The planet we live on is full of relationships. Biologists Lynn Margulis and James Lovelock published Gaia's hypothesis on this idea in 1969. When Lynn Margulis thought of life he not only thought of a context, but thought not only of an “original broth,” but also of the matter that makes selections. An absolutely revolutionary idea, because from there comes the theory of symbiogenesis, that is, the physical relationships between beings, the adaptations, to be who we are. In the words of Margulis, all living beings are symbionts, experiences built through bioexchanges.

The way these bio-exchange relationships are conducted is historically occurring through technology. It doesn't have to behave badly, but it's very interesting to ask ourselves about digitization that is becoming a hegemonic medium in relationships. The relationship that humans have historically had with nature is well captured in the song Izarren Hutsa by Mikel Laboa: “… the need to master a hostile environment…”. And we give that attitude strength along the way, creating layers and layers of nature and its “biological burden.”

With digital transformation, we're doing the same thing, but the layers that we generate not only physically pull us away from nature and other beings, but tend to pull us away from other people, often close.

On the other hand, mastering the “hostile environment” for many people means building power relations to dominate others, and digital transformation allows us to do so. Without forgetting that we are symbionts, what influence will this have on the development of life? Will technology and digitization itself become part of symbiogenesis?

Fortunately, in Euskal Herria there are many agents that reflect on these issues and foresee the power relations that our digitalization can generate, as it is a way to influence digital transformation.