The COVID-19 pandemic has been dominated by unanticipated physical and mental health challenges for many Australians. Digital and social media have played a key role in how we have experienced the pandemic both as individuals and collectively.
However, it is not all bad news, in times of crisis there is much opportunity for innovation and we have seen communities come together to assist their most disadvantaged members. At the same time, calls for self-isolation and large public gatherings moving online, the issue of accessible societies for people who are house bound has come to the fore.
The Centre for Culture and Technology (CCAT) is uniquely placed to respond to both the ongoing cycle of trauma and innovative uses of digital media in these times of crisis communication. CCAT brings together the study of culture (symbolic meanings, practices, social relationships, and identities) with digital technologies and digital media platforms to:
- examine how cultural practices are changing in relation to digital technologies and platforms.
- interrogate the ways social and cultural shifts require new technological practices.
Since 2019 CCAT director Professor Katie Ellis has focused research on the changing cultural and technological practices associated with digital accessibility and inclusion.
This website brings together CCAT’s ongoing research into the Cultures of Covid.