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Worlding and provincialising smart cities: From individual case studies to a global comparative research agenda

Author

Listed:
  • Byron Miller

    (University of Calgary, Canada)

  • Kevin Ward

    (University of Manchester, UK)

  • Ryan Burns

    (University of Calgary, Canada)

  • Victoria Fast

    (University of Calgary, Canada)

  • Anthony Levenda

    (University of Oklahoma, USA)

Abstract

The diversity of smart city case studies presented in this special issue demonstrates the need for provincialised understandings of smart cities that account for cities’ worlding strategies. Case studies drawn from North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia show that ‘the smart city’ takes very diverse forms, serves very diverse objectives, and is embedded in complex power geometries that vary from city to city. Case studies are a critical strategy for understanding phenomena in context, yet they present their own epistemological and ontological limitations. We argue for a more-than-Global-North smart city research agenda focused on the comparative analysis of smart cities, an agenda that foregrounds the conjunctural geographies of relationships and processes shaping these cities.

Suggested Citation

  • Byron Miller & Kevin Ward & Ryan Burns & Victoria Fast & Anthony Levenda, 2021. "Worlding and provincialising smart cities: From individual case studies to a global comparative research agenda," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 58(3), pages 655-673, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:58:y:2021:i:3:p:655-673
    DOI: 10.1177/0042098020976086
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    References listed on IDEAS

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