A Democratic Intervention in Blue Denmark: A call for neutral transdisciplinary facilitation and bridge-building across disciplines to enhance the possibility of a future capable of sustaining human lives.
Author
Kristensen, Rasmus Gammelby
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2022
Submitted on
2022-06-01
Pages
98
Abstract
The maritime sector is undergoing rapid change, driven by climate-related regulations and a surge of technical experts. This situation calls for broader, multidisciplinary awareness among all participants. At the same time, technology is often treated as a solution in itself. Yet technology, at its core, consists of tools that help people perform tasks more efficiently. When technology replaces human practices, understanding those practices is as important as understanding the artifacts. Critical Theory of Technology argues that technology can both liberate and oppress, depending on how and why it is used. By viewing technology as a system of human practices, we gain a more holistic picture of how it works in the real world. This perspective can help technical experts design more adaptable technologies that support a sustainable transition. This thesis examines the places and actors that make up the multi-situated system of technology development in Blue Denmark (the Danish maritime sector) and asks why users’ practices are often not incorporated. The study uses an anthropology-driven, ethnographic approach across multiple sites, with the author immersed among system actors to document experiences and interactions. Finally, the project proposes an alternative system structure to enable stronger multidisciplinary collaboration and better inclusion of users.
Den maritime sektor står over for hurtige forandringer, drevet af klimakrav fra myndigheder og en stor tilgang af tekniske specialister. Denne situation kræver, at alle aktører får en bredere, tværfaglig forståelse. Samtidig bliver teknologi ofte set som løsningen i sig selv. Men teknologi er i sin kerne redskaber, der hjælper mennesker med at udføre opgaver mere effektivt. Når teknologi erstatter menneskelige praksisser, er det derfor lige så vigtigt at forstå disse praksisser som selve artefakterne. Den kritiske teknologiteori peger på, at teknologi både kan frigøre og undertrykke, afhængigt af hvordan og hvorfor den bruges. Ved at se teknologi som et system af menneskelige praksisser kan vi få et mere helhedsorienteret billede af, hvordan den virker i virkeligheden. Det kan hjælpe tekniske eksperter med at udvikle mere fleksibel teknologi, der understøtter en bæredygtig omstilling. Denne afhandling undersøger de steder og aktører, der tilsammen udgør det multisituerede system for teknologiudvikling i Det Blå Danmark (den danske maritime sektor), og spørger, hvorfor brugernes praksisser ofte ikke inddrages. Undersøgelsen bygger på en antropologisk tilgang med etnografisk feltarbejde på flere lokaliteter, hvor forfatteren har været til stede blandt systemets aktører for at dokumentere deres erfaringer og samarbejde. Afslutningsvis foreslår projektet en alternativ systemstruktur, der kan fremme tværfagligt samarbejde og bedre inddragelse af brugere.
[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]
Keywords