Allyssa Persinger, Madison Giles, Sarah Ransom, Madisyn Magers, Moe Brown, Colleen Benison, and Luke Monti created a digital humanities project that aims to examine the ever-changing history of coal extraction in West Virginia.
Extracting WV 2.0 highlights the effects of mining on the environment and local communities, and the current push for hyperscale data centers in various parts of the state.
It also considers how older systems of industrial exploitation echo within today’s digital age, encouraging a deeper understanding of how the past continues to inform the present and future.
Developed for the Introduction to the Digital Humanities course taught by Jennifer Sano-Franchini last semester, the project features archival research conducted by students in partnership with the West Virginia and Regional History Center.