Dear Readers,
I’ve shifted to publishing at Substack, a platform that allows writers to get paid. To continue receiving my reports and newsletters, please subscribe! Paid subscribers will receive all of my posts; free subscribers will receive most of them.
My first report, “Digital Enlightenment: An Invitation,” lists about 125 substances in a smartphone, questions and resources for research—and it invites users to trace the supply chain of one substance. https://katiesinger.substack.com/p/digital-enlightenment-an-invitation
Here’s my March 2023 newsletter, posted at Substack: https://katiesinger.substack.com/p/katie-singers-march-2023-newsletter?sd=pf
“Digital Enlightenment” and my March, 2023 newsletter are available to all subscribers. https://katiesinger.substack.com/subscribe
FYI, I’m working as hard as I can to finish Mapping Our Technosphere: Learning Our Dependence on the Natural World. I will continue to post reports that Miguel Coma and I published at www.meer.com on my website, www.ourweb.tech/letters.
–Katie Singer
Catch Green I/O’s podcast, “Data Tsunami with Gerry McGovern and Katie Singer,” with Gael Duez at https://dev.to/green-io/15-data-tsunami-with-gerry-mc-govern-and-katie-singer. For more about Gerry McGovern’s work, including his book, World Wide Waste: How Digital is Killing the Planet, see https://gerrymcgovern.com and (my report) www.ourweb.tech/letter-44.
Jim Thomas (formerly of Greenpeace and ETC group) has explored tech’s remaking of food systems for decades. Read his 12 March 2023 article, “Will Fake Foods Fallover from Finance Failure Fallout? Silicon Valley Bank collapse exposes risky sectors: alt-protein, synthetic biology, ag-robotics and more.” https://www.scanthehorizon.org/p/will-fake-foods-fallover-from-finance
At https://techwontsave.us/episodes, Paris Marx posts a weekly podcast with critical perspectives on technology and Silicon Valley. Shows include “Robots aren’t the Solution to Elder Care,” “The Consequences of Leaving Tech to the Private Sector,” and “The Tesla Crash is Only Beginning.”
EH Trust has just published, “Wireless technologies, non-ionizing electromagnetic fields and children: Identifying and reducing health risks.” The paper calls on physicians to address family screen-time as part of well-child visits. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1538544223000238
Congratulations to Moira Hahn and Marc Hotchkiss, who won a multi-year battle with AT&T over the installation of a cell tower 25 feet from their California home. To block cell towers in your neighborhood, safety advocates recommend: Organize strong community opposition. Provide legal reasons for policymakers to deny the application (e.g., zoning code violations, fire hazards, aesthetics, sound problems, diminished property values). Raise community health concerns with policymakers. Illuminate potential harm to protected species under the National Environmental Protection Act. https://www.nrdc.org/bio/sharon-buccino/5g-coming-your-neighborhood https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/we-have-no-reason-to-believe-5g-is-safe/
For a fresh way of thinking about “mobility,” check out the Climate & Community Project’s report, “Achieving Zero Emissions with More Mobility and Less Mining.” https://www.climateandcommunity.org/more-mobility-less-mining
In case you missed this February report—Questioning Our Digital Footprint after seven decades of exponential growth—co-authored by Miguel Coma and Katie Singer, it’s at www.ourweb.tech/letter-48 and https://www.meer.com/en/72316-questioning-our-digital-footprint