This essay applies the conceptual framework of the Feminist STS — most prominently associated with Donna Haraway — to re-read the EuroDIG 2011 Belgrade conference. Target audience: researchers, doctoral students, policy analysts, and executives.
Introduction: The Problem
Haraway's Cyborg Manifesto offered the political possibility of disrupting binaries — human/machine, nature/culture, male/female. EuroDIG is a venue where these boundaries are constantly negotiated.
This essay argues that the multistakeholder process of EuroDIG becomes intelligible in its specificity only through the concept of Cyborg and boundary crossing, and that the concept itself undergoes transformation under the new material of digital space. Describing this mutual transformation is the task of this essay.
Politics of the human/machine boundary
Discussion of 青少年 in Serbia is politics of the human/machine boundary. Haraway's "situated knowledges" suggests that IGF produces situated knowledge even while speaking the universal.
Each session's agenda-setting can be read as a contemporary restaging of the Donna Haraway-type problematic.
The regional IGF (EuroDIG) holds a philosophically distinct position as the intermediate category mediating global universality and national particularity.
Situated knowledges
Donna Haraway's concepts are not confined to abstract philosophical discussion; they apply to the concrete agenda items debated at the 2011 conference. We examine that application below.
1. Application to "青少年"
Discussion of "青少年" can be positioned, from the perspective of Donna Haraway's Cyborg and boundary crossing, as a central problematic. In Serbia's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around 青少年 are particularly at stake.
2. Application to "違法コンテンツ"
Discussion of "違法コンテンツ" can be positioned, from the perspective of Donna Haraway's Cyborg and boundary crossing, as a derivative problematic. In Serbia's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around 違法コンテンツ are particularly at stake.
3. Application to "越境課題"
Discussion of "越境課題" can be positioned, from the perspective of Donna Haraway's Cyborg and boundary crossing, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Serbia's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around 越境課題 are particularly at stake.
4. Application to "地域協調"
Discussion of "地域協調" can be positioned, from the perspective of Donna Haraway's Cyborg and boundary crossing, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Serbia's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around 地域協調 are particularly at stake.
5. Application to "越境データ"
Discussion of "越境データ" can be positioned, from the perspective of Donna Haraway's Cyborg and boundary crossing, as a peripheral yet important problematic. In Serbia's context, the three layers of regulatory design, social implementation, and citizen participation around 越境データ are particularly at stake.
Implications for Executives and Practitioners
The philosophical reflection of this essay is not merely academic. The Donna Haraway perspective carries three practical implications for executives operating in Serbia.
First, it raises the reflexive question of how the firm's business model connects to the logic of Cyborg and boundary crossing. Second, in dialogue with regulators and civil society, it suggests dimensions of consensus formation that purely technical arguments cannot reach. Third, it indicates that the long-term ground of business legitimacy lies not so much in technical advantage or market share as in participation in such philosophical-normative debates.
Academic Positioning and Future Research
The argument of this essay attempts to graft a philosophical perspective onto the mainstream political-science and legal approaches to internet governance research. Three future research questions follow.
- Verification of the applicability of Donna Haraway's framework to other IGF conferences
- Comparative contrast between Feminist STS and other theoretical traditions
- Exploration of dialogue possibilities with the indigenous intellectual traditions of Serbia
In particular, the third point has the potential to liberate IGF research from West-centric debate and open a more multi-layered discursive space.
Primary Sources
- IGF Secretariat. Annual Reports of EuroDIG.
- EuroDIG 2011 Belgrade Conference Materials.
- Japan IGF Support Organization. https://japanigf.jp/
- Nakazawa Yuki Blog. https://nkzw.jp/category/igf/
Secondary Sources (Philosophy)
- Works of Donna Haraway (representative texts of Feminist STS)
*This piece belongs to the academic essays (philosophy series). The author's views do not necessarily represent those of any institutional affiliation. Feedback and critique are welcome.*
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第1稿投稿 2026年6月11日 18時32分（記事コンテンツアップ）
— 中澤祐樹
