Smart City Scenarios

Living in a Glass Cage

In this scenario, technological advancements have made possible the collection and analysis of data to provide services that were unthinkable before. Thanks to data, criminality has decreased significantly, people in need can be helped when they require it, trackers and air quality sensors measure the health of the environment and citizens, and households consume less energy thanks to an awareness campaign facilitated by available data. These are just a few examples of everything that is possible. Governments and companies provide services with a clear goal and seeing the results in quantitative ways. However, the provision of these services comes at a cost: citizens live now in a “glass cage”. Privacy, as we knew it, does not exist anymore. Everything they do, feel and are is visible to the rest of the world, with all the consequences that entails.

The 'Bubble'

In this scenario, Big Data allows for a personalisation of experiences in the city. Citizens read the newspapers they appreciate, social media informs them about their favourite events based on their preferences, and technology helps them to avoid neighbourhoods they dislike. Everything in the city is adapted to their preferences and taste to avoid having unpleasant surprises. Overall, citizens feel satisfied with this tailor-made urban experience: they get what they want when they want it! However, citizens are becoming hubs of individualism with increasing polarisation and segregation.

In this scenario, the government has made available mobile applications, touch screens in the city, online platforms, and other technology to collect citizens’ input about all the initiatives they undertake. Moreover, they organise weekly meetings (online or face to face) to develop a sense of community. By doing this, the municipality wants to be transparent about all their initiatives, monitor citizens’ satisfaction and collect their input when needed. It is expected from citizens to be involved in these initiatives and share their opinions and knowledge by using the available technology. Although citizens appreciate the municipality’ efforts to support participatory processes, they feel some frustration when they feel that their opinions are not being heard. If they are investing time in providing their input, they expect something will be done about it. Furthermore, they perceive there is an overload of information of which it is difficult to make sense.

Participation, Everywhere

In this scenario, years of research and development allow tackling global challenges such as climate change by means of technology in the cities. Thanks to sensors and smart cities, CO2 emissions have dropped, several initiatives have contributed to behavioural changes in citizens, contributing to a waste reduction and cleaner cities. As a result, quality of life has improved considerably and humanity is on the right track of achieve the global sustainability goals. The close collaboration between companies and governments has made this possible. Although satisfied with the increased quality of life, citizens have become mere spectators of what happens “behind the smart city scenes”, not being fully aware of the complex processes helping to achieve these goals.

Passive Spectators

Scripted City

In this scenario, through a strong collaboration between companies and governments, data collection allows for the provision of efficient city processes. All urban activities run smoothly, and citizens do not need to wait for processes that used to take a long time. Technology reminds citizens when they need to go to the supermarket, guides them through the city to arrive faster at their destination, recommends them where to buy the products they want, and fills out their application to the university they would like to attend. Citizens appreciate the convenience and comfort of technology guiding their daily lives. However, citizens are losing autonomy, and their city experience feels like a scripted sequence of events where the goal is predetermined by an external actor. The experience in the city is a seamless synchronised series of events without room for improvisation or serendipity.

In this scenario, governments have focused on finding ways to use technology and protect their citizens from potential global disasters: from pandemics to climate catastrophes. The world is now safer but also a highly monitored place where myriad parameters are measured: from air quality to water streams, from earth vibrations to toilet stools. When something or somebody does not comply with the norm, they are separated from society and excluded from certain activities.

The Disaster-free City

The following scenarios have been developed based on the results from a series of workshops that we facilitated during the first year of our research project. The scenarios describe a general future situation (year 2030) in which controversies are present. You can read more about the workshops