Themes

The conference has been cancelled due to the political situation in Thailand. 
Please contact the conference chairperson (Logan Muller, lmuller@unitec.ac.nz) if you wish to pursue the topics of this conference.
More information.

 

The themes and topics for the HeartTech08 conference are:

Other possible topics are:

  • Culture and technology.

Sustainability and Computing/ICT

This new track is for those that see Computing and ICT as having a major impact on Sustainability. Working groups and Panels in recent ACM conferences have highlighted the broad and pervasive influence Computing and ICT have on our society and environment. This spans from energy conservation and recycling to the enormous global impact computing has had on manufacturing, mineral exploration, robotics and media. This track is for people with specific contributions in this area.

Environment improving technologies.

This track is for the sharing of case studies, theoretical or in development work on technologies that enhance the environment. These may include, but are not limited to:

  • Alternative fuels.
  • Solar, wind, sea or other energy.
  • Technologies that absorb net CO 2 or add net oxygen and produce social or energy benefit.
  • Application of the above to developing countries, rural or urban applications.
  • Technologies or developments that reverse the pollution or other negative environmental effects of human development.

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Information and communications technologies shaping world consciousness.

This track is for the sharing of case studies, theoretical or in-development work on technologies that break the control of the mass media over public thinking and reaction to real world issues.

While there is particular interest in the impact of long range wireless internet technologies like WIMAX or cell phone technologies on developing regions, equally there is an issue of the first world having little or jaundiced information on global issues.

By limiting this human emotional reaction to injustices and issues such as global warming, the first world has done little in curbing destructive practices. The surge of Web 2.0 activities (You Tube, My Space, etc.) and alternative news and opinion sources through the internet has seen major movement in the amount and accessibility of information that is shifting first world consciousness.

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Mainstream Implementation strategies

This track is for showcasing and discussing research and/or preferably actions that have resulted in making changes in a business, university or community organisation. These may include:

  • Getting philosophy and moral topics taught in computing classes.
  • Getting your supermarket to preferentially promote fair trade products.
  • A policy change at local government level to ensure all new housing has solar water heating.
  • Persuading your TV news channel to incorporate energy saving technologies in daily coverage.
  • Bringing environmental cost vs short term financial gain education into MBA programs.
  • Heart and soul education to primary schools.

This track is the chance to share what strategies have worked, and why or what barriers have been struck and ways around them.

It is the nuts and bolts of how we get positive changes for society and the environment into everyday practice.

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Technologies for social equity and representation

This track is for the sharing of case studies, theoretical or in development work on technologies that have empowered disenfranchised groups, ethnic, political, religious, cultural to regain control of their traditions and culture and function as entities within the changing world. This may include but is not limited to:

  • Methodologies that have worked in engaging and empowering disenfranchised groups.
  • Cases/theoretical work where groups have regained control of their resources through use of technologies.
  • Groups that through technology have avoided the loss of territory, control, culture, tradition or representation.
  • Groups have gained their own representation and now are educating or influencing first world practices.
  • Mainstream implementation strategies.

It is also for the sharing of case studies, theoretical or in development work on technologies that have enabled the implementation of Heart Technology in mainstream living or education.

Particular interest is in how we get practices, strategies or policy implemented into industry, government and education sectors that will actually enhance the environment (not merely have "less" impact) and promote equity and fairness across the global society.

Cases and advanced practice examples would be particularly appropriate here.

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Education strategies for moral technology

In some universities in South-East Asia the foundation of tertiary (and all) education is the understanding that humans are as connected and reliant on nature as the birds, insects, flora and fauna. Accordingly the starting point is respect and embracing the living earth around us.

In the "developed" world we tend to focus on the things—the facts, the technology—and now are realising that without a full systemic view that incorporates some sort of greater understanding we are fuelling our own demise. And development has been little more than developing and hastening human extinction.

This leaves us with the challenge in the first world education system of how do we make up this lost ground? How do we incorporate this greater understanding and moral responsibility to all living things in the teaching of traditionally hard science subjects such as computing and engineering? Surrounded by academics and business successful in the failing system, resistance can be hard to overcome.

This track calls for experiences and strategies that have turned education of any topic to education about maintaining and enhancing life on this planet. Not sustainability but Beyond sustainability to repair and regain the lost ground of two centuries of exploitative degenerative human existence.

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Philosophical heart and soul issues

This track is the foundation of the other tracks, one which does not look at technology but looks to the greater issues of human existence.

Understanding the philosophy and soul of our existence is a practice long lost in the first world due to the busyness of doing. We ask people we meet “What do you do?”, but we need to be asking “What are you being?”.

What we are being is what ripples out and overflows into our environment and to countries and cultures connected to us only by the supply chain of our consumption. Breaking the myopia of individual success measured by what we do, what we own and what we consume is a challenge that often is bestowed upon us by tragedy or an awakening.

On our earth today we have both, a tragedy that is causing an awakening. This track is an invitation to philosophers and educators who bring soul, spirituality and understanding of greater connectedness to what they are and what and how they teach.

Cases and practices that help contextualise technology, living or being into a greater picture are called for here that could have direct application to the conference participants. Our aim is bring heart and soul into all we do, especially in the critical role of educating the next generation.

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