THEME & SCOPES

Future Trends and Issues Beyond 2025

Looking beyond 2025, the field of digital humanities (DH) is poised to confront a series of profound and multifaceted challenges that will shape its trajectory and impact for years to come. These future trends and issues are not only technological but deeply intertwined with societal, ethical, and environmental considerations, demanding a proactive and reflective approach from the DH community.

One of the most pressing future concerns is the imperative to address systemic societal challenges such as racial and gender discrimination within digital humanities research and practice. As DH projects increasingly engage with diverse cultural materials and communities, there is a growing recognition of the need to ensure inclusivity, equity, and representation in both the content and the methodologies employed. This involves critically examining whose voices are amplified or marginalized in digital archives, databases, and scholarly narratives, and actively working to dismantle biases embedded in data, algorithms, and institutional structures. The commitment to social justice within DH calls for frameworks that prioritize care, community engagement, and collaborative knowledge production, fostering spaces where historically underrepresented groups can participate fully and shape the field’s future directions. Environmental sustainability is another critical issue that will increasingly influence digital humanities beyond 2025. The environmental footprint of digital infrastructures—ranging from data centers and cloud storage to computationally intensive analyses—raises urgent questions about the ecological costs of digital scholarship. As the volume of digital data grows exponentially, so too does the energy consumption and resource demand associated with its storage, processing, and dissemination. Digital humanists are called to engage with these environmental crises by developing sustainable practices, such as optimizing data management, promoting green computing, and advocating for institutional policies that balance technological advancement with ecological responsibility. This environmental consciousness aligns with broader ethical commitments in DH to stewardship and longterm preservation of cultural heritage in ways that do not compromise planetary health.

Technological innovation will continue to be a defining force in shaping the future of digital humanities. Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR), and blockchain hold transformative potential for humanities research, pedagogy, and public engagement. These tools can enable more sophisticated data analysis, immersive experiences of cultural artifacts, and novel forms of scholarly communication. However, their integration also demands critical scrutiny regarding ethical implications, transparency, and the preservation of humanistic values. Digital humanists must navigate the balance between embracing technological possibilities and maintaining a reflective stance that questions how these technologies shape knowledge production, access, and power dynamics.

The future of DH also emphasizes the importance of fostering care, community, and collaboration as foundational principles. Moving beyond individualistic or project-centric models, there is a growing movement toward process- and relationship-oriented modes of working that prioritize collective well-being, mutual support, and shared stewardship of digital resources. This approach encourages sustainable collaborations that transcend disciplinary, institutional, and geographic boundaries, nurturing resilient networks that can adapt to evolving challenges. Such community-centered practices are vital for sustaining the field’s vitality and ensuring that digital humanities remains responsive to diverse needs and contexts. Moreover, the evolving landscape of digital humanities will require ongoing attention to issues of digital literacy and equitable participation. As digital tools and methods become more sophisticated, ensuring that scholars, students, and communities have access to the necessary skills and resources is paramount. This includes addressing disparities in technological access and education, particularly in under-resourced regions or institutions, to prevent the deepening of existing inequalities. Equitable participation also involves creating inclusive platforms and governance structures that empower a broad spectrum of voices to contribute to and benefit from digital humanities scholarship. In sum, the future of digital humanities beyond 2025 is characterized by a complex interplay of technological innovation, social justice imperatives, environmental responsibility, and community-oriented values. The field’s continued growth and relevance depend on its ability to engage these issues thoughtfully and proactively, fostering a digital humanities that is not only innovative but also ethical, inclusive, and sustainable. By embracing these future trends and challenges, CODH-2025 aims to catalyze critical conversations and collaborative efforts that will shape the next era of digital humanities scholarship and practice.