Don't Know What's Smart City?..... Now you'll Know

The concept of Smart City is fast taking root globally with various countries committing huge resources in their Smart City initiatives. There are numerous emerging models of Smart Cities differing in sizes and types. This is because the idea of the Smart City is relatively new and evolving, and the concept is very broad. It is important to point out here in the context of both developed and emerging models that each city is unique, with its own historical development path, current characteristics and future dynamic. The evolution of the Smart City concept is shaped by a complex mix of technologies, social and economic factors, governance arrangements, and policy and business drivers. The implementation of the Smart City concept, therefore, follows very varied paths depending on each city’s specific policies, objectives, funding and scope. Any useful working definition of a Smart City needs to incorporate these highly diverse circumstances while still enabling improved understanding of good practice, the potential for scaling and the development of relevant policy frameworks.
Provided below is the compilation of different definitions by practitioners, academic experts and other renowned people. The compilation is categorized in various segments based upon the focus on technology and/or processes:
Technology Focused Definitions

• The use of ICT [makes] the critical infrastructure components and services of a Smart City – which include city administration, education, healthcare, public safety, real estate, transportation, and utilities – more intelligent, interconnected, and efficient. - Washburn and Sindhu (2009)

• Cities [should be seen as] systems of systems, and that there are emerging opportunities to introduce digital nervous systems, intelligent responsiveness, and optimization at every level of system integration. - MIT (2013)
• In a Smart City, networks are linked together, supporting and positively feeding off each other, so that the technology and data gathering should: be able to constantly gather, analyze and distribute data about the city to optimize efficiency and effectiveness in the pursuit of competitiveness and sustainability; be able to communicate and share such data and information around the city using common definitions and standards so it can be easily re-used; be able to act multi-functionally, which means they should provide solutions to multiple problems from a holistic city perspective. - Copenhagen Cleantech Cluster (2012)

Broad Definitions

• A city is smart when investments in human and social capital and traditional and modern communication infrastructure fuel sustainable economic growth and a high quality of life, with a wise management of natural resources, through participatory governance.- Caragliu, Del Bo and Nijkamp (2009)
• A [smart] city is where the ICT strengthens freedom of speech and the accessibility to public information and services.- Anthopoulos and Fitsilis (2010)
• [Smart Cities are about] leveraging interoperability within and across policy domains of the city (e.g. transportation, public safety, energy, education, healthcare, and development). Smart City strategies require innovative ways of interacting with stakeholders, managing resources, and providing services. - Nam and Pardo (2011)
• Smart Cities combine diverse technologies to reduce their environmental impact and offer citizens better lives. This is not, however, simply a technical challenge. Organisational change in governments – and indeed society at large – is just as essential. Making a city smart is therefore a very multi-disciplinary challenge, bringing together city officials, innovative suppliers, national and EU policymakers, academics and civil society. - Smart Cities and Communities (2013)
• [a city may be called ‘smart’] when investments in human and social capital and traditional and modern communication infrastructure fuel sustainable economic growth and a high quality of life, with a wise management of natural resources, through participatory governance. - Schaffers et al. (2011)
• Any adequate model for the Smart City must therefore also focus on the Smartness of its citizens and communities and on their well-being and quality of life, as well as encourage the processes that make cities important to people and which might well sustain very different – sometimes conflicting activities.- Haque (2012)

It is evident from the definitions above ( including non technology focussed broad definitions) that ICTs make an integral part of any Smart City initiatives. Time has come to focus on” IT first “ strategic approach so that the ICT teams in various organizations can inform all the stakeholders on ways of effectively leveraging the potential of Information and Communication technologies while devising plans even for sector based interventions.

Vikas Kanungo
vikaskanungo@gmail.com
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