Sponsored Session presented by Practica Group

Speakers:

Michael Powell, Practica Group
Elana Mann, Artist
Michele Darling, Sound Designer, Berklee College of Music
Charley Scull, Practica Group
Erica Herman, Practica Group

In the 1960s J.L. Austin and John Searle established the notion of speech acts – capturing the idea that language-in-use often performs actions. We declare, assert, commit…and implicate listeners in our linguistic actions. This session builds on the idea of speech acts by asserting that listening is also an action. Our goal is to make listening more visible in relation to the ethnographic encounter – both in terms of methodology and in the reception of our work. To do this we have invited artists and designers to discuss their philosophies and practices in and around listening. We will then explore the implications of making listening a central actor for our ethnographic work – for both generating analytic insight and in being heard by stakeholders.

Practica Group’s partnership of anthropologists and problem-solvers helps clients look backwards, across, and under the hood to craft strategic futures.