Centre for Digital Cultures

Organisational unit: Institute

Organisation profile

Contemporary culture is characterized by the ubiquity of digital media technologies and infrastructures, which are constantly configuring our techniques for processing, storing, and transmitting data. As a result, our everyday practices of connecting, relating, reading, writing, perceiving, sharing, competing, and communicating are undergoing significant changes. At the same time, these technologies are closely tied to major societal challenges such as climate change, global conflicts, digital divides and social unjustness. In this dynamic context, the Centre for Digital Cultures (CDC) directly addresses the emergence of new and complex qualities of vernacular socio-technical life. This involves the development of advanced theory and innovative study programmes. We are concerned with the question of how we can understand and shape digital cultures today​​​​​​​.

Main research areas

The digital shift re-shapes the cultural sectors, and, indeed, everyday life, politics, law, and economics. the Centre for Digital Cultures (CDC), affiliated to Leuphana University of Lüneburg, examines this shift through a range of interdisciplinary methodologies, including media, cultural and social studies, through knowledge creation and transfer, as well as by developing experimental and interventionist media practices. Established in 2012, as one of the first research centres in Europe to research the emergence of digital cultures, the CDC continues to produce cutting-edge research on socio-technical regimes of inclusion and exclusion. Since its inception, the CDC has built an innovative network and research environment, where academic institutions, practitioners, and civil society stakeholders engage with new concepts, formats, and applications within digital cultures.

Current Research Areas

  • Climate Futures
  • (B)Orders, Identities and Belonging in the Digital Age
  • Cities, Infrastructures, Logistics, Platforms 
  1. 2015
  2. Published

    A preliminary study on similarity-preserving digital book identifiers

    Vladimir, K., Silic, M., Romic, N., Delac, G. & Srbljic, S., 2015, Proceedings of the 9th SIGHUM Workshop on Language Technology for Cultural Heritage, Social Sciences, and Humanities: LaTeCH 2015. Zervanou, K. A., van Erp, M. & Alex, B. (eds.). Beijing: Association for Computational Linguistics (ACL), p. 78-83 6 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticle in conference proceedingsResearchpeer-review

  3. Published

    Architekturen des "environment": Reyner Banham und das Dritte Maschinenzeitalter

    Sprenger, F., 2015, In: Zeitschrift für Medienwissenschaft. 12, 1, p. 55-67 13 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  4. Published

    Collective low-budget organizing and low carbon futures: An interview with John Urry

    Bialski, P., Urry, J. & Otto, B., 2015, In: Ephemera: Theory & Politics in Organization. 15, 1, p. 221-228 8 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

  5. Published

    Computersimulation

    Vehlken, S., Schrickel, I. & Pias, C., 2015, Futurologien: Ein Glossar des Zukunftswissens. Bühler, B. & Willer, S. (eds.). 1 ed. München: Wilhelm Fink Verlag, p. 181-192 12 p. (TRAJEKTE - Eine Reihe des Zentrums für Literatur- und Kulturforschung Berlin).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticles for encyclopediaResearch

  6. Published

    Crowdfunding the Commons?

    Ridgway, R., 2015, MoneyLab Reader: An Intervention in Digital Economy. Lovink, G., Tkacz, N. & de Vries, P. (eds.). Amsterdam: Institute of Network Cultures, p. 281 - 294 14 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearchpeer-review

  7. Published

    Das Fleisch der Diskurse: Zur Verbindung von Biographie- und Diskursforschung in der wissenssoziologischen Subjektivierungsanalyse am Beispiel der Behindertenpädagogik

    Pfahl, L., Schürmann, L. & Traue, B. C., 2015, Erziehungswissenschaftliche Diskursforschung: Empirische Analysen zu Bildungs- und Erziehungsverhältnissen. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, p. 89-106 18 p. (Interdisziplinäre Diskursforschung).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearchpeer-review

  8. Published

    Denk mal! 2016

    Pfaller, R., Horn, E., Klein, S., Bernard, A. & Rammler, S., 2015, Frankfurt am Mainz: S. Fischer Verlag. 268 p.

    Research output: Books and anthologiesCollected editions and anthologiesTransfer

  9. Published

    Der Sinn der Lehre: Ethnographie, Affekt, sensemaking

    Beyes, T. & Steyaert, C., 2015, Vom Sinn der Soziologie: Festschrift für Thomas S. Eberle . Maeder , C., Brosziewski , A. & Nentwich, J. (eds.). Wiesbaden: Springer, p. 197-211 15 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearchpeer-review

  10. Published

    Die technologische Bedingung des sozialen Selbst

    Traue, B. C. & Schünzel, A., 2015, Mediatisierung (in ) der sozialen Arbeit. Kutscher, N., Ley, T. & Seelmeyer, U. (eds.). Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Verlag Hohengehren, p. 39 - 55 17 p. (Grundlagen der sozialen Arbeit; vol. 38).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearchpeer-review

  11. Published

    Die Vergangenheit der Zukunft: Kommentar zu »Das kommende Zeitalter der Calm Technology«

    Sprenger, F., 2015, Internet der Dinge: Über smarte Objekte, intelligente Umgebungen und die technische Durchdringung der Welt. Sprenger, F. & Engemann, C. (eds.). Bielefeld: transcript Verlag, p. 73 - 87 15 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearch