Gehan Kamachi

Between 2022 and 2023, the think tank Renaissance Numérique explored ways of thinking about the uses, economic models related to the place of the body, and methods of regulating and governing the metaverse.
Several outputs and events are tied to this work over a year:
– A cycle of three international meetings: the Metaverses Dialogues
– A qualitative study: Representations and Uses of the Metaverse
– A final report: Governing the Metaverse and tomorrow’s internet
– A website : www.metaversedialogues.org

For Chronos, in partnership with the Laboratory of Urban Sociology (LASUR) of the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), and on behalf of the Republic and Canton of Geneva, Jean-François coordinated a study entitled: From Projected Quality to Lived Quality: Rethinking the Quality of Inhabited Spaces in a Context of Ecological Transition.

Whether urban, architectural, environmental, social, technical, scenic, or a composition of these dimensions, “quality” is an objective—or even an injunction—that every urban project must address. As “the act of building” has become a “truly social activity, as the scope of practices, the spectrum of stakeholders, the range of available tools and communication methods, and the legislative and political framework expand” (Chombart de Lowe, Pribetich, 2012), quality is not only a matter of “composition between the dimensions that make the city” (Bailly et al., 2015b); it is a question of composing all the “arguments” (objectives, expectations, attachments, desires, etc.) from various stakeholders (elected officials, designers, residents, etc.), in the face of constraints imposed by legislative and political frameworks and the necessity of ecological transition.

On behalf of Chronos, Jean-François for two years supported the partners of the Metropolitan Public Data Service (SPMD) project, notably Rennes Métropole, in steering and evaluating the project.

This is fundamentally a governance project, whose aim was to outline conditions for sharing territorial data and to test hypotheses on datasets related to key public policies of the local authority.

The summary of these two initial years is available online: https://fr.calameo.com/books/0054162347aa5186b1308

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It is at the crossroads of knowledge and imagination that innovations emerge—where the images, stories, narratives, intuitions, and emotions of designers and users intersect.

To explore and model these paths of innovation requires gathering and integrating transdisciplinary competencies, as well as using concepts and methods from industry and science. The “Modeling Imaginaries, Innovation and Creation” research and teaching chair (MODIM) established a long-term partnership (2010–2015) bringing together academics (Télécom Paris-Tech, Univ. Rennes 2, Strate School of Design) and industry partners (Dassault Systèmes, Orange, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Ubisoft).

For 5 years, the MODIM Chair met the challenge of treating “imagination as a raw material”, deciphering archetypes or even the “grammar” of the imaginaries involved in innovation processes. It sought to model and formalize imaginaries defined as dynamic combinations of stories (conversations and fiction) and universes (shapes and virtual, immersive, and interactive worlds).

For 3 years, Jean-François was innovation and creativity manager within this Chair.

>> See all the books

Jean-François completed a thesis in sociology titled “From immersion to inhabiting in virtual worlds: the case of cities in Second Life” (in french).

This research addresses the immersive phenomenon in virtual worlds accessible via the internet, especially Second Life. Through a formal approach (Simmel) and Actor-Network Theory (Latour), Jean-François analyzed various mediations shaping the perceptual, narrative, and social regimes. This thesis straddles many disciplines: sociology, information and communication sciences, philosophy, geography, digital humanities. It uses diverse methods: participant observation, interviews, surveys, inworld tracking.

This research shows that immersion depends on user choices (visual viewpoint, activity choices, etc.) and on the qualities and possibilities of the virtual world (technical architecture, world map, built environment, etc.). Processes of appropriation and attachment between actors and places are analyzed and described through the formalization of a “home”. The research contributes to a theory of inhabiting in virtual worlds.

>> De l’immersion à l’immersion dans les mondes virtuels

On two occasions, Gehan and Jean-François joined a special team led by Hugobiwan Zolnir to deliver two “mixed reality” concerts (2007 & 2008) at the Trans Festival in Rennes.
The goal was to share a live concert experience between the physical venue and cyberspace. These projects were developed with the city of Rennes and the “Les Trans” festival.
A joyous, pioneering experience that foreshadowed many so-called “virtual” concerts now emerging.

Within 1001 Marketing, Jean-François helped develop Business PME.com. This site offered a directory of microbusinesses, self-employed, EURLs or SARLs, as well as most companies with fewer than 500 employees.