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by addressing at once the ‘spreading interconnections and the locatedness of culture’ (2005,

p. 122).

In chapter one, tinned skipjack tuna comes to the fore. I outline my methodological

and theoretical approach and put it to practice by following a sustainable tin of tuna

historically, geographically, culturally and politically. I present the dilemma of researching

and theorising complex socio-technical and ecological engagements. In doing so I rationalise

my methodology of following and assemblic ethnography and begin to theorise sustainability

as a global assemblage.. This includes a discussion of how to approach the material semiotic

relationships of the assemblage. Another function of the chapter is to illustrate the historical

breadth of tinned tuna and to situate the Italian tonnare within this history. This leads us to

the historical period when a series of tuna sustainability crises and responses emerged, and

the visibility of fishing practices became an important sustainability tool and theme.

Historically, details of place and fishing method were not listed on most tins. In the new

sustainability regime certain places, processes, people and material things have become

conspicuous through traceability projects. In this chapter I argue that this traceability project

is incomplete. The case study of sustainable tinned tuna demonstrates that the process of

rendering visible is not neutral or ever complete. Rather, work goes into selecting and

defining what should be rendered visible and always involves a simultaneous rendering

invisible. Val Plumwood’s notion of “shadow places” helps me to draw out these issues.

Shadow places are those places that we are not aware of but ‘whose degradation we as

commodity consumers are indirectly responsible for’ (Plumwood 2008a, p. 147).

Chapter one begins my own thesis project of rendering visible shadow places and

things. This project continues throughout the thesis by drawing attention to the socio-cultural

dimensions, diverse locations, materials and technologies embroiled in tuna sustainability. I

reflect on the relationship between following and wider traceability/visibility schemes within

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