California Studies BLOG

California Studies Conference 2009
Conference Announcement

Debugging the Silicon Dream:

Real Life in a Virtual World

DeAnza College, Cupertino, CA

Friday, April 24, 2009

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(Pre-registration; Accommodations; Transportation Info. Below)

Download the conference flier at the California Studies Association website here.

The Internet floats in the popular imagination like a disembodied utopia; the mecca of Silicon Valley rises out of nowhere, built by technological genius and entrepreneurial drive. In real life, however, these stories obscure more than they reveal. This conference aims to “ground” public discussion about the Internet, Silicon Valley, and high-tech California. The event will bring together scholars, artists, community leaders, and the broader public to explore both the real-world forces that shape these developments and their consequences for people and place. It will also launch a South Bay Studies Working Group for researchers and practitioners engaged in building a deeper understanding of Silicon Valley in order to address its social problems.

The one-day conference will include practical, contextualizing, and critical workshops to examine the idea and place that we call “Silicon Valley.” Featured speakers will include: Terry Christensen, San Jose State University; Dayana Salazar, SJSU and CommUniverCity; Ian Kim, Ella Baker Center; Sarah Muller, Working Partnerships; Louise Auerhahn, Working Partnerships; Jan English-Lueck, San Jose State University; Richard Walker, UC Berkeley; Raj Jayadev, Silicon Valley De-Bug Magazine; Glenna Matthews; Mark Linder, former head of San Jose Parks & Rec.; and Matt Hammer, People Acting in Community Togther (PACT).

Sessions will be organized along three tracks:

Track I:  Debugging Silicon Valley

A participatory workshop series for people interested in identifying and solving political and social challenges facing the communities of Silicon Valley.  Session topics:  Silicon Valley’s power structure and challenges to community organizing, housing and homelessness, green jobs, and family health care.

Track II:  Fragmented Technopolis:  Culture and Identity

How are identity, cultural belonging, and sense of place defined in the context of ethnic multiplicity and urban fragmentation?  Session topics:  literature, art (broadly defined), the valley’s cultural mélange.

Track III:  Materiality of the Digital World

What are the material forces behind the rise of the internet and Silicon Valley?  What are the “real world” consequences of the production of high technology for people and environment?  Session topics:  military industrial complex, environmental health, worker health, and the built environment.

The conference co-chairs are,

Mae Lee, PhD, professor of intercultural studies at De Anza College and co-director of the Asian Pacific American Leadership Institute (APALI).

Tom Izu, executive director of the California History Center and Foundation, located on the De Anza campus. Contact izutom@fhda.edu

Also on the conference organizing committee are,

Cynthia Kaufman, PhD, professor of philosophy at De Anza College.

Nari Rhee, PhD, post-doctoral researcher at the Institute for Research on Labor and Education at UC Berkeley.

Aaron Wilcher, MA, master’s student in the Dept. of City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley.

REGISTRATION INFO:

* Name

* Organization affiliation (optional)

* Address

* Phone number

* E-mail address

* Registration fee*(non-students) – $35.00 (includes continental breakfast and lunch, and one year’s membership in the California Studies Association).

* Optional no-host dinner – $20.00

* Total enclosed ______

*Participation is FREE TO STUDENTS. Just bring a current valid student ID.

Please send the completed form along with a check made out to

“California Studies Association” to the following address:

CSA Conference
c/o California History Center
De Anza College
21250 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Cupertino, CA  95014

Conference facilities are wheelchair accessible. Sign language interpretation or other accommodations available upon request at least five business days prior to conference. Please contact Tom Izu at (408) 864-8986.