From the European Commission: A smart city is "a place where traditional networks and services are made more efficient with the use of digital and telecommunication technologies for the benefit of its inhabitant and businesses."
Smart cities research incorporates a variety of perspectives and disciplines such as sociology, environmental science, engineering, international and area studies, political science, and more. This guide will focus primarily on larger-scale cultural, sociological, political, etc. perspectives on smart cities - for technical engineering or environmental research, please visit Grainger Engineering Library, Funk (ACES) Library, or one of the guides linked below.
Smart cities rely on the "Internet of Things" (IoT) which describes physical objects (e.g. lights, meters, etc.) operating in a network via the Internet to automatically collect data and improve quality of life. Visit Encyclopedia Britannica for an introduction.
A key initiative in advancing smart cities in Europe was the European Commission's European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities (EIP-SCC), which combined with the Smart Cities Information System to form the Smart Cities Marketplace. The Smart Cities Marketplace brings together cities, industry and small business, banks, research, and more to "improve urban life through more sustainable integrated solutions and addresses city-specific challenges from different policy areas such as energy, mobility and transport, and ICT."
More information about current activities related to this partnership can be found on the Smart Cities Marketplace.
Research and other discussions on smart cities move quickly. In addition to books and article databases, you can also find current literature by searching for recent conference proceedings on related topics.
To start, explore the library's guide to finding conference proceedings. You can also explore the resources below:
