Abstract
In 2013, Glasgow City Council received significant funding to develop innovative smart city applications, including the delivery of new electronic public services and the co-production of governance. This case study examines the processes that underpin the ways in which the ‘Future City Glasgow programme’ delivered ‘smart governance’, in the context of a regenerating post-industrial city. We assess the contribution of smart city technologies and data collection and monitoring processes designed to facilitate citizen engagement and sustainable governance practices. The Future City Glasgow programme ran from 2013‒2015, and included the Open Glasgow project, and ‘Demonstrator Projects’ of: Energy Efficiency; Intelligent Street Lighting; Active Travel; and, Integrated Social Transport. Opportunities arose from these demonstrators for developing co-production and legacy initiatives. The case study provides insight into the ways in which citizens and local communities in Glasgow have been engaged in governance processes. This engagement has taken place via traditional and innovative smart city technologies, and in particular in relation to policy formulation, service design and delivery. It finds that the co-creation of governance is shaped by vested interests, that engagement is fragmented and partial, but at the same time new technologies, social media and shared learning opportunities offer innovative new ways for <em>some</em> citizens to influence local governance.
Highlights
The city of Glasgow, population 615,000 (Glasgow City Council [GCC], 2018a), is the largest of the seven cities in Scotland, and lies at the centre of the much larger Glasgow city-region of approximately 1.8 million people (GCC, 2018b)
The analysis provides an opportunity to assess whether or not the city of Glasgow is delivering ‘smart governance’ to its citizens, and if so, how is this being achieved? By smart governance, we mean the opportunities which citizens have had to become involved in local decision-making processes through engagement (Gabrys, 2014), participation (Chourabi et al, 2012), coproduction (Alford & Yates, 2015), and, the co-creation of value (Osborne, Radnor, & Strokosch, 2016)
This case study of smart governance in the city of Glasgow involved an examination of the Future City Glasgow programme (FCGP) through an assessment of some of its key projects, using a mixedmethods research approach including document and literature review and semi-structured interviews
Summary
The city of Glasgow, population 615,000 (Glasgow City Council [GCC], 2018a), is the largest of the seven cities in Scotland, and lies at the centre of the much larger Glasgow city-region of approximately 1.8 million people (GCC, 2018b). In common with many other cities in the United Kingdom (UK) Glasgow aspires to become a ‘smart’ or ‘future’ city (GCC, 2011). In 2012, GCC won a UK-wide ‘Future cities demonstrator competition’ (United Kingdom Government, 2017). Thirty cities took part in the competition and £24 million was awarded to GCC as the overall competition winner. The concept of the proposal which GCC submitted was to undertake a single city demonstrator project known as ‘Future City Glasgow’ (GCC, 2018c). The demonstrator would provide evidence of benefits to the economic performance, quality of life, societal cohesion, and environmental performance (including sustainability targets) of Glasgow. The infrastructural legacy of the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games was cited as a strong example of Glasgow’s commitment to realise its potential as a lead-
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