Technologies of indigeneity: indigenous collective identity narratives in online communities

This thesis examines contemporary constructions of collective indigenous identity. It specifically focuses on the offline and online interactions among the members of Bibaknets, an online community for indigenous peoples from the highlands of the Cordillera Region, Philippines. The study explores the relational and positional nature of collective indigenous identity as Cordillerans attempt to resolve the tensions between their experiences of marginalisation and their goal for empowerment. Drawing upon Michel Foucault’s concept of governmentality, the thesis critically analyses the processes of Cordilleran collective identity construction which are inscribed in power relations not only between highlanders and the dominant population but also among themselves. On the one hand, members are motivated to join and participate in Bibaknets discussions as a forum for Cordillerans. On the other hand, such participation is constrained by some members who direct the discussions and consequently define the membership of the forum

Finding a Voice Through Humanitarian Technologies? Communication Technologies and Participation in Disaster Recovery

Voice—understood as the ability to give an account of oneself and participate in social processes—is increasingly recognized as significant for humanitarian action and disaster recovery. Giving disaster-affected people the opportunity to make their voices heard has the potential to democratize humanitarianism and correct the power asymmetries on which it is based. Humanitarian agencies have embraced interactive communication technologies as tools for voice and participation. Drawing on a yearlong ethnography with communities affected by super-Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, this article assesses the potential of new communication technologies for voice. Our findings highlight a disconnect between assumptions about technology present in humanitarian policies and the actual uses of technology by affected populations. The article traces the factors that facilitate, or hinder, participation and finds that communication technologies enable voice only if other parameters, such as a strong civil society, are present. Further, we observe that opportunities for voice are stratified, mapping onto existing social inequalities

Humanitarian Technologies: Understanding the Role of Digital Media in Disaster Recovery

On November 8th 2013 Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippines leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. To date, Haiyan remains the strongest storm ever recorded with over 6,300 casualties and more than 12 million people displaced or otherwise affected. Within minutes after Haiyan’s landfall, the web was also flooded with optimism, particularly about the promise of communication technologies in disaster recovery and humanitarian relief. Such optimism is recent although it predates Haiyan. The 2013 World Disasters Report uses the term \u27humanitarian technology\u27 to refer to the empowering nature of digital technologies such as mobile phones and social media for disaster recovery. It is claimed that interactive technologies enable affected communities to participate in their own recovery, respond to their own problems and ‘make their voices heard.’ Digital technologies are welcomed for their potential to catalyze a ‘powerN shift’ in humanitarianism by building feedback structures that empower local communities to hold humanitarian and government agencies into account. Despite the enthusiasm regarding the role of digital technologies as tools for disaster recovery there is little evidence to assess their impact. The ‘Humanitarian Technologies Project’ examines the optimistic account of communication technologies by providing empirical evidence on the uses of communication technologies by affected populations as well as stakeholders involved in the Haiyan recovery. Funded by an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Urgency Grant, our project investigated the consequences of communication technologies for disaster recovery in the following critical areas: 1) information dissemination; 2) collective problemNsolving; 3) redistribution of resources; 4) accountability and transparency of humanitarian efforts; 5) voice and empowerment of affected populations

The appearance of accountability: communication technologies and power asymmetries in humanitarian aid and disaster recovery

New communication technologies are celebrated for their potential to improve the accountability of humanitarian agencies. The response to Typhoon Haiyan in 2013 represents the most systematic implementation of ‘accountability to affected people’ initiatives. Drawing on a year-long ethnography of the Haiyan recovery and 139 interviews with humanitarian workers and affected people, the article reveals a narrow interpretation of accountability as feedback which is increasingly captured through mobile phones. We observe that the digitized collection of feedback is not fed back to disaster-affected communities, but is directed to donors as evidence of ‘impact’. Rather than improving accountability to affected people, digitized feedback mechanisms sustained humanitarianism’s power asymmetries