Overview: The Maintainers (themaintainers.org) is a global research network interested in the concepts of maintenance, infrastructure, repair, and the myriad forms of labor and expertise that sustain our human-built world. We are seeking: Applicants for up to three research fellow … More →
This post is written by Maintainers community member Julie Mark Cohen. See her bio below. During the Cold War by the mid-late 1950s, the U.S. military conceived the Arecibo Observatory “to aid in the research and development of ballistic missile … More →
We’re delighted to share news that the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation has approved three years of funding for The Maintainers, to support and extend a movement that promotes the importance of maintenance in technology and society. This award, which covers … More →
Dear all, We’ve been thinking a lot about all of you, the members of The Maintainers community as well as all of the maintainers out there keeping our world going during this startling and troubling moment. We know that members … More →
This post is by The Maintainers Co-Directors Andy, Jess, and Lee. A big part of our job involves talking to other people about maintenance and how both maintenance and the lives of Maintainers can be improved in our culture today. … More →
The Maintainers has been changing a lot over the past few years. We (Andy Russell and Lee Vinsel) got The Maintainers going first by making jokes online. Soon thereafter, and with the help of many others, we organized two conferences … More →
This is the second of two interrelated posts by the disability studies scholar Hanna Herdegen who is pursuing a PhD in Science, Technology, and Society at Virginia Tech. “What have you got in there, rocks?” I’ve gotten comments on the … More →
This post is by Information Maintenance Community Member Monique Lassere Many of us are familiar with the term “maintenance,” and we may even have ready-made ideas of what maintenance looks like, whether as an occupation or what we just realized … More →
This is the first of two interrelated posts by the disability studies scholar Hanna Herdegen who is pursuing a PhD in Science, Technology, and Society at Virginia Tech. When I was first diagnosed with POTS, my cardiologist suggested that I … More →
This post is by The Maintainers Co-Director Lee Vinsel. A couple of weeks ago I heard that joyful news that my Virginia Tech colleagues Jenni Case, Marie Paretti, and I were awarded a grant from the Institute for Society, Culture, … More →