Technocratic governance in Canadian drone space
AI Analysis
The article discusses the governance of drone technologies in Canada, highlighting the interplay between economic interests and security concerns. It examines how drones, originating from military use, are being integrated into civilian spaces, raising issues of privacy and surveillance.
Key Takeaways
- Transport Canada regulates drone technologies with a focus on safety.
- Drones are used for both military and civilian applications, impacting public spaces.
- Economic and political narratives shape the perception and deployment of drones.
- The global drone market is expected to reach $144.38 billion by 2025.
- Privacy and surveillance concerns are prominent among academics and civil libertarians.
Why It Matters
Understanding the governance and deployment of drones in Canada is crucial as it reflects broader global trends in the integration of military technologies into civilian life. This has significant implications for privacy, security, and the balance of power between state and citizens, influencing future policy and regulatory frameworks.
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Drones as political machines: Technocratic governance in Canadian drone space
Ciara Bracken-Roche
Abstract
The deployment of drone technologies across conflict spaces and urban spaces alike (see Jumbert and Sandvik 2017, Pugliese 2015, Wall and Monahan 2011) has been fuelled by a burgeoning surveillance-industrial complex (Hayes 2012), the confluence of economic interests and the securitization of risk (Aradau and van Munster 2011). Drawing on document analysis, from governmental and non-governmental sources, and semi-structured interviews with ~30 drone stakeholders in Canada, I argue that these technologies trouble traditional bounds of state and security (as will be elaborated on with Barry 2001, 2006). Feenberg (2004) argues that ‘technical action is an exercise of power’ and from their use for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance in international contexts to policing domestic spaces, drones further amplify power imbalances between the operators and the objects of the drone’s sensors (Hall Kindervater 2016, Shaw 2016). While commonly perpetuated discourses across industry groups represent domestic drones as benign sensing technologies as compared to militarized drones (Bracken-Roche 2016, Bracken-Roche et al. 2014), this chapter highlights how security professionals deploy particular narratives about drones to suit economic and political agendas. More so, it highlights how the case of drones (in Canada) represents a technological zone (Barry 2001, 2006). Understanding how this occurs in both civilian and military applications shows how these sensing machines dramatically shape public spaces and impact individuals across various contexts. Based on the data collected, and adding to current debates on drone technologies, boundaries, and materialities, I ask: how is the drone framed by economic and political discourses across an array of sociotechnical spaces? And, relatedly, what roles do drone systems and key actors play in shaping these environments?
Introduction
It’s pretty clear that UAVs didn’t come from nowhere, they came from the military. They already came wearing khaki, they’re not neutral. That’s part of the industry rebranding what were clearly weapons and surveillance equipment as public toys. Bracken-Roche, Interview 22 –Privacy Advocate, 2018 The rapid expansion of civil drone technologies over the past five to ten years has been met with excitement and trepidation. Commercially, drones are being adopted across a number of industries for dull, dirty, or dangerous jobs, and are positioned as the solution to any problem –or ‘like a solution looking for a problem’ (Hayes et al. 2014) –with the value of the global drone market expected to reach US$144.38 billion by 2025 (Adroit Market Research 2019). However, many academics, civil libertarians, and privacy advocates are concerned with the privacy and surveillance i