Insight

Cities of Tomorrow

Size matters

With three exceptions – Singapore, Auckland, Taipei City – every entry in the top ten has fewer than 675,000 people. This suggests relatively small cities may have an advantage when it comes to becoming “smart” – fewer resources, but also less established infrastructure to renovate.

The European Commission (EC), the executive branch of the European Union, compiles an annual report that tracks indicators of digital transformation called the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI). It measures how much EU member countries have digitized their economies and societies by examining five policy areas: connectivity, human capital, internet use, business digitization and digital public service. 

Rather than simply track digitalization, the EC actively participates in facilitating the process. Nearly two years ago, after a competitive application process, the EC launched a pilot program called the Digital Cities Challenge in which 41 cities would receive access to high-level experts on digital strategy and training on implementing digital policies to address economic growth and the public good.

Maedel said this resulted in a network of cities who have a “much more concerted and deeper commitment to driving digitalization in their home towns. Such an approach and such projects clearly show the benefit of concerted efforts on a policy level.”

Some countries have adopted official roadmaps toward nationwide digitalization. For instance, Austria has a federal strategy, bringing together all departments of government, that outlines roughly 150 planned measures and a set of guiding principles. These affirm digital education should start early for children and human rights apply in the digital world as well.

Protecting privacy

It also acknowledges new challenges: protecting privacy from unwarranted surveillance, identifying and preventing cybercrimes and creating new jobs for workers displaced by automation. The authors posited that social values – not just technological progress – are important for successful digitization.

“Digitization requires joined-up thinking and action from us all. Just because something is technically possible does not mean that it is socially desirable. We must continue to decide on these issues,” the authors wrote. “Ultimately, even in the digital age people must always take responsibility for decision-making. Digitization therefore needs convincing visions and a clear regulatory and social policy framework to implement these visions.”

The philosophy underpinning smart cities combines what’s most promising about our future with what was most inspirational about our past. It imagines communities in which data is shared across networks via advanced technology to improve the lives of residents in manifold ways. It recalls moments in history when commitment to the greater good buoyed private innovation, and vice versa. It leaves room to dream of a better tomorrow.