Across wildlife ecology and livestock management, herds are increasingly managed through digital infrastructures. Sensor-based systems – ranging from GPS collars and RFID tags to drones and satellite tracking – are used to monitor, classify, and guide the movements of animals across diverse terrains. These technologies do not merely collect data; they actively intervene in animals’ spatial and behavioral patterns, reshaping the ecologies in which they operate.

This workshop examines how digital tools and infrastructures are mobilized to manage herds, both domesticated and wild. It investigates the sociomaterial regimes and infrastructures of tagging, tracking, fencing, and herding that underlie contemporary forms of animal management. The workshop further explores how these practices shape knowledge production, structure control, and reconfigure relationships between humans, animals, and environments.

We are very much looking forward to welcoming you and kindly ask you to register by email at virtualfences@uni-potsdam.de by March 20. Please also indicate whether you will be taking part on site or online.
Unfortunately, we are not able to cover travel costs.

The workshop is organized as part of the subproject P04, “Precision Farming: Co-operative Practices of Virtual Fencing”, within the framework of the CRC Media of Cooperation (funded by the German Research Foundation) at the University of Siegen.