Barcelona: a Smart City for the People
Digitalisation has influenced a lot of cities over the last decades to be smarter and more efficient. Moreover, there are even completely new cities purely created to be as smart as possible using the most modern technologies. However, currently Barcelona is considered to be one of the smartest cities we have on earth. But what is it that makes a city smart and what makes Barcelona stand out from other smart cities?
It is difficult to define what exactly a smart city is. Generally when we talk about smart cities though, we mean a city where data and technology is used to enhance the efficiency of the city. There are so many different technologies that could be used to achieve these goals that it is difficult to say when exactly a city can be classified as a smart city. Most important for a smart city is that it broadly uses these technologies to enhance the living experience of its residents. One application you could think of for example is using the data about the current public transit situation to improve the flow of the vehicles and the route offered to people, as to achieve an optimal traffic situation.
Barcelona uses a wide variety of technologies already to improve their urban services. Using motion sensors and LED lights they have been able to make street lights work more efficiently. With smart trash bins they optimised waste collection and reduced the smell of trash throughout the city. Using hybrid buses and public bicycle sharing they transformed public transit to make it more sustainable. All of these changes turned Barcelona into a greener city, creating a better atmosphere for its residents.
However, these types of solutions have been used in many other cities as well. The one thing where Barcelona really stands out from other smart cities is their values regarding the digitalisation of the city. If you think about it, smart cities can be scary because the government always has to gather data on the people to be able to create smart systems. There are cameras everywhere that monitor the activity of the citizens. These could be used to create smart systems for all the wrong reasons, such as harassing people when breaking the tiniest law. No one would have any privacy anymore since your every move could be watched. The power would be completely in hands of the government.
Take China for example, the Chinese government has been developing a social credit system ranking people based on their behaviour. They gather data on how people behave and actually punish them for behaving badly. Some examples of possible punishments include travel bans and exclusion of someone their children from school admissions. This shows exactly how the smart city is used to increase the power of the government instead of the people.
When you think about this, the problem is more a political one than a technological one. Because of this dystopian idea where the government has all the power while controlling its citizens using technology, Barcelona’s smart city plan emphasises the usage of open data and transparent solutions, while always keeping privacy a priority. With this in mind, the power would be handed back to the people, bringing the city and its inhabitants closer together instead of creating a huge power gap between the two.
To achieve this democratisation of technology, there are a few principles regarding the implementation of new ideas to enhance the city. To begin with, new ideas are only implemented if they are deemed viable and get enough support from the people. The city launched an online platform where citizens can make new proposals and support or discuss about existing ones. They can also visit meetings to gain more insights in proposals or get more involved in an active network of people who care about what the city should be like.
Moreover, to make sure that everyone can actually form their own opinion on new policies and technologies, Barcelona also aims to improve education on technology, such that citizens can actually understand what is going on around them and how a technological change would impact their lives. This way people are enabled to make informed decisions about new ideas for a smarter city.
All in all, a smart city should connect people with technology to improve everyone’s lives. Since this is not a trivial thing to do in a big city with already established standards regarding public services, it requires some critical thinking on how to go about this digitalisation. Barcelona is a prime example of what a smart city should be like, always keeping in mind the view of the people rather than only the government. This democratic way of building a smart city is what makes them stand out from the rest and prevents the city from turning into a dystopia. As Barcelona shows us, being a smart city requires some smart thinking first.
