Internet Studies Lecture Series: Togethernet

Togethernet: Programming Culture, Building Consent, with Xin Xin & Charlotte Yaqing  
 
Togethernet is an open-source communication software designed around the ethos of transparency and consent.The goal is to transform digital rights policies into an embodied practice through reimagining software infrastructure and user experience. Togethernet is an open-source tool built for people who work under the broad umbrella of art and technology and invites users to contribute remix and pluralize the source code and guidelines in an effort to create a truly horizontal tool reflecting the needs of its users. It provides a glimpse into the potential for a new kind of grassroots software development that centers digital rights and community building from the outset. 
 
Biographies:  
Xin Xin is an interdisciplinary artist and organizer working at the intersection of technology labor and identity. Xin co-founded voidLab a LA-based intersectional feminist collective dedicated to women trans and queer folks. They were the Director and Lead Organizer for Processing Community Day 2019 a worldwide initiative celebrating art code and diversity and they currently serve on the advisory board for the Processing Foundation. Their work has been exhibited and screened at Ars Electronica DIS Gene Siskel Film Center Machine Project and they are an Eyebeam fellow. Xin received their M.F.A from UCLA Design Media Arts and teaches at the Parsons School of Design as an Assistant Professor of Interaction and Media Design. 
 
Charlotte Yaqing. I'm the software developer for togethernet and an engineer living in NYC. I care about community and how technology can facilitate a more equitable world. In my free time I like to play music, learn new things, and watch Fast and Furious movies.