So and Boyer discuss reparative technology for Urban Tech substack
As the urban technology program continues to grow, so too does its bench of expert faculty. Among the newest additions is Wonyoung So, assistant professor of urban technology, who recently talked with Bryan Boyer about his work and theory of change in an interview for the Urban Technology at the University of Michigan Substack. The newsletter and blog are run by Boyer, faculty director of the Bachelor of Science in Urban Technology, to promote the emerging field.
So, who joined the college last fall, works at the intersection of urban planning, critical data studies, and data visualization to examine how access to resources and opportunities — over space and place — is mediated by data and technology, with a focus on housing and translating scholarly research into public impact that promotes democratic participation by marginalized residents. Of particular interest is reparative technology; rather than just change biased technologies, So promotes active reparations for harm done.
“One good example (of reparative technology) is that the state of Washington recently created the Washington Covenant Homeownership Program,” So said. “They did a study to figure out the historical discrimination — in this case, via restrictive covenants — and then used this argument to legislate a statewide reparative lending program that distributes down payment assistance based on that research.”
The pair also discussed So’s theory of change, which he described as improving equity in democracies.
“My theory of change is that, in order to have institutional-level changes, we ironically need to think about the people who are most marginalized, in order to have a democracy that makes change possible,” So said.
So currently teaches two courses: Introduction to Geographic Information Systems and Design and Urban Inquiries. He recently established the Reparative Technology lab, which will build tools and visualizations to expose the inequities behind urban technologies.
Read the full interview on the Urban Technology Substack.
– Joshua Nicholson
