Friday 3 March 23, 14h, Palais de l’Université, 15 quai Claude Bernard, 69007 Lyon, FR

Dr Isabelle Gribomont & An Mertens will contribute to the international seminar Données & Fiction, organised by l'Université Jean Moulin Lyon III.

The current environmental crisis calls for the creation of new subjectivities that connect us to nature, not just to human beings. On the one hand, the use of scientific and/or literary data related to the ecological issue in digital works favours the creation of such narratives. On the other hand, digital literature is also a medium for critical reflection on the environmental impact of the digital, the overabundance of data and the presence of class, gender, ethnicity and race stereotypes in the available data. This presentation aims to explore the intersection between digital literary creativity and eco-critical and decolonial themes.
First, we will offer an overview of different works of digital literature that align with an eco-decolonial perspective in order to observe the role of data in these approaches. Secondly, we will present artistic experiments developed by members of the Anaïs Berck and Algolit collectives, while analysing the eco-decolonial implications that emerge from their creative processes. In particular, we will problematize the choice and availability of data for artistic purposes, the confrontation with data emanating from a colonial era or developed for eugenic purposes, and possible blind spots in groups of white Western creators. Is it possible to use technologies and data, born in neoliberal contexts, to deconstruct the colonial foundations of digital society?