The infrastructural conditions of (de-)growth

The case of the internet

Datos Bibliográficos

ID12184792
AutoresM Pansera (0000-0002-3806-1381, Universidade de Vigo, autor de correspondencia), Javier Lloveras (0000-0002-7780-9380, Universidade de Vigo), Daniel Durrant (0000-0002-5456-4106, University College London)
Año2023
Volumen215
Páginas108001-108001
Fecha de publicación2023-10-03
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaEcological Economics (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0921-8009 • E-ISSN: 1873-6106
EditorialElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.ecolecon.2023.108001
OpenAlexW4387352606
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas11
Referencias citadas57

Infrastructure studies represent a domain that remains significantly uncharted among degrowth scholars. This is paradoxical considering that infrastructures constitute a fundamental prerequisite for the equitable distribution of many aspects of human well-being that degrowth proponents emphasize. Nonetheless, the substantial resource and energy consumption associated with infrastructures cannot be overlooked. The internet offers an instructive case study in this sense, at its best it forges human connections and is productive of considerable societal value. The resource implications of the often-overlooked internet physical layer of data-centres and submarine cables needs to be acknowledged. Furthermore, the ways in which assumptions of perpetual growth are built into this global infrastructure via the logic layer of internet protocols and other governing mechanisms such as finance and network design need to be examined if we are to determine the extent to which such infrastructures are inherently growth dependent. In making these two arguments, we draw upon the work of both Science and Technology Studies (STS) and Large Technological System (LTS) studies on the inherent problems of large infrastructures which have thus far seen little engagement with questions of degrowth. We review the case of the internet and suggest a number of scenarios that illustrate potential roles for such infrastructures in any planned reduction of economic activity

Consumption · Degrowth · Value (mathematics · Green IT and Sustainability · Water Governance and Infrastructure