Description

Web applications such as blogs, wikis, video and photo sharing sites, and social networking systems have been termed ‘Web 2.0’ to highlight an arguably more open, collaborative, personalisable, and therefore more participatory internet experience than what had previously been possible. Giving rise to a culture of participation, an increasing number of these social applications are now available on mobile phones where they take advantage of device-specific features such as sensors, location and context awareness. This workshop will make a contribution towards exploring and better understanding the opportunities and challenges provided by tools, interfaces, methods and practices of social and mobile technology that enable participation and engagement. It will bring together a group of academics and practitioners from a diverse range of disciplines such as computing and engineering, social sciences, digital media and human-computer interaction to critically examine a range of applications of social and mobile technology, such as social networking, mobile interaction, wikis (eg., futuremelbourne.com.au), twitter, blogging, virtual worlds (eg, hub2.org), and their impact to foster community activism, civic engagement and cultural citizenship.

This workshop will be held back-to-back with an ARC Cultural Research Network (CRN) workshop on the 11th and 12th of July 2009 at QUT titled, “Unboxing the iPhone: The Circuits of Digital Culture,” organised by Larissa Hjorth, Jean Burgess and Ingrid Richardson, supported by the CRN’s Cultural Technologies Node. This will provide opportunities to exchange ideas and experiences. http://www.uq.edu.au/crn/activities/glamm-iphone.html

The workshop is also very timely in that it coincides with the six week residency of Prof. Carlo Ratti, Director of the SENSEable City Lab at MIT, and the 2009 inaugural Queensland Innovator in Residence: http://yearofcreativity.deta.qld.gov.au/innovator.html

Keynote Speaker

As part of the HCSNet Workshop on Social and Mobile Technology to Support Civic Engagement, and NICTA Queensland's Big Picture seminar series, we are pleased to announce a public keynote presentation by Adam Greenfield, author of 'Everyware' and Head of Design Direction for User Interface and Services at Nokia in Helsinki, Tuesday 14 July 2009, 3.45pm for 4pm start (to 5pm), LaBoite Roundhouse Theatre, 6-8 Musk Ave, Kelvin Grove QLD 4059. If you would like to attend the keynote only, please RSVP by Fri 3 July 2009 to Ms Julie-Anne Edwards at julieanne.edwards@qut.edu.au

The City is Here For You To Use

Over the past few years the “computer” has begun to disappear into the fabric of everyday life, its power to collect, store, process and represent information diffusing into the objects and surfaces around us. Things as ordinary and seemingly familiar as running shoes, elevators and lampposts have been reimagined as networked devices, invested with unexpected new abilities. Meanwhile, the phones we carry have become ever more powerful “remote controls for our lives.” Proponents and enthusiasts argue that no domain of human behavior will be untouched by this transformation, but relatively little thought has been given to specifically how these changes might unfold at the scale of the city. How will the advent of a truly ubiquitous computing change our urban places - both the way they’re built, and the way we live them? In this talk, Everyware author Adam Greenfield tries to wrap his head around this dynamic set of conditions, to clarify what’s at stake and to offer some potential frameworks for building humane and livable cities in the age of ambient informatics.

Audience

We hope to attract a multidisciplinary range of HCSnet members and colleagues working in areas such as user experience design, human-computer interaction, digital media, social sciences and computing and engineering. The topic and themes to be explored are timely, relevant and significant to the research work of many academics in Australia and overseas who are looking at ways to help engender a culture of local and national participation and engagement. Many colleagues find that the underlying systems architecture and principles that have given rise to participatory culture in many social and lifestyle domains should be examined with a view to reappropriate them to foster civic engagement and a revival of citizenship.

Event Format

Download full program

13 July 2009 - Day 1

14 July 2009 - Day 2

Event Outcomes

The workshop organisers are in the process of identifying a suitable journal for a special issue on the workshop theme, and participants will be invited to submit a full paper after the workshop for full peer review. Additionally, there will be a plenary discussion on the 2nd workshop day to plan further research activities and set up working groups.

Important Dates

• Submission Deadline: Friday 19th June 2009
• Notification of Award: Friday 26th June 2009
• Registration: Closes Friday 3rd July 2009
• Event Date: Monday 13th to Tuesday 14th July 2009

Getting There

The workshop will be held at The Glasshouse, Building Z2, Creative Industries Precinct, Queensland University of Technology, Musk Ave, Kelvin Grove QLD 4059, Brisbane

• Travel Map
• Map of the Venue
• Venue Website

Organisers

Dr Marcus Foth, Queensland University of Technology
Dr Martin Gibbs, University of Melbourne
Dr Christine Satchell, Queensland University of Technology