Edgelands Institute Launch Event

The Edgelands Institute is an interdisciplinary pop-up institute to redraw our social contract in our era of mass-urbanization, surveillance, pandemics, and other emergencies, currently being incubated at the Berkman Klein Center.

The Institute stems from the perception that the rapid deployment of surveillance technologies in cities to provide security services is reshaping how we interact with government, corporations, and each other without receiving the attention this transformation deserves. There is an urgent need for an inclusive conversation around how this is affecting our societies. The goal of the institute is to bring together all the concerned parties to find and create common ground. Its mission is to imagine the terms of new social contracts that work for cities and people in the age of pandemics and digital surveillance.

During this launch event, the institute will introduce its mission, methodology, and, true to its mission, bring together arts and research for an engaging session. To guide the conversation, the institute would appreciate it if you could answer a few questions for us on your views about the urban social contract in your city. (http://link.oppi.live/edgelands)