Jonathan W. Y. Gray

Dr. Jonathan W. Y. Gray is Reader in Critical Infrastructure Studies at the Department of Digital Humanities, King's College London. He also serves as Director of the Centre for Digital Culture and maintains research affiliations with the Digital Methods Initiative at the University of Amsterdam and the médialab at Sciences Po, Paris.

Gray's research explores how digital data, methods, and infrastructures shape collective life. His work spans critical data studies, digital methods development, environmental data research, and critical technical practice. Key projects include forestscapes (examining forest-society relations through soundscapes), research on East and Southeast Asian communities in the UK, and investigations into data infrastructures for social justice.

His recent publications reveal consistent thematic threads: the politics of data infrastructures, environmental data practices, and critical approaches to digital methods. The forthcoming book 'Public Data Cultures' (2025) and his co-edited works on data journalism demonstrate his commitment to making data practices more transparent and accountable.

Gray has received recognition for collaborative research through the Public Data Lab, which he co-founded in 2017 as a distributed network for collective inquiry. His work bridges academic research with public engagement through projects like the forestscapes listening lab and collaborations with organizations including Amnesty International.

As an educator, Gray focuses on critical and creative engagements with digital data, methods, and infrastructures. His approach emphasizes engaged, research-led teaching that brings together researchers, students, and external organizations as co-inquirers in addressing complex societal challenges.