Constant

WhatsApp alternatives

imane — 2025-10-31T11:20:33Z

In many situations, instant messaging services are very useful. Many groups recognise this and use them extensively. If someone doesn't reply, a short message — on the same platform — ensures that important communication is not forgotten. How convenient! Not to mention that group messages and individual communications are all in the same application.

But the choice of application, and more specifically, the entity that owns it, is not as trivial as it seems. WhatsApp, the best-known service, is often imposed without any thought or consensus. And when we say it imposes itself, we mean that we impose it on those who want to join the group.

This workshop, offers in collaboration with 'Amis de la Terre', will be an opportunity to explore the issues involved in choosing a messaging platform, discover alternatives, and try one of them out in practice: Matrix.

Practical information:

Location: Le DK, Denemarkenstraat 70b Rue de Danemark 70b, 1060 Saint-Gilles | Sint-Gillis (near Place Bethléem)
17:00: Reception open
18:30: Presentation followed by a workshop
More information: info@ateliers-dk.be

Please note: this venue is not fully accessible to people with reduced mobility. If this applies to you, please contact us in advance of the workshop so that we can prepare the venue to accommodate you.

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Every 2nd Monday of the month, these critical reflection encounters propose to address topics related to the digital (e.g. algorithms, surveillance capitalism, ecological impacts, etc.) and to explore alternative ways of doing things (discovery of free and ethical tools, de-gluing of smartphones, protection of communications, etc.).

These meetings are organised by Neutrinet and Constant's partner, Tactic.

PARSE #21: Ecologies of dissemination

Donatella — 2025-10-29T15:14:18Z

Constant has the pleasure to announce the launch of the Issue #21 of PARSE Journal: Ecologies of dissemination by Femke Snelting and Eva Weinmayr.

Our colleague Elodie Mugrefya has been part of the advisory board supporting this project.

This issue of PARSE Journal starts from the tangled and mesmerising fabric of collective artistic practice, particularly from the frictions that keep coming up when sharing work that was collectively produced or while reusing works made by others.

The editors hope that readers will find many ways to reuse the conversations, prompts, cases and resources that have been brought together in this issue.

View online : https://parsejournal.com/journal/#e...

There's an elephant in the room, episode 3

Elodie — 2025-09-12T15:03:01Z

"Dear organiser, worker in a public institution, tutor, student, activist,
We know you're fed up. So are we. That's why we decided to write you this letter: as we are facing down another September-September still stuck with everyday digital infrastructures provided by companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, OpenAI and HP that are, as we know, involved in militarization and genocide. Another year of zoom meetings, google calendar and sharepoint folders to be seemingly smoothly streamlined to our desktop, blackboard or phone. There's evidently an elephant in the room"

Third 'elephant' letter, written in the context of the Infra-resistance gathering which took place in Barcelona in July 2025.

The infra-resistance network of networks is an informal gathering of activists, artists, designers and organisers working on and with computational infrastructures. We came together at the end of 2023 to figure out together what techno-practices can be relevant in the context of genocidal violence in Palestine and in solidarity with anti-colonial struggles. It is an ongoing attempt to think through and activate the relationship between dominant computational infrastructures and all forms of oppression.

View online : https://constantvzw.org/wefts/third...

Constant @ Food for thoughts — The Cookery 2025, iMAL

Donatella — 2025-09-09T08:02:57Z

In the framework of the 2025 edition of iMAL's festival, The Cookery, our colleague Imane will participate to a round table on the topic of intersectionality in tech.

The aim of this panel is to bring together voices that are thinking about technology from between the 'margins', while navigating digital dependencies, and fostering networks, communities and tech rooted in collective care that oppose extraction, exploitation and extinction.

With: Dasha Ilina, Sunjoo Lee, Anne-Marie Maes, Aymeric Mansoux, natacha petites singularités, Ai Carmela Netîrk, Marie Verdeil, Ava Zevop.

View online : https://www.imal.org/en/events/cook...

240 million computers discarded: what if we adopted Linux?

Donatella — 2025-08-21T13:58:19Z

14 October will mark the end of support for Windows 10, an operating system that is still used on many computers around the world. As a result, only the most recent computers will be compatible with the new version of Microsoft's OS, effectively rendering many still-functional computers obsolete... - a disposal that would amount to 240 million devices according to some estimates.

While a large part of the ecological impact of digital technology is linked to the production of new devices, Microsoft is forcing us to replace functional devices, going against the grain of calls to keep the ones we have for as long as possible. In this context, Linux presents itself as an alternative capable of extending the life of computers rejected by the Windows publisher, or even giving ageing devices a new lease of life.

But what is Linux? How does this system differ from Windows and MacOS? What are the challenges of a free and open system? And in practical terms, how can it be adopted? During this meeting, we will take a brief look at the history, functioning and challenges of this free system. Because while installing it saves you from having to buy a new computer, Linux also has other advantages: it is a solution that is more respectful of the confidentiality of our data, guaranteeing digital sovereignty and our freedoms in the face of the influence and appetite of American giants.

Are you hesitating to take the plunge and want to see what this alternative looks like in practice? The meeting will be an opportunity to try out Linux on computers made available to you. Are you a new Linux user? Feel free to come along with your questions.

This meeting, organised with members of BxLUG (Brussels Linux User Group), will also be an opportunity to discover the activities of this association, which has long been working to promote the discovery and adoption of Linux by the general public in Brussels.

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Every 2nd Monday of the month, these critical reflection encounters propose to address topics related to the digital (e.g. algorithms, surveillance capitalism, ecological impacts, etc.) and to explore alternative ways of doing things (discovery of free and ethical tools, de-gluing of smartphones, protection of communications, etc.).

These evenings take place in two parts: at 6:30 pm, there is a presentation followed by a discussion or a thematic workshop. Don't hesitate to send your suggestions at: info@ateliers-dk.be
The presentations are held in French.
Please note: this venue is not fully accessible to people with reduced mobility. If this applies to you, please contact Tactic beforehand.

These meetings are organised by Neutrinet and Constant's partner, Tactic.

View online : https://ateliers-dk.be/evenements

Nom, Prénom, Rue du Fort 35, 1060 Saint-Gilles, Belgique

Donatella — 2025-07-01T09:08:12Z

Artist Amélie Berrodier invites local residents and regular visitors to the Pianofabriek to take part in a participatory installation as part of the exhibition Nom, Prénom, Rue du Fort 35, 1060 Saint-Gilles, Belgique.

As objects are collected, the installation evolves, gradually building a collective portrait of the neighborhood.

Constant's Books with an Attitude found a nice space in the imaginary salon that the artist recreated in the exhibition room of the Pianofabriek.

View online : https://www.pianofabriek.be/en/acti...

Infra-resistance meetings: Dual (ab)use

Elodie — 2025-06-30T09:55:58Z

Constant joins the next infra-resistance meeting in Barcelona

Infra-resistance meetings are intensive, trans-local, semi-public gatherings around and for internationalist infrastructural resistance against deadly regimes and extractive assumptions.

Spread over three half-day sessions, this edition invites a number of practitioners to critically engage with the concept of ‘dual-use' – a term referring to technologies and materials that can be used for both military and civilian applications. The event provides an opportunity to explore the concept and its underlying assumptions, as well as to politicise the issues of technology and dual-use categorisations as a step towards more robust, meaningful public discourse.

More info on the public program : https://www.lacapella.barcelona/en/dual-abuse-technologies-school-elephants-room-iii

XPUB 1 Public presentation at Houweling telecom museum

imane — 2025-06-25T21:56:15Z

For the past three months, Imane and Martino from Constant have been working through the temporalities of times with the students of the special issue 27 at @xpub

Three threads have been guiding the sessions:

the micro-time of computer processes — the super-fast cycles happening constantly in digital infrastructures, continuously synchronized to super-precise frequencies;

the macro-time of geological formations — the crystals and minerals inside all electronic devices, the physical substrate that makes all computation possible, and the exploitative, environmentally destructive methods used to extract them;

the capitalist-time of work and labour — the production rhythms of societies and individuals, and the time-networks and infrastructures required to keep global activities in sync.

On Tuesday 1st of July, XPUB 1 students will present their special issue 27 event at the unobserved under-appreciated and wondrous telecom museum! Put it in your calendar, set a timer, count your sleeps and see you many many times ?

Location:
Houweling telecommuseum: Vlaggemanstraat 15, Rotterdam, NL

Date & Time:
Tuesday 1st of July, from 14h to 17h

Bring cash!

In the digital trenches: Meeting and discussion about Curseurs 5

Donatella — 2025-06-06T14:44:56Z

From the re-election of Donald Trump and the allegiance of the tech giants to his far-right policies, to the genocide in Gaza, digital technologies are playing a major role in the ongoing massacres, whether on the media or technological fronts.

Against this sombre backdrop, the fifth issue of Curseurs examines the links between digital technology and the arms and surveillance industry, and the role it plays in current conflicts. At the heart of this issue is the issue of the dual civilian and military use of these technologies, as well as the way in which technical developments implemented in combat zones reinforce surveillance and control systems in our cities. Other ‘wars' are also at stake: the digital war on life and the war on unsold food in Brussels. But there are also a few avenues of resistance...

On Monday 9 June 2025, we invite you to take a look at the contents of this issue and discuss the issues. Come along and meet the members of the team and some of the authors of the articles!

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These meetings are organised by Neutrinet and Constant's partner, Tactic.

View online : https://www.tacticasbl.be/agenda

Reading the EU AI Act together

Peter Westenberg — 2025-04-30T17:04:51Z

This session invites interested people to come together and read the EU AI Act collectively which was approved, after years of deliberation, in the summer of 2024.

It is worth looking at the AI Act as it shapes an imagination of AI and how it can and cannot be regulated. Companies and governments are now preparing for the enforcement and compliance of the act. The EU Commission is building its legislative infrastructure around it. The AI Act is a horizontal product law taking a risk-based approach to the application of AI in the EU single market. Companies are required to mitigate certain risks depending on the risk level. In parallel, technical standards for AI are currently being developed.

The session will be divided into two parts. The first part will set the scene. We will present the logic of the AI Act, its history, and building blocks to orientate the reading. The second part will be a collective reading and analysis of the legal text. We will read together and discuss our associations, confusions, questions, interpretations.

Questions that could guide the collective reading are:

What is the underlying objective of the EU AI Act?
How is AI defined? How can it be interpreted?
Who is included in the regulation? Who is left out?
How is risk defined? How are different actors understood?
What are the limits of the law? How do we reckon with some of the underlying tensions of the law?

We are open to adjusting the collective reading to the specific interests and motivations of the group. Please share with us beforehand if there is something that you would really like to cover in the session. Feedback, thoughts, responses will be deeply welcomed!

About the facilitator:
Gwendolin Barnard is a PhD researcher in Sociology at University of Graz. By mobilizing approaches from Critical Data Studies and Science and Technology Studies, they have been researching the establishment and current implementation of the EU AI Act. Their specific interest in the EU AI Act builds on their research looking at the impact of datafication on workers in the way labour is accessed, managed, and organized. They are interested in how the law opens or forecloses political possibilities to collectively express interests and needs – especially when it comes to the intense deployment of AI in workplaces and beyond. They are part of the research team at the US-based organisation ‘Our Data Bodies – Justice and Human rights' where they are currently working on a project identifying the policy vacuums that legitimated practices of managerial-led surveillance at U.S. Amazon Warehouses with the aim identifying routes forward.

Practical info

Participation: free

Language: English-spoken

Food: we'll provide for basic soup and snacks, so it would be great if you can bring some extra food to the shared.

Registration: please confirm your presence by sending an e-mail to: peter@constantvzw.org

Accessibility:
Constant Studio is wheelchair accessible: including the entrance, (but narrow 75 cm corridor door), toilet, main space, kitchen and garden.
You can find more info here
If you have any special needs please contact us.