Kelly Bronson

University of Ottawa

is the guest at a seminar organized as part of her stay at the CSI

on May 2, 2024 from 2:30 to 4 pm

at Mines Paris – PSL, 60 bd Saint Michel, 75006 Paris

Immaculate conception of data:

agribusiness, activists and their shared politics of the future

Conception immaculée des données: agribusiness, activistes et leur politique commune de l’avenir

Outline: I bring a sociological and STS lens to analysis of large agricultural firms who used to supply farmers tractors, chemicals and seeds but who now trade in big data and AI.

In this talk, I will draw from an ethnographic book project to develop a closely observed account of scientists and farmers working across a variety of domains – from private labs to farm fields to activist technology-building workshops. I will use stories to describe what is being done with agricultural big data and AI by those hoping to innovate food production. In addition to thickly describing data practices, I will detail the magical qualities that people are investing in AI systems, ultimately exploring what happens to environmental and food justice when emergent technologies get caught up in pre-existing arrangements of power and historic habits of thought and speech.

Information and registration: