Towards smart sustainable cities: A review of the role digital citizen participation could play in advancing social sustainability

Abstract

The notion of smart cities needs to be broadened beyond the fascination with technology to incorporate an approach that invests in the growth of human, social, and environmental capitals to generate ‘smart sustainable cities’. One of the most recent debates in this context is digital citizen participation. This study aimed to identify the potential role of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in citizen participation as a major contributor towards ‘smart sustainable cities’. A systematic and exhaustive literature review, coupled with critical content analysis, was conducted. The focus was on a central research question: What kind of relationship is fostered in the literature between sustainability and digital citizen participation, and how can ICT contribute to social sustainability through digital citizen participation (DCP)? The results suggested a connection between smart sustainable cities and DCP. This article is concluded by emphasizing the role of ICT in citizen participation processes and its significant contribution to social sustainability and the creation of more-than-human smart cities.