Smart Digitalisation for New Town Development

In the construction of a new town development, city managers often find challenges in envisioning the Smart City needs of future citizens. A team of researchers study a German smart city district as it is being built and come up with concrete steps and procedures for developing digital solutions for the new smart town. The study includes engaging the public through exciting events such as hackathons and seminars as instruments to understand the needs of future citizens. It is encouraged to make the vision and engagement tools as simple as possible but creates a spark of curiosity of various demographics. Found tools that can connect experts and non-expert to exchange ideas and solutions with open simulation and modelling programs. These guidelines ensure that city managers can communicate their vision and concepts while they grasp future challenges that may come up and understand future citizen needs when the new town is still under construction. 

Reference:

Elberzhager, F., Mennig, P., Polst, S., Scherr, S., & Stüpfert, P. (2021). Towards a digital ecosystem for a smart city district: Procedure, results, and lessons learned. Smart Cities, 4(2), 686-716.