Technology in the Green--Ben Shipman, Megan Malooly, and Praveena Javvadi
Austin Texas has always been a big and booming city, but within the last 10 years it has become even larger, and this is due to rising interest tech companies have in the city. In the podcast we talked about how Austin is now being called “Silicon Hills”. It may be hard to think of Austin as the new Silicon Valley because as we move in and about Austin, we don’t tend to pay attention and take note of every technology-based company we pass by, but Image 1 is a map of all the technology companies that surround us. It really surprised us to see just how many tech businesses surround us, and it starts to make sense why Austin is not being called Silicon Hills. But our main focus of this podcast is the use of green spaces and greenery on the campuses of these tech companies. Just so you aren't hearing it from us only here is a quote from the STG Design website on their design concept for the Austin Oracle Waterfront Campus “The design includes flexible, forward-thinking spaces featuring large floor plates and ten-foot ceilings for abundant natural light, and thoughtful connection to nature and the outdoors- including a stunning outdoor plaza- that provides workers with the opportunity to reflect and recharge.”. So clearly these companies are spending a lot of money on their US domestic employees and ensuring that they have a workspace that is both comfortable and relaxing.
Image 1: Map of the Silicon Hills https://siliconmaps.com/silicon-hills/
But what about the people who also contribute to these companies' but aren’t college educated, and those who help to build these massive campuses, and those who work outside the U.S. obtaining the materials that areessential for these tech companies to even produce the products they sell? Well despite the almost luxury work conditions that the college educated tech employees work in the reality for everyone else who helps to keep these companies afloat work in anything but. For example, the average construction worker in Austin makes about $16.49 an hour according to Indeed.com; and out of the total Hispanic population (5,234,564 people) in Texas 13% (681,212) work in construction. Out of all the other top 5 race/ race ethnicities in Texas the Hispanic community is the only one to have construction in its top 5 occupation groups (Texas Workforce Commission p.30). This data tells us that construction workers in Texas will make just about $34k a year if they work 40 hour a week for all 52 weeks in the year. Another example is the extraction of cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and how companies like Microsoft, Google, Dell, Apple, and Tesla were all tried in a US lawsuit in 2019 over the deaths of child laborers in these cobalt mines. A quote from the, previously hyperlinked, Guardian article that we think perfectly encapsulates the idea we want to convey is “The court paper claim that Apple, Dell, Microsoft, Google and Tesla all have the authority and resources to supervise and regulate their cobalt supply chains and that their inability to do so contributed to the deaths and injuries suffered by their clients.”. So, to tie all of this back to green spaces we wanted to make our listeners are aware of the fact that these huge companies are greenwashing their public image with these dreamy and luxury looking green campuses in order to distract from the fact that they are using injustices of people in the global south and people in the US who have manual labor jobs in order to increase their profit margins. We also wanted to make our listeners more aware of the
But what about the people who also contribute to these companies' but aren’t college educated, and those who help to build these massive campuses, and those who work outside the U.S. obtaining the materials that areessential for these tech companies to even produce the products they sell? Well despite the almost luxury work conditions that the college educated tech employees work in the reality for everyone else who helps to keep these companies afloat work in anything but. For example, the average construction worker in Austin makes about $16.49 an hour according to Indeed.com; and out of the total Hispanic population (5,234,564 people) in Texas 13% (681,212) work in construction. Out of all the other top 5 race/ race ethnicities in Texas the Hispanic community is the only one to have construction in its top 5 occupation groups (Texas Workforce Commission p.30). This data tells us that construction workers in Texas will make just about $34k a year if they work 40 hour a week for all 52 weeks in the year. Another example is the extraction of cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and how companies like Microsoft, Google, Dell, Apple, and Tesla were all tried in a US lawsuit in 2019 over the deaths of child laborers in these cobalt mines. A quote from the, previously hyperlinked, Guardian article that we think perfectly encapsulates the idea we want to convey is “The court paper claim that Apple, Dell, Microsoft, Google and Tesla all have the authority and resources to supervise and regulate their cobalt supply chains and that their inability to do so contributed to the deaths and injuries suffered by their clients.”. So, to tie all of this back to green spaces we wanted to make our listeners are aware of the fact that these huge companies are greenwashing their public image with these dreamy and luxury looking green campuses in order to distract from the fact that they are using injustices of people in the global south and people in the US who have manual labor jobs in order to increase their profit margins. We also wanted to make our listeners more aware of the
Image 2 Cobalt mine in the DRC- Photo Credit: UNICEF
https://theirworld.org/news/drc-children-dig-for-cobalt-to-power-electric-cars-phones
growing tech industry in Austin so that these tech companies can be held accountable for their actions; should there be exploitation of their Austin manual labor workforce, and an increase in the already rampant gentrification that is happening in Austin. So, in conclusion we think that it is important to realize just how much money these tech companies make and to know that it is our job as a community to hold them accountable when they start to become a threat to the safety and security of not only our community but for those all around the world.
Bibliography
Austin Chamber. (n.d.). Why Austin? Austin Chamber of Commerce. https://www.austinchamber.com/economic-development/why-austin
Braun, B. (2003). 5. ‘‘On the Raggedy Edge of Risk’’ Articulations of Race and Nature After Biology. In D. Moore, J. Kosek & A. Pandian (Ed.), Race, Nature, and the Politics of Difference (pp. 175-203). New York, USA: Duke University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780822384656-007
Canales, K. (2021, January 23). What it’s like in the growing tech hub of Austin, Texas. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/austin-texas-silicon-hills-tech-capital-city-photos-2019-2?amp
Hamilton, I. A. (2018, December 16). Apple is dropping $1 billion on a huge new campus in Austin, Texas. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-to-build-new-campus-in-austin-texas-2018-12
Indeed. (2021, December 2). Construction Laborer salary in Austin, TX. Www.indeed.com. https://www.indeed.com/career/construction-laborer/salaries/Austin--TX
Kelly, A. (2019, December 16). Apple and Google named in US lawsuit over Congolese child cobalt mining deaths. The Guardian; The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/dec/16/apple-and-google-named-in-us-lawsuit-over-congolese-child-cobalt-mining-deaths
Kerr, B., & Austin Chamber. (2021, November 22). Job growth & unemployment. Austin Chamber of Commerce. https://www.austinchamber.com/blog/11-22-2021-job-growth-unemployment
Sandoval, E. (2021, November 27). How Austin Became One of the Least Affordable Cities in America. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/27/us/austin-texas-unaffordable-city.html
STG Design. (n.d.). Oracle Waterfront Campus. STG Design. https://stgdesign.com/commercial-projects/oraclewaterfrontcampus
Texas Workforce Commission. (2021). Texas Workforce Report (pp. 28–29). https://lmci.state.tx.us/shared/PDFs/Workforce_Report.pdf
Theirworld. (2021, December 8). Child labourers as young as six dig for cobalt to power electric cars and phones. Theirworld. https://theirworld.org/news/drc-children-dig-for-cobalt-to-power-electric-cars-phones
United States Census Bureau. (n.d.). U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Portland city, Oregon. Www.census.gov. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/portlandcityoregon
Praveena Javvadi, Megan Malooly, and Ben Shipman spoke with Susan Nold, Senior Vice President of Policy and External Affairs at the Austin Chamber
https://theirworld.org/news/drc-children-dig-for-cobalt-to-power-electric-cars-phones
growing tech industry in Austin so that these tech companies can be held accountable for their actions; should there be exploitation of their Austin manual labor workforce, and an increase in the already rampant gentrification that is happening in Austin. So, in conclusion we think that it is important to realize just how much money these tech companies make and to know that it is our job as a community to hold them accountable when they start to become a threat to the safety and security of not only our community but for those all around the world.
Bibliography
Austin Chamber. (n.d.). Why Austin? Austin Chamber of Commerce. https://www.austinchamber.com/economic-development/why-austin
Braun, B. (2003). 5. ‘‘On the Raggedy Edge of Risk’’ Articulations of Race and Nature After Biology. In D. Moore, J. Kosek & A. Pandian (Ed.), Race, Nature, and the Politics of Difference (pp. 175-203). New York, USA: Duke University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780822384656-007
Canales, K. (2021, January 23). What it’s like in the growing tech hub of Austin, Texas. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/austin-texas-silicon-hills-tech-capital-city-photos-2019-2?amp
Hamilton, I. A. (2018, December 16). Apple is dropping $1 billion on a huge new campus in Austin, Texas. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-to-build-new-campus-in-austin-texas-2018-12
Indeed. (2021, December 2). Construction Laborer salary in Austin, TX. Www.indeed.com. https://www.indeed.com/career/construction-laborer/salaries/Austin--TX
Kelly, A. (2019, December 16). Apple and Google named in US lawsuit over Congolese child cobalt mining deaths. The Guardian; The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/dec/16/apple-and-google-named-in-us-lawsuit-over-congolese-child-cobalt-mining-deaths
Kerr, B., & Austin Chamber. (2021, November 22). Job growth & unemployment. Austin Chamber of Commerce. https://www.austinchamber.com/blog/11-22-2021-job-growth-unemployment
Sandoval, E. (2021, November 27). How Austin Became One of the Least Affordable Cities in America. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/27/us/austin-texas-unaffordable-city.html
STG Design. (n.d.). Oracle Waterfront Campus. STG Design. https://stgdesign.com/commercial-projects/oraclewaterfrontcampus
Texas Workforce Commission. (2021). Texas Workforce Report (pp. 28–29). https://lmci.state.tx.us/shared/PDFs/Workforce_Report.pdf
Theirworld. (2021, December 8). Child labourers as young as six dig for cobalt to power electric cars and phones. Theirworld. https://theirworld.org/news/drc-children-dig-for-cobalt-to-power-electric-cars-phones
United States Census Bureau. (n.d.). U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Portland city, Oregon. Www.census.gov. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/portlandcityoregon
Praveena Javvadi, Megan Malooly, and Ben Shipman spoke with Susan Nold, Senior Vice President of Policy and External Affairs at the Austin Chamber
