David Janzen

Merging energy humanities, soundscape studies, and experimental sound recording, Petrophonics examines how fossil fuels transformed modern soundscapes and practices of listening. Developed in collaboration with Dr. R Martens (Manchester City University), a primary aim of the project is to assess how sound and listening contribute to just and sustainable energy futures. More speculatively, it imagines future soundscapes: what the world will sound like after oil?

For an overview of the project, see: Janzen, D. and R. Martens, “Petrophonics: A Sound Studies Approach to Oil Infrastructures,” Anthropologica 66.2.

This project maps projected critical mineral supply chains across Canada and shows how they shape AI and clean-tech futures. Canada aims to become a key, global supplier of critical minerals; yet, historically, extraction has had deeply negative effects on environment and Indigenous Rights. Canada's Infrastructure Stack assesses how projected critical mineral development impact existing commitments, particularly regarding climate change, truth and reconciliation, and labour. Longterm, the project aims to enhance transparency, sustainability, and Truth and Reconciliation regarding Canada's role in the development of future digital technologies.

*This project is in development. I'm actively seeking collaborators - researchers, grad students, and professionals - from diverse disciplines and perspectives.

Soil as a Relational Medium is a transdisciplinary project, co-led with Dr. K Lawless (University of Calgary) that studies soils as living systems linking species, histories, and infrastructures. Combining the expertise of soil and climate scientists, artists, farmers, Indigenous leaders and environmental humanists, the project reframes land from resource to relationship, advancing public conversations about climate adaptation, stewardship, and the legacies of extraction. Outputs include research articles, community-engaged project and a forthcoming set of exhibitions in public galleries across Canada.

A sub-project, Soil (De)Compositions, uses experimental sound recording to listen to soils. Working in Yukon and Alberta, I combine field recording, ecological notes, and sound composition with community partnerships to trace how histories of care, extraction, and climate are inscribed in the earth. The project produces gallery installations, audio works, and accessible writing that invite audiences to attend to relationships between land, more-than-human life, and everyday infrastructures.