Call for Papers

Drone Ecologies

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Ghana Studies Association Triennial Conference

July 10-13, 2019

University of Ghana

This panel explores critical ecologies and technologies in Ghana. The recent controversy over the government of Ghana’s partnership with Zipline International to supply blood via drone service reveals important tensions between the state, technology and public services. Drones, a controversial form technology often associated with military operations, have become ubiquitous in urban planning, agriculture and environmental conservation in Ghana. Drones also represent techno-scientific shortcuts to something better, futuristic and modern. Hopes of advancement vis-à-vis science and technology have been at the bedrock of Ghanaian development since independence. Today, science and technology are synonymous with development, although technological solutions often create new problems that require further techno-scientific “fixes.”

From oil and gas to agricultural modernization to development “hacks,” Ghana is widely considered a testing ground for development interventions, resource management and democratic reforms. From this experimental environment emerge contested technologies and ideologies that play out in boardrooms and laboratories, on farms and on the sea. We seek contemporary and historical explorations into the hopes, promises and disappointments of science and technologies as they relate to ecological issues in Ghana.

We welcome submissions from across the social sciences and humanities. If interested, please send a 250-word abstract[1] by January 20th to Joeva Rock <Joeva.rock@nyu.edu>

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[1] The paper abstract should consist of a statement about the topic, the nature and extent of the research on which the paper is based, and a brief summary of the main argument (not more than 250 words).