What is a City that it Would be “Smart”? – Haque
“…smart cities are somehow conceived apart from humans. They are simply to be inhabited and connected to as necessary, not created by citizens but their progenitors – developers, master planners, and investors.” If that is true, is the statement really so different if we take the “smart” out of it? Every day inhabitants also have little say over “dumb” aspects of the city. New buildings, street signage, etc. are also conceived by progenitors. Citizens’ concerns and wishes are consulted occasionally, and in any functioning democracy inhabitants should be encouraged to voice hesitations, needs and desires – but they are ultimately not the designers. A smart city, like any city, should of course be cultivated and evolved for the people, and with the best interests of the people in mind, but that doesn’t necessarily mean by the people. This is not to say that we should be ever trusting of investors and designers, as history shows us that they do not always know best. Then again, recent events may tell us that the masses also might not know best. Smart, informed citizens in conjunction with smart, transparent municipalities are key.
Essay: On the smart city; Or, a ‘manifesto’ for a smart citizens instead – Hill
“…there is a further tendency to ‘make these technologies, and hence put them in command rather than in dialogue with users.'” Do we really want them to be invisible? Maybe, but not in the way Hill and Sassen are implying. Ubiquitous, and therefore blending? Perhaps. But invisible?
“…but at its most basic level, sustainability necessitates a selflessness, a scaling of empathy beyond one’s immediate concerns…” A collective compassion and therefore betterment on a city-wide/state-wide/country-wide scale is honestly a bit easier to imagine in places where public welfare systems do not have a negative connotation. Places where people already see the benefits of giving something up (taxes, for example) for the good of the whole, with the knowledge that the whole will benefit them at some point. Can the US become somewhere like this? Smart city initiatives, like investments in the infrastructure of any kind require funds, and the funds need to come from somewhere.
Smart Cities – Townsend
“Looking smart, perhaps even more than actually being smart, is crucial to competing in today’s global economy.” (pg. 10) This is an interesting notion. Is it enough for governments and municipalities to make their cities seem just smart enough to attract the best minds that will actually make the city smart? Would this hands-off, yet responsive approach be enough incentive, or do the brightest want to be somewhere with more of a foundation from which to jump forward.