Smart Cities for Technological and Social Innovation

Case Studies, Current Trends, and Future Steps

Hyung Min Kim,Soheil Sabri,Anthony Kent

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9780128188873
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Urban Sociology
• Index: Social Sciences

Smart Cities for Technological and Social Innovation establishes a key theoretical framework to understand the implementation and development of smart cities as innovation drivers, in terms of lasting impacts on productivity, livability and sustainability of specific initiatives. This framework is based on empirical analysis of 12 case studies, including pioneer projects from Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and more. It explores how successful smart cities initiatives nurture both technological and social innovation using a combination of regulatory governance and private agency. Typologies of smart city-making approaches are explored in depth. Integrative analysis identifies key success factors in establishing innovation relating to the effectiveness of social systems, institutional thickness, governance, the role of human capital, and streamlining funding of urban development projects.

• Cases from a range of geographies, scales, social and economic contexts
• Explores how smart cities can promote technological and social innovation in terms of direct impacts on livability, productivity and sustainability
• Establishes an integrative framework based on empirical evidence to develop more innovative smart city initiatives
• Investigates the role of governments in coordinating, fostering and guiding innovations resulting from smart city developments
• Interrogates the policies and governance structures which have been effective in supporting the development and deployment of smart cities

Chapter 1: Introduction: Being smarter for productivity, livability, and sustainability

Soheil Sabri Centre for Spatial Data Infrastructures and Land Administration, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Abstract

This chapter provides an introduction to the book, in which several cases of technological innovation and social innovation initiatives are discussed. It outlines the book’s organization and calls for a comprehensive understanding of the drivers, actors, and outcomes of smart city initiatives. As such, Chapter 2 develops a framework to examine city experiences in 11 countries/cities across Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, the Americas, Europe, and the United Kingdom. The case studies provided in Chapters 3–14 constitute the ground for evaluation of exogenous and endogenous factors of smart city implementation and associated outcomes in Chapter 15. The last chapter highlights future directions for smart cities and outlines the role that preexisting information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructures play in the resilience of cities, most recently, in response to the social-distancing requirements of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Keywords

Smart city; Digital technology; Technological innovations; Social innovation; Resilience; COVID-19

Chapter outline

• 1.1 Introduction
• 1.2 Asia-Pacific
• 1.3 Africa and the Middle East
• 1.4 Americas
• 1.5 Europe
• 1.6 Conclusion
• References

1.1: Introduction

This book aims to develop a framework in which the smart city experiences in different jurisdictions across the Asia Pacific, the Americas, Europe and the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and Africa can be examined. The framework, detailed in Chapter 2, is developed to understand drivers, actors, and policy outcomes as well as technological platforms that underpin the innovations that have enhanced productivity, sustainability, and livability. While the scale of smart city initiatives varies in different geographical contexts, it is important to see how it is encouraged by technological innovation and how it stimulates innovation in the entire city. This book identifies the key drivers of current smart city practices in multiple locations. It also outlines key actors and their roles—governments, private industries, information and communication technology (ICT) firms, citizens, and end-users in each context. The identification of key drivers, actors, and outcomes in an organized fashion provides important insights for other jurisdictions on how to better revise or formulate their current and future policies and plans toward technological and social innovation movements.

To achieve this aim, the book is comprised of 16 chapters. This chapter summarizes the book’s content and argues that it is important to investigate different geographical locations and scales to better provide knowledge and insight for evidence-based policymaking. Chapter 2 builds a coherent conceptual framework that brings together key ideas on smart cities as they relate to technological aspects, but also its underestimated and somewhat conflicted social innovation potential. Chapters 3–14 then present the case studies. Eleven nations and cities from six different geographical regions are surveyed. Chapter 15 evaluates and compares different experiences and paths taken in the case studies and outlines the differences and similarities of smart cities initiatives. This chapter also aligns the case studies with the framework formulated by Kim, Sabri, and Kent in Chapter 2. Finally, Chapter 16 provides concluding remarks and implications of findings for future developments using smart cities as a platform. Given that the publication of this book is concurrent with the global outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), Chapter 16 explores the role of ICT infrastructure in the global phenomenon of social distancing and new working patterns emerging from this global economic and health crisis.

1.2: Asia-Pacific

For more than two decades, several countries across the Asia-Pacific region have adopted technological innovation and undertaken smart city initiatives in their national and local policies. Singapore and South Korea have been implementing innovative technologies since the early 2000s. Over the last decade, other countries in this region have also fast tracked the adoption of smart cities, which attracted corporate high-tech businesses moving to the Asia-Pacific, where digital infrastructures such as Internet of Things (IoT) and multicloud architecture have been established with reasonable cost.

Singapore is a pioneer in adopting new technologies in all aspects of city-state management and operation. As an example, the concept of whole-of-government (WHOG) was adopted to provide multiagency collaboration in government. One of the major developments in the WHOG initiative is using accurate and realistic urban data for communication and decision making. As such, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) took leadership of developing and maintaining accurate and multidimensional (2D and 3D) data for land, buildings, infrastructure, and vegetation. Having reliable and up-to-date 3D data enables different government agencies to examine their policies and future scenarios, ensuring the livability of residents, increasing productivity, and minimizing or eradicating environmental impacts. In Chapter 3, Lim et al. illustrate how such data can be used in interagency collaboration with the support of an innovative platform developed by the Centre for Spatial Data and Infrastructures and Land Administration (CSDILA)^a at The University of Melbourne to address environmental challenges of urban redevelopment. The example of Singapore demonstrates how adopting a novel spatial data infrastructure enables multiagency collaboration and community engagement to address environmental, social, and economic challenges.

The second high-tech investment in Singapore is autonomous vehicles (AVs). Singapore is regarded as a world leader in providing policy, technology, and infrastructure for AVs. Ng and Kim, in Chapter 14, explore the case of AVs and outline how the Singapore government facilitated this technological innovation to achieve social, environmental, and economic outcomes.

The South Korean smart city initiative is another example, which started in the early 2000s with the incorporation of ICT infrastructure to enhance the quality of life and improve urban competitiveness (Kim and Kim, 2013). The South Korean approach played a fundamental role in adopting several smart city projects including Sejong smart city and Busan Eco-Delta City. In Chapter 4, Choi and Kim explore the historical development paths of South Korean smart cities in the context of technological adoption in urban development. They also see Sejong 5-1 Neighborhood pilot project from the lens of sustainability, livability, and productivity. This experience is unique in its kind as Sejong is a new city (73 km² and target population of 500,000 by 2030) incorporating smart technologies with public services and the knowledge economy. Choi and Kim show how smart mobility, healthcare, public safety and education leverage innovative technologies. Incorporating smart technologies in city operations in Sejong has as its objective reduction of the environmental footprint. Examples are a “zero-energy” city plan through Virtual Power Plants (VPP) and renewable energy generation facilities in public buildings of Sejong. Choi and Kim critically evaluate the smart city initiatives in Sejong in light of economic impacts, urban equity, readiness for adopting new technologies in the future, and the role of key actors in addressing future urban challenges.

Chapter 5 introduces the core drivers of Japan’s ongoing transformation. Barrett, DeWit and Yarime cover Japan’s urban policies dealing with natural disasters (after the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011), population decline, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). One recent initiative is the Society 5.0 industry policy, a 5-year strategy beginning in January 2016, which outlines the fifth Science and Technology Basic Plan. Japan moved from state-led strategies focusing on effectiveness and efficiency on sustainable energy production and consumption to societal challenges due to natural disasters. The new program of Society 5.0 plans to address a broad spectrum of challenges through the adoption of innovative technologies, including IoT, 5G, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Contrary to Singapore, South Korea, and Japan, as shown by McShane in Chapter 6, Australia’s pace of materializing smart cities has been slower. As one of the most highly urbanized countries, there is interest in moving toward smart technologies. The Australian Government released the Smart Cities Plan in 2016 as their first national policy to support the application of innovative technologies in enhancing livability, productivity, and sustainability (Commonwealth of Australia, 2016). Accordingly, the government funded AUS $90 million in 2 rounds for 80 projects in the areas of smart infrastructure, smart precincts, smart services, and communities. The larger Australian cities such as Melbourne and Sydney have leveraged the government’s support in addressing infrastructure, traffic, and environmental challenges, whereas the small- and middle-size cities such as Adelaide used these incentives to recover from economic and population decline.

Most smart city policies, plans, and projects have emphasized the adoption of digital technologies in providing services and managing infrastructures. However, in Chapter 7, Kim and Feng present a different view, introducing Smart Gusu in Suzhu, China. Here, the emphasis is more on social and cultural concerns. In fact, the Smart Gusu’s precedent plan, Digital Gusu (2013–2015), considered the adoption of information technology and infrastructure, which turned to the social side of innovation in the next development strategy. The authors explain the extent to which the perceptions of stakeholders, including residents and government, vary or find commonality in considering digital technology that supports different social and cultural innovations. They show how participatory planning for smart and sustainable development can inform future developments and highlight the role of community engagement in understanding how digital technology and infrastructure could facilitate necessary services to end-users.

In Chapter 8, Thai, Khuat, and Kim continue this theme in their work on Vietnam, conveying the crucial role of residents in delivery of services through the smart city platform. They demonstrate how information can be leveraged including in informal economies, through four case studies: a historical city center, a modern neighborhood, an urbanized village, and a high-tech area. Thai et al. draw our attention to the role of the s...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• Contributors
• Chapter 1: Introduction: Being smarter for productivity, livability, and sustainability
• Chapter 2: Smart cities as a platform for technological and social innovation in productivity, sustainability, and livability: A conceptual framework
• Chapter 3: The smart city in Singapore: How environmental and geospatial innovation lead to urban livability and environmental sustainability
• Chapter 4: State-of-the-art of Korean smart cities: A critical review of the Sejong smart city plan
• Chapter 5: Japanese smart cities and communities: Integrating technological and institutional innovation for Society 5.0
• Chapter 6: “Being first comes naturally”: The smart city and progressive urbanism in Australia
• Chapter 7: Understanding stakeholder perceptions in smart cities: Applying a Q methodology to the Smart Gusu project in China
• Chapter 8: Urban form, the use of ICT and smart cities in Vietnam
• Chapter 9: Smart urban development strategies in Africa? An analysis of multiple rationalities for Accra’s City Extension Project
• Chapter 10: Smart Dubai IoT strategy: Aspiring to the promotion of happiness for residents and visitors through a continuous commitment to innovation
• Chapter 11: The circulation of the Smart City imaginary in the Chilean context: A case study of a collaborative platform for governing security
• Chapter 12: Smart city technologies in the USA: Smart grid and transportation initiatives in Columbus, Ohio
• Chapter 13: Building the future city Glasgow
• Chapter 14: Autonomous vehicles and smart cities: A case study of Singapore
• Chapter 15: Diversified development paths of smart cities
• Chapter 16: Smart cities beyond COVID-19
• Index