Our methodology:
The Monitor is a living and growing archive of work done at the intersection of migration and technology.
But how do we tell complex stories, when abstract technologies and hidden practices are difficult to see?
Technology replicates power structures in society. Unfortunately, the viewpoints of those most affected are routinely excluded from the discussion. At the Monitor, we attempt to change this — both by giving space to the experiences of people directly affected by border tech experiments as well as by investigating and interrogating how these technologies are playing out on the ground.
Our primary goal is impact — impact to share knowledge, destabilize structures of hierarchical power, and create space for participatory work at the intersection of migration, technology, and human rights. Research for research’s sake is not our goal. Instead, we connect rigorous analysis with meaningful policy and advocacy goals, using innovative methodologies to get the public, media, and policy makers interested and involved in these issues.
We are guided by foundation questions such as:
-Whose perspectives matter when talking about innovation and which priorities take precedence?
-What does critical representation and meaningful participation look like — representation that puts first people’s agency and works against asymmetries of power, knowledge, and resources?
-Are human rights framings enough or do they also silence the systemic, historical, and collective nature of these harms?
International community participation from the ground up:
MTM is a collective of journalists, filmmakers, academics, and international communities working from the ground up to share the realities of migrants affected by evolving border technologies. Our team and supporters include:
The Promise Institute is a human rights institute based at the UCLA School of Law, with a thematic focus, among others, on emerging digital technologies, migration and discrimination.
Lighthouse Reports is a media non-profit, building investigative newsrooms around topics rather than platforms, pooling knowledge and tackling the kind of complex, ambitious stories that benefit from a team approach.
Privacy International works to promote the human right of privacy throughout the world, supporting a network of civil society organizations in various jurisdictions to protect democracy, defend people's dignity, and demand accountability from institutions who breach public trust.
The Refugee Law Laboratory undertakes research and advocacy related to new legal technologies and their impact on refugees, other displaced communities, and people on the move and is housed at the Centre for Refugee Studies and Osgoode Hall Law School.
Homo Digitalis is a Greek civil society organization that focuses on the protection and promotion of Human Rights in the digital age including the protection of personal data, freedom of expression and information, property, litigation, and non-discrimination.
Kenya-Jade Pinto is an Indo-Kenyan/Canadian documentary photographer, filmmaker, and lawyer based out of Toronto. Her beautiful photography and videos can be seen all across our website and various reports.
