Smart Living in the Circular City: Closing loops in post-human domestic space
Topics: Digital Geographies
, Cyberinfrastructure
, Cultural Geography
Keywords: Circular Economy, Smart Homes, Technology, Internet of Things.
Session Type: Virtual Paper
Day: Friday
Session Start / End Time: 4/9/2021 11:10 AM (Pacific Time (US & Canada)) - 4/9/2021 12:25 PM (Pacific Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 14
Authors:
Nicholas Lynch, Memorial University Of Newfoundland
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
Abstract
The Circular Economy (CE) has gained increasing attention around the world as a viable pathway to a sustainable future. The CE has been adopted by national and regional governments and global business leaders alike seeking to merge technological innovation and economic profitability with ‘closed-loop’ practices and regenerative ecological systems, particularly in cities. Though the development of the CE is an important step in building and testing functional sustainability, the leading CE documentation largely sidesteps important social and political implications and over-prioritizes the role of technology, tech-firms, and digital infrastructure. This paper traces the integration and implications of a specific technological agenda, that of smart homes, in the CE framework. Smart homes are intelligent spaces where high-tech domestic objects interact with human subjects through mobile apps, network connections, and the Internet of Things. While widely touted as a revolutionary step in building modern sustainable domesticity, critical social science has increasingly questioned how the smart home, like the smart city, transforms the social, political and ecological dimensions of contemporary (urban) life. Through an analysis of policy documents, key informant interviews, and critical textual analysis (e.g. architectural designs, advertisements and websites), I explore the role that Smart Homes are expected to play in delivering and shaping circular practices and policies. Moreover, I argue that while the smart home is integral to popular CE visions in key cities, it nevertheless represents a narrow approach to achieving radical and equitable sustainability.