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Exposing smart cities and eco-cities: Frankenstein urbanism and the sustainability challenges of the experimental city

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  • Federico Cugurullo

Abstract

In recent years, the world has seen the emergence of a number of urban projects which, under the banner of experimentation , have promoted alternative models of city-making capable, in theory, of creating sustainable built environments. Among these supposedly experimental models, the smart city and the eco-city stand out in terms of geographical diffusion, and are hailed by their advocates as the mark of an innovative urbanism based on a scientific approach to urban development. Through the analysis of Hong Kong and Masdar City, examples of a smart-city agenda and an eco-city project respectively, this paper questions the sustainability of so-called smart cities and eco-cities , by investigating the extent to which they are developed in a controlled and systematic manner as their developers claim. More specifically, the paper counterclaims mainstream understandings of smart and ecological urbanism, arguing that what are promoted as cohesive settlements shaped by a homogeneous vision of the sustainable city, are actually fragmented cities made of disconnected and often incongruous pieces of urban fabric. Theoretically, these claims are discussed through the concept of Frankenstein urbanism which draws upon Mary Shelley’s novel as a metaphor for unsuccessful experiments generated by the forced union of different, incompatible elements.

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  • Federico Cugurullo, 2018. "Exposing smart cities and eco-cities: Frankenstein urbanism and the sustainability challenges of the experimental city," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 50(1), pages 73-92, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envira:v:50:y:2018:i:1:p:73-92
    DOI: 10.1177/0308518X17738535
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. I-Chun Catherine Chang & Eric Sheppard, 2013. "China's Eco-Cities as Variegated-super-1 Urban Sustainability: Dongtan Eco-City and Chongming Eco-Island," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(1), pages 57-75, January.
    2. Coletta, Claudio & Heaphy, Liam & Kitchin, Rob, 2017. "From the accidental to articulated smart city: The creation and work of ‘Smart Dublin’," SocArXiv 93ga5, Center for Open Science.
    3. Luis Bettencourt & Geoffrey West, 2010. "A unified theory of urban living," Nature, Nature, vol. 467(7318), pages 912-913, October.
    4. Igor Calzada & Cristobal Cobo, 2015. "Unplugging: Deconstructing the Smart City," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 23-43, January.
    5. Martin de Jong & Dong Wang & Chang Yu, 2013. "Exploring the Relevance of the Eco-City Concept in China: The Case of Shenzhen Sino-Dutch Low Carbon City," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(1), pages 95-113, January.
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    Cited by:

    1. Paola Panuccio, 2019. "Smart Planning: From City to Territorial System," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-15, December.
    2. Carmen Antuña-Rozado & Justo García-Navarro & Pekka Huovila, 2019. "Challenges in Adapting Sustainable City Solutions from Finland to Different Contexts Worldwide: A Libyan Case Study," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-20, May.

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