Welcome to the website of the Digital Geographies Research Group (DGRG).
We are an academic research group of the Royal Geographical Society with the Institute of British Geographers (RGS-IBG).
Digital technologies are changing the life worlds we research as well as the very way we ourselves undertake research and teaching. Therefore this group seeks to be a welcoming forum to discuss these changes for geographers from different epistemic and methodological traditions, and for those conducting theoretical as well as applied research work. The DGRG is a platform for exchanges within and between sub-disciplines, engaging with the diversity of geographies of and through the digital, and thereby nurtures and deepens discussion of geographical digital scholarship and practice.
Our 2022 Annual General Meeting will be held during the RGS-IBG Annual International Conference. The conference will be chaired by Professor Rachel Pain of Newcastle University, on the theme Geographies beyond recovery. It will take place at Newcastle University, from Tuesday 30 August to Friday 2 September 2022, with a strong in-person element, and with hybrid and online ways to participate.
Our AGM is the point of the year when the committee reports to the membership and we all reflect on what has been achieved in the last year, plan the next year, and hear new suggestions for how the group is run and what it can do. We also elect committee members for open positions, and farewell previous committee members who are leaving. All ideas and suggestions are very welcome. We will provide further details about the AGM closer to the time.
Digital Geographies Research Group Annual Symposium 2024 CFP: Mobilities and the Digital
Date: 21 June 2024
Location: Elm House, University of Birmingham and Online
Supported by the Institute for STEMM in Culture and Society (ISTEMMiCS)
The conference will provide a space to explore a wide range of topics and contexts where mobilities and the digital intersect as well as the broader societal, cultural and political contexts in which these changes occur. The conference invites papers, practice-based interventions, as well as digital shorts that speak to, but are not limited to, the following themes:
- The differentiated implications and experiences of digitally-mediated mobilities, including in terms of race, gender, dis/ability, or class, as well as other forms of social difference
- The diverse spatialities of digitally-mediated mobilities whether through ground, air, or water
- The (re)shaping of everyday life and movement by and through algorithms, data, and technologies
- Methodological insights or reflections on ways of researching im/mobilities, and its relation to the digital
- Responsible and socially-informed innovation processes in science, technology, and engineering
This year’s conference invites scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and industry experts to contribute to a rich interdisciplinary dialogue that advances a shared understanding of the relationship between mobilities and the digital in contemporary society.
To apply, please submit your contribution format and 250-word abstract via our online submission form before 23rd April 2024.
DGRG Dissertation Prize Winner Announced!
We are delighted to announce that the winner of our 2023 Dissertation Prize is Lucas Evans from the University of Oxford.
His dissertation, ‘Forest: exploring the possibilities of digital technologies for enhancing forest restoration’, examined the Forest app, a popular productivity app which enables users to support forest restoration. Lucas’ research considered the ways that users engage with the app on an everyday basis, and how the platform’s design, economic model and use influences the politics of forest restoration.
While Lucas’ dissertation scored highly in all our assessment criteria, reviewers particularly praised the work for the incisiveness of its critical analysis and its engagement with, and contribution to, digital geographies scholarship.
Lucas will have an opportunity to share more about his work via our channels over the coming months. Stayed tuned for this and for news of our 2024 Dissertation Prize offering, which will include an additional 2023 prize for any prospective entries that have been affected by the UCU marking boycott.
Keep an eye out on our dissertation prize page for future announcements.
Our latest Work in Progress video series is up now – Eurovision fandom, working from home privacy, place and location, and more! View on our Youtube channel
Watch the Youtube playlist from the 2021 Annual @digital_RGS Symposium – starting with the keynote from Peta Mitchell!