June Wang (above), Seth Schindler, Yu Hong, Iginio Gagliardone, and Elisa Oreglia, are pleased to announce the establishment of The Digital Silk Roads and Beyond, an independent interdisciplinary research network, and the launch of an online seminar series.
The network brings together researchers examining how digital infrastructures and the circulation of people, products and ideas produce territory and reorganise relations of power. Asia and Africa are the initial focus, with a geographical scope that follows these connections beyond either region. The research develops through three connected lines of inquiry: digital infrastructures; the mobility of people and products; and cultural, standards and technology diplomacy. Across these lines, the network asks: who sets the terms of connection, whose labour sustains them, and how connections are negotiated, translated and contested in particular places?
The network aims to build sustained exchange across geography, communication studies, international relations, international political economy and related fields through seminars, comparative research and collaborative writing. Colleagues at all career stages are welcome to join the conversations and help shape the network’s activities.
The inaugural online seminar will feature Paul Langley (Durham University), drawing on his book FinTech Capital to discuss colonisation and the connections between Chinese banking and technology and African financial systems, including the cases of Standard Bank and MTN.
Monday 16 November 2026
10:00 London / 12:00 Johannesburg / 18:00 Hong Kong and Beijing
Online | Register here
The developing programme also includes Iginio Gagliardone on AI and Chinese smart cities in Kenya; Seth Schindler and Steve Rolf on state-platform capitalism; and Chih Yuan Woon on Chinese volumetric diplomacy in Southeast Asia. Please see the seminar programme for current details and updates.
You can explore the research agenda and members on the network website and register your interest in joining.
Political Geographers across the globe are invited to attend, contribute to future activities and circulate this announcement to interested colleagues and networks.
