EPISTEMIC EXTRACTIVISM IN ENGAGED URBAN AND HOUSING RESEARCH: Implications and Counter-measures

What is ‘epistemic extractivism’, and how does it affect researchers who are engaged in urban and housing movements? This essay first explores the contexts of both engaged research and epistemic extractivism, clarifying their meanings and implications. It also disentangles the ethical and methodological risks posed by epistemic extractivism in the academic support of emancipatory struggles. Through an analysis of recent experiences of urban and housing activist research, I identify practical measures to prevent, neutralize or reverse epistemic extractivism. The main argument is that the perils of extractivism are less dependent on the extent or quality of data extraction than on the agreements, reciprocity and accountability established between academics and non-academics in collaborative projects. Furthermore, issues of reductionism, as well as the reproduction of social inequalities in terms of labour and rewards during the research process, may be overlooked. I contend that engaged housing and urban scholars should take these issues into consideration.