Living Data Systems: Co-Designing Community-Based Methods And Local Technologies For Inclusive Socioeconomic Alternatives

Abstract

This research project aims to collaborate with underserved communities leading social justice efforts through alternative economic practices, in the co-creation of a data model based on sets that members can collect to represent meaningful, contextual and social information. Data, understood from a cooperative-value and qualitative perspective, could be interesting for the common use of the group to interpret and exchange through non-monetary transactions, in contrast to the predominantly capital value mainstream networks. This system could facilitate group conversations on collective appropriation, ownership and adaptation processes through the co-design of local, situated technologies and alternative outputs of information. Furthermore, it could be significant for existing practices and goals around socioeconomic change, autonomy or activism. It is necessary to research the implementation of novel data collecting methods and data-driven systems focused on non-traditional, qualitative and plural representations of knowledge. This could be instrumental for understanding how to visualise and integrate omitted, hidden or underrepresented experiences, how to include marginalised individuals with different backgrounds into diverse decision-making processes and how to co-design new technologies that account for shared values. On a deeper level, it could help uncover new data epistemologies and definitions emerging from the construction of new collective knowledge platforms, understood as living systems.