Digital Technologies in Nature

This workshop explored the design and deployment of digital technologies in nature. We sought to facilitate interdisciplinary dialog to explore how technology use may impact wildlife and change relations between humans, wildlife, and the environment, as well as to identify current design challenges and future opportunities for technology use in nature. Participant presentations shared uses of technologies for ecology, conservation, education, advocacy, and artistic engagement with nature. Through presentations and discussions, we explored opportunities and challenges associated with expanding deployment of sensors, drones, and mobile technologies in the natural world. Designing for natural settings requires collaboration between researchers and practitioners in fields such as animal-computer interaction (ACI), human-computer interaction (HCI), ecology, environmental psychology, arts, conservation technology and environmental management, as well as meaningful inclusion of local communities and non-human stakeholders. As an output of this workshop, we aim to establish a venue for interdisciplinary discussion on the challenges, tensions and ethical issues that arise in designing digital technologies for natural environments