Global

The internet has not fulfilled many of the optimistic expectations of the role it would play in democracy and development, and has, in fact, become a ground for denial of rights and voice of marginalised groups and people. But the making of a feminist internet presents the possibility of giving shape to an internet that is built on diversity and recognition of rights, especially those of women…

What is feminist infrastructure? Our lives are determined now by technology and especially data and surveillance. How can we undermine the existing technological hegemony and rebuild infrastructures that accommodate different realities and needs through community networks?

Technology when used well can change lives, especially those of people with disabilities. In this review of the remarkable book by Haben, titled "Haben: the deafblind woman who conquered Harvard law", the question raised is whether feminists working with technology are doing enough about accessibility.

Censorship has been replaced online by a system of content moderation controlled by companies, and these rely on both automation as well as human moderators employed to sift through content. The choice is not between the alleged neutrality of the impersonal machine and the errors and finiteness of human moderation, as both work in tandem.

Advances in biological sciences suggest that in the future it would be possible to give birth to babies outside of the woman's body, and this upsets assumptions that connect reproductive labour to fixed gender roles. What are then the implications for feminist imaginations and futures?

What are the complications that identity can produce in research? And when can it be fruitful - can we design solutions and technology keeping in mind the diversity of people, and seeking particularly to include those voices often less heard in technology design.

Research is often meant for lofty objectives of ensuring policy change, and at at the very least, it should do no harm. But what if your research is about violence - and what risks do we run when asking participants to revisit their trauma and hurt that they experienced because of online violence.

An essential read about how design justice could be an incomparable tool to address discriminations towards transgender, intersex and gender diverse people. More broadly the series explores the injustices that could result from algorithmic decision making and the preponderance of artificial intelligence based mechanisms.

In this podcast by Tiff and Manda, they explore what is happening when the internet enters the worlds(s) of lesbian, bisexual, queer women and others. Does it open up possibilities of those sliding into our DMs or can it be risky and even dangerous to be openly LGBTQI online. 

Across Brazil, Bulgaria, Poland and at the international level there is a vicious and concerted attempt to dilute the language around gender in policy and UN mechanisms which targets any gains in gender equality, advocates exclusion of LGBTIQ people and restrictions on sexual and reproductive rights. The attack on gender is real and here, what are we going to do about it?