The Surveillance Project started at Queen’s in 2000 as a multidisciplinary research project with an international network of scholars. With the evolution of personal data becoming a valued commodity, the single Surveillance Project has grown exponentially and is now officially the Surveillance Studies Centre (SCC).

“Having the status of a Centre, rather than a ‘project’ will enhance our capacity for collaboration with others, nationally and internationally, and thus strengthen what is already a productive tradition,” says Queen's sociology professor David Lyon, who has been the director of the project since its inception.

The new Centre’s main research tasks will continue, with The New Transparency Project front and centre, and other ventures, such as SCAN (Surveillance Camera Awareness Network), running alongside. But the new “Centre” status will allow for expanded research programs and attract new funding.

“My hope is that the SSC will facilitate much collaboration between its members and beyond, and advance the surveillance studies field by way of workshops, lectures and seminars, empirical work, publishing, community outreach, liaising with policy and activist groups, and student training,” adds Dr. Lyon. “We look forward to ongoing cooperation as we move toward our goal of establishing Queen’s University as a leading centre of expertise in the field of surveillance studies.”

For more information on the Surveillance Studies Centre visit www.sscqueens.org