Smart Cities For Dummies

Introduction

Welcome to Smart Cities For Dummies!

This is a book about people. At its heart, it’s about improving the quality of life for urban communities all over the world. Though the popular term smart cities is used, this book focuses on the future of all cities.

To succeed at elevating the human condition for billions of people, cities need to adopt new ideas, new approaches, and new technologies for how they’re operated and delivered. That’s the definition of a smart city.

Note, however, that this isn’t a book primarily about technology, although technology does play a large role. Neither does the book suggest that cities need to create a surveillance society or erode privacy in order to succeed. At their core, smart cities aren't about sensors or algorithms or virtual town halls — they’re about a better future for humanity. After all, to quote Shakespeare, “What is the city but the people?” (Coriolanus, Act III, Scene 1).

Earth is already a majority urban planet and it’s estimated that, by midcentury, 70 percent of all humans will live in an urban area. Put another way, our human future belongs to cities. Most people will spend their days living, working, and playing in a metropolis. If we want to enjoy career opportunities, clean air and water, efficient transportation, low-cost energy, safety, convenient city services, and inclusion while all the time saving the planet from a climate crisis, we have a lot of city work ahead of us.

The city is already the center of the ...