scholarly journals Replicating Smart Cities: The City-to-City Learning Programme in the Replicate EC-H2020-SCC Project

Smart Cities ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 978-1003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Igor Calzada
Keyword(s):  
Social Innovation ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Knowledge Exchange ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Policy Outcomes ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
The Social ◽  
Democratic Learning ◽  
The City

This article addresses the problem of replication among smart cities in the European Commission’s Horizon 2020: Smart Cities and Communities (EC-H2020-SCC) framework programme. This article initially sets the general policy context by conducting a benchmarking about the explicit replication strategies followed by each of the 17 ongoing EC-H2020-SCC lighthouse projects. This article aims to shed light on the following research question: Why might replication not be happening among smart cities as a unidirectional, hierarchical, mechanistic, solutionist, and technocratic process? Particularly, in asking so, it focuses on the EC-H2020-SCC Replicate project by examining in depth the fieldwork action research process implemented during 2019 through a knowledge exchange webinar series with participant stakeholders from six European cities—three lighthouse cities (St. Sebastian, Florence, and Bristol) and three follower-fellow cities (Essen, Lausanne, and Nilüfer). This process resulted in a City-to-City Learning Programme that reformulated the issue of replication by experimenting an alternative and an enhanced policy approach. Thus, stemming from the evidence-based policy outcomes of the City-to-City Learning Programme, this article reveals that a replication policy approach from the social innovation lenses might be enabled as a multidirectional, radial, dynamic, iterative, and democratic learning process, overcoming the given unidirectional, hierarchical, mechanistic, solutionist, and technocratic approach.

scholarly journals Democratising Smart Cities? Penta-Helix Multistakeholder Social Innovation Framework

Smart Cities ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 1145-1172
Author(s):  
Igor Calzada
Keyword(s):  
Social Innovation ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Quadruple Helix ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Social Models ◽  
Civic Society ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
The Social ◽  
Desk Research

The smart cities policy approach has been intensively implemented in European cities under the Horizon 2020 programme. However, these implementations not only reduce the interdependencies among stakeholders to technocratic Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) models, but also fail to question the identities of strategic stakeholders and how they prioritise their business/social models. These aspects are putting democracy at stake in smart cities. Therefore, this article aims to unfold and operationalise multistakeholders’ policy frameworks from the social innovation perspective by suggesting the ex-novo penta-helix framework—including public, private, academia, civic society, and social entrepreneurs/activists—to extend the triple and quadruple-helix frameworks. Based on fieldwork action research conducted from February 2017 to December 2018—triangulating desk research, 75 interviews, and three validation workshops—this article applies the penta-helix framework to map out five strategic dimensions related to (i) multistakeholder helix framework and (ii) the resulting business/social models comparatively in three follower cities of the H2020-Replicate project: Essen (Germany), Lausanne (Switzerland), and Nilüfer (Turkey). For each case study, the findings reveal: (i) a unique multistakeholder composition, (ii) diverse preferences on business/social models, (iii) a regular presence of the fifth helix as intermediaries, and (iv) the willingness to experiment with democratic arrangements beyond the hegemonic PPP.

The Science and Art of Interviewing

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Gerson ◽  
Sarah Damaske
Keyword(s):  
Social Research ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Science And Art ◽  
The Social ◽  
Interview Guide ◽  
Hidden Patterns ◽  
User Friendly ◽  
Depth Interviews

Qualitative interviewing is one of the most widely used methods in social research, but it is arguably the least well understood. To address that gap, this book offers a theoretically rigorous, empirically rich, and user-friendly set of strategies for conceiving and conducting interview-based research. Much more than a how-to manual, the book shows why depth interviewing is an indispensable method for discovering and explaining the social world—shedding light on the hidden patterns and dynamics that take place within institutions, social contexts, relationships, and individual experiences. It offers a step-by-step guide through every stage in the research process, from initially formulating a question to developing arguments and presenting the results. To do this, the book shows how to develop a research question, decide on and find an appropriate sample, construct an interview guide, conduct probing and theoretically focused interviews, and systematically analyze the complex material that depth interviews provide—all in the service of finding and presenting important new empirical discoveries and theoretical insights. The book also lays out the ever-present but rarely discussed challenges that interviewers routinely encounter and then presents grounded, thoughtful ways to respond to them. By addressing the most heated debates about the scientific status of qualitative methods, the book demonstrates how depth interviewing makes unique and essential contributions to the research enterprise. With an emphasis on the integral relationship between carefully crafted research and theory building, the book offers a compelling vision for what the “interviewing imagination” can and should be.

scholarly journals Sentiment Analysis of Social Survey Data for Local City Councils

2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Marianna Lepelaar ◽  
Adam Wahby ◽  
Martha Rossouw ◽  
Linda Nikitin ◽  
Kanewa Tibble ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Sentiment Analysis ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
Social Indicators ◽  
Media Analysis ◽  
Social Surveys ◽  
Analysis Techniques ◽  
The Social ◽  
The City

Big data analytics can be used by smart cities to improve their citizens’ liveability, health, and wellbeing. Social surveys and also social media can be employed to engage with their communities, and these can require sophisticated analysis techniques. This research was focused on carrying out a sentiment analysis from social surveys. Data analysis techniques using RStudio and Python were applied to several open-source datasets, which included the 2018 Social Indicators Survey dataset published by the City of Melbourne (CoM) and the Casey Next short survey 2016 dataset published by the City of Casey (CoC). The qualitative nature of the CoC dataset responses could produce rich insights using sentiment analysis, unlike the quantitative CoM dataset. RStudio analysis created word cloud visualizations and bar charts for sentiment values. These were then used to inform social media analysis via the Twitter application programming interface. The R codes were all integrated within a Shiny application to create a set of user-friendly interactive web apps that generate sentiment analysis both from the historic survey data and more immediately from the Twitter feeds. The web apps were embedded within a website that provides a customisable solution to estimate sentiment for key issues. Global sentiment was also compared between the social media approach and the 2016 survey dataset analysis and showed some correlation, although there are caveats on the use of social media for sentiment analysis. Further refinement of the methodology is required to improve the social media app and to calibrate it against analysis of recent survey data.

scholarly journals Feasibility of Innovative Smart Mobility Solutions: A Case Study for Vaasa

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 188
Author(s):  
Tomi Paalosmaa ◽  
Miadreza Shafie-khah
Keyword(s):  
Second Life ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
City Development ◽  
Sustainable Mobility ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
Vehicle To Grid ◽  
Carbon Neutrality ◽  
Smart Mobility ◽  
The City

The global trend of urbanization and growing environmental awareness have risen concerns and demands to develop cities to become smarter. There is a grave need for ambitious sustainability strategies and projects, which can aid cities intelligently and comprehensively in this task. European Union (EU) launched 2014 the Horizon 2020 program (aka Horizon Europe), aiming to encourage the EU nations and their cities to take action to reach carbon neutrality through projects striving to smart city development. By promoting innovative, efficient, far-reaching, and replicable solutions, from the fields of smart energy production and consumption, traffic and mobility, digitalization and information communication technology, and citizen engagement, the objectives of the smart city strategies can be achieved. Horizon 2020 funded IRIS Smart Cities project was launched in 2017. One of the follower cities in the project has been the City of Vaasa in Finland. Vaasa’s climate objective is to reach carbon neutrality by 2030. In order to achieve this goal, the city has taken several decisive measures to enhance de-carbonization during recent years. One essential target for de-carbonization activities has been traffic and mobility. The primary purpose of the research conducted was to study the smart mobility, vehicle-to-grid (V2G), and second life battery solutions in the IRIS Smart Cities project, demonstrated first by the Lighthouse cities and then to be replicated in the City of Vaasa. The aim was to study which importance and prioritization these particular integrated solutions would receive in the City of Vaasa’s replication plan led by the City of Vaasa’s IRIS project task team of 12 experts, with the contribution of the key partners and stakeholders. Additionally, the aim was to study the potential of the integrated solutions in question to be eventually implemented in the Vaasa environment, and the benefit for the city’s ultimate strategy to reach carbon neutrality by 2030. The secondary object was to study the solutions’ compatibility with the IRIS lighthouse cities’ demonstrations and gathered joined experiences concerning the smart and sustainable mobility and vehicle-to-grid solutions, and utilization of 2nd life batteries. The results of the research indicated, that the innovative smart mobility solutions, including vehicle-to-grid and second life battery schemes, are highly relevant not only to the IRIS Lighthouse cities, but they also present good potential for the City of Vaasa in the long run, being compatible with the city’s climate and de-carbonization goals.

scholarly journals Ethical Issues with Using Internet of Things Devices in Citizen Science Research: A Scoping Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Scheibner ◽  
Anna Jobin ◽  
Effy Vayena
Keyword(s):  
Internet Of Things ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Data Privacy ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Review Protocol

Digital innovation is ever more present and increasingly integrated into citizen science research. However, smartphones and other connected devices come with specific features and characteristics and, in consequence, raise particular ethical issues. This article addresses this important intersection of citizen science and the Internet of Things by focusing on how such ethical issues are communicated in scholarly literature. To answer this research question, this article presents a scoping review of published scientific studies or case studies of scientific studies that utilize both citizen scientists and Internet of Things devices. Specifically, this scoping review protocol retrieved studies where the authors had included at least a short discussion of the ethical issues encountered during the research process. A full text analysis of relevant articles conducted inductively and deductively identified three main categories of ethical issues being communicated: autonomy and data privacy, data quality, and intellectual property. Based on these categories, this review offers an overview of the legal and social innovation implications raised. This review also provides recommendations for researchers who wish to innovatively integrate citizen scientists and Internet of Things devices into their research based on the strategies researchers took to resolve these ethical issues.

Multi-Stakeholder Digital Collaboration and Social Innovation in Social Services: The Cross Project and the Smart Cities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabrizio Davide
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Social Service ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Impact Analysis ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
The Social ◽  
Multi Stakeholder ◽  
Cross Project

The chapter outlines an overview of the state of social protection in Europe and focuses on a significant component of it, the social services sector and its reform needs. Most social services are provided at the municipality level. Innovation in the cities has recently developed in the framework of the Smart Cities, though the “urban smartness” discourse reveals to be ineffective when marginal conditions are involved. Since the first half of 2010’s Digital Social Innovation (DSI) has proved the capability to create public value. DSI owes much to the vision of the commons which is actively reshaping the relationships between state, market and civil society, and underlining the importance of the non-monetary economy. DSI and commoning are considered by practitioners as a promising approach for delivering social innovation powered by digital technology in the social service sector, since public services can be considered commons. Within this conceptual framework four European cities, Roma, Turin, Seville, Manchester committed in 2012 to the “Citizens Reinforcing Open Smart Synergies” (CROSS) project. CROSS aimed at engaging citizens and creating new synergy between the diverse stakeholders of the social service urban ecosystem, thanks to digital tools, such as social cryptocurrencies, collaboration processes and mobile apps. CROSS provided immediate relief to people in need while trying to convince public administrations to open a new way for co-producing services and change the relevant policies. The chapter reports a successful technological strategy and comments on the nonmonetary contribution of the works in the sector and. Finally, the impact analysis demonstrates how far the initiative has carried benefits to many citizens and social care professionals, has combined social and economic value creation, as well as it has empowered the cities with the opportunity of data-driven policy making.

scholarly journals CCTV SURVEILLANCE AND THE CIVIC CONVERSATION: A STUDY IN PUBLIC SOCIOLOGY

2010 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 437-462 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Lett ◽  
Sean Hier ◽  
Kevin Walby
Keyword(s):  
Video Surveillance ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Public Sociology ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
Cctv Surveillance ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
The City

The captivating idea of ‘public sociology’ has recently been debated across the social sciences. Although the debate has raised significant questions about the status of sociological knowledge production, insufficient attention has been devoted to thinking about how sociologists concretely enter into a civic conversation through the research process. Addressing this gap in the public sociology literature, we present partial findings from a Canada-wide investigation of how public-area streetscape video surveillance systems are implemented in various communities to think through some of the implications of actually doing public sociology. Data gleaned from focused group interviews in the City of Kelowna, British Columbia are presented to explore the challenges of facilitating a civic conversation about public policy on streetscape video surveillance.

scholarly journals The City of Digital Social Innovators

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Chiara Certomà ◽  
Mark Dyer ◽  
Antonella Passani
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Social Problems ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Thematic Issue ◽  
Social Web ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Fast Growing ◽  
The Social ◽  
Innovative Solutions ◽  
The City

The concept of digital social innovation (DSI) refers to a fast-growing set of initiatives aimed at providing innovative solutions to social problems and needs by deploying the potential of the social web and digital media. Despite having been often interpreted as synonymous with digitally enhanced social innovation, we explain here why, in consideration of its epistemological and socio-political potentialities, we understand it as an interdisciplinary set of practices able to interpret and support the changes of a society that is more and more intrinsically virtual and physical at the same time. Notably, we briefly discuss how DSI processes can be functionally mobilized in support of different socio-political projects, ranging from the mainstream neoliberal to the revolutionary ones. Eventually, we provide a synopsis of the articles included in this thematic issue, by aggregating them accordingly to the main stakeholders promoting the DSI projects, being more bottom-up oriented or more institutional-based.

scholarly journals ProInfo e inovação social: caracterização e desenvolvimento do programa no município de Pato Branco-PR

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Henrique Mainardes Ferreira ◽  
Silvana Tomazi Camozzato
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Public Schools ◽  
Civic Education ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Human Needs ◽  
The Social ◽  
Politica Publica ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Resumo: O presente artigo tem como principal objetivo a caracterização do Programa Nacional de Tecnologia Educacional (ProInfo) pelo viés da Inovação Social, observando o modelo implantado na cidade de Pato Branco, através de análise holística de dados nas escolas municipais, especificamente no Ensino Fundamental. Por meio desta análise, busca-se a apreensão das características que possam promover a Inovação Social, além de observar se a política pública vigente ao programa é capaz de enquadrar como um processo sustentável, atendendo às várias dimensões necessárias para sua sustentação e garantia de sucesso em longo prazo. Além disso, o artigo busca conceituar a Inovação Social a partir da exemplificação do estudo de caso em questão, interligando-o às políticas públicas de âmbito nacional, regional e local vigentes ao programa, permitindo verificar, ainda, qual o impacto obtido desde sua implementação, contribuindo para o desenvolvimento regional no campo educacional, tecnológico e social. Em síntese, este estudo possibilita concluir que as melhorias trazidas, implicitamente ou não pelo programa, permitem a análise do quadro de modificação do sistema educacional no município de Pato Branco, reforçando a ideia de que a Inovação Social torna-se um condutor de melhores práticas de melhorias e necessidades humanas e maior contribuição à formação cidadã. Palavras-chave: ProInfo. Inovação Social. Políticas Públicas. Tecnologia e Sociedade.    PROINFO AND SOCIAL INNOVATION: CHARACTERIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROGRAM IN THE CITY OF PATO BRANCO-PR Abstract: This paper has as main objective the characterization of the National Educational Technology Program (ProInfo) the bias of Social Innovation, observing the model implemented in the city of Pato Branco, through holistic analysis of data in the public schools, especially in primary education. Through this analysis, it seeks to grasp the characteristics that may promote social innovation, in addition to observing the current public policy program is able to qualify as a sustainable process, taking into account the various dimensions required for your support and guarantee success in the long term. Furthermore, the article seeks to conceptualize the Social Innovation from the exemplification of the case study in question, linking it to the public policy of national, regional, and local regulations to the program, allowing you to check also the impact achieved since its inception contributing to regional development in the educational, social and technological. In summary, this study allows the conclusion that the improvements made, implicitly or not the program, allow the analysis of the frame modification of the educational system in Pato Branco, reinforcing the idea that the Social Innovation becomes a conductor of best practices improvements and human needs and greater contribution to the civic education. Keywords: ProInfo. Social Innovation. Public Policies. Technology and Society.

scholarly journals The Study of Mosque Management in Indonesia and Spain: Majority and Minority Muslim Factors

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-88
Author(s):  
Sukron Kamil ◽  
Zakiya Darojat
Keyword(s):  
Social Services ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Research Question ◽  
The Other ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
The Social ◽  
Majority Population ◽  
Muslim Communities ◽  
The City ◽  
Better Than

This article aims to analyze and compare the management of mosques between two countries; Indonesia, where Muslims are the majority population, and Spain where Muslims are the minority. The research question is summed upon how the Muslims respond to the mosque management in two countries, Indonesia and Spain. Constructed by both research methods, qualitative and quantitative, this article lists mosques in urban areas both in Indonesia and Spain and analyzes several aspects related to mosque management. The number of questionnaires distributed was 100 to Indonesian Muslim communities in Jabodetabek (Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi), and 100 Muslims in the City of Madrid and Sevilla, in Spain. The study found high scores for mosque management in urban Indonesia related to the community's satisfaction with the mosque services either in the social field (as the power of civil society) or in the main service fields (worship/da'wa). Meanwhile, the score for managing mosques in Spain is low. This fact is related to the issue of better access to resources: economic, socio-cultural, and political mosques in Indonesia as they are the majority population. On the other hand, Spanish Muslims often face various obstacles in building mosques, one of them being tied up with the issue of Islamophobia. In conclusion, Mosque management in Indonesia seems better than in Spain both in social services and in worship/da'wah.

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