Annual Conference 2026

Conference
“Politics of Cooperative Sensing in Times of Crisis”

University of Siegen, 11 – 13 November 2026
Obergraben 25, 57072 Siegen
US-S 001 / 002

About the conference

“Politics of Cooperative Sensing in Times of Crisis”

The 2026 annual conference of the Collaborative Research Center “Media of Cooperation” explores the politics of cooperative sensing and sense-making in a time marked by geopolitical crises, technological transformation, and democratic uncertainty. Across the world, societies are facing overlapping challenges: wars, the climate catastrophe, democratic backsliding, and the rise of authoritarian regimes, all of which are deeply entangled with the rise of datafication. At the same time, digital infrastructures, data practices, and generative AI are transforming how people cooperate, communicate, and perceive reality. Cooperation today takes place across complex sociotechnical networks – from alliances between governments and technology companies to collaborations between civil society, research communities, and activists networks. Digitalisation is built on cooperative media and data practices. Yet today, these same cooperative structures increasingly enable digital political violence. This conference asks how these forms of cooperation shape contemporary politics and sensory experiences. How do media and data practices contribute to new forms of power, control, and digital violence? How do they shape collective perception, uncertainty, and conflict? And how can cooperative practices also enable resistance, democratic engagement, and new forms of knowledge production?

 

Program

Registration

The registration will open in Summer.

 

Speakers

more information will come

 

Venue

University of Siegen
Campus Unteres Schloss
US-S 001 / 002
Obergraben 25
57072 Siegen