science Fiction Association, Advisory Board Member Readerly, PHD Candidate Royal Holloway.
Chair Eva Pascoe (Cybersalon.org)
The event will be hosted by Benjamin Greenaway – CyberSalonista & ‘Tales from the CyberSalon’ series Co-Host.
Telling their tales on the night and providing their stories from September 19th here and on Cybersalon’s Medium page to seed the discussion will be:
- Stephen Oram (series Co-Host)
- Wendy M. Grossman
- Jesse Rowell
- Liam Hogan
