| Popis: |
Under the banner of “data for good,” companies in the technology, finance, and retail sectors supply their proprietary datasets to development agencies, NGOs and intergovernmental organizations to help solve an array of social problems. We focus on the activities and implications of the Data for Climate Action (D4CA) campaign, a set of public–private collaborations that wield user data to design innovative responses to the global climate crisis. Drawing on in-depth interviews, first-hand observations at “data for good” events, intergovernmental and international organizational reports, and media publicity, we evaluate the logic driving D4CA initiatives, examining the implications of applying commercial datasets and expertise to environmental problems. Despite the increasing adoption of D4CA paradigms in government and public sector efforts to address climate change, we argue D4CA is better seen as a strategy to legitimate extractive, profit-oriented data practices by companies than a means to achieve global goals for environmental sustainability. |
