Today, more than 3.9 billion people live in urban areas, that is, more than 54% of the world population. According to scientists from New York State University, urbanization will continue in the coming years, increasing the urban population to 6.0 billion. people by 2045 A significant increase in the urban population increases the demand for energy, mobility, water and other urban services in cities. Therefore, cities should become smarter in providing urban services.
In addition, cities are the largest environmental pollutants responsible for more than 80% of greenhouse gas emissions, 75% of waste generation and 70% of global energy consumption. Due to global awareness of the negative impacts of such pollution on the environment, cities are under greater pressure to improve environmental performance while improving the level of services. All these trends converge at the moment when a new trend is being formed: digitalization.
The growing demand for sustainable, comprehensive, reliable and efficient urban service puts enormous pressure on our urban infrastructure, but digitalization provides a powerful tool for solving these issues and creates a paradigm shift in our concept of cities – creating the Smart City concept. The use of information technologies in the management of a modern city has long been relevant. Since the 2000s, progressive companies have mentioned Smart City as an effective way to manage urban resources and recommended it for use by officials. However, then it is only possible to talk about it, and today every city that considers itself modern wants to be Smart City. It is also worth introducing smart technologies in the public administration sector, and not only in the field of infrastructure, security and tourism. This is due to both the globalization processes, the increase in the population in cities and the growing role of the cities themselves and the systematic growth of urbanization, and the change in the role of the city itself – their transformation into modern information centres using information and communication technologies in many spheres of life of residents.
Modern cities face constant contradictions every day: the combination of social attractiveness of the city and the comfort of residents' living, the rapid growth of production and environmental norms and the growth of industrial waste, transport and production infrastructure and modern information technologies. At the same time, it is worth noting that cities are the driving engines of the economy, platforms for creating and implementing social innovations, technological innovations, centres of education and culture. Smart cities today become the basis of social progress and economic growth, as information technologies help transform traditional functions in the classical sense through the use of smart technologies. These technologies make it possible to solve the problems that arise and qualitatively change the system of the city administration. As a result, conditions for the development of each resident of the community and the city as a whole are ensured. Smart decisions of the city authorities produce an increase in the value of the city itself due to additional emerging opportunities, as well as increasing the investment attractiveness of the city itself.
The growth of modern solutions using the latest technologies, primarily in the field of municipal management, increases the efficiency of resource use, ensures the development of economic potential, the launch of new individual business areas, and also improves the quality and comfort of citizens' living in the city. At the same time, modern city development and management systems should include smart technologies and information systems for the transformation of life in urban processes, better management and improvement of life in the city. It is also worth noting that today with the spread of infections, such as covid-19 infection, which has become a global pandemic, the role of Smart City smart technologies is not so much in demand in the world and Ukraine in particular. The role of such technologies will increase from year to year.
Also, taking into account globalization and integration processes in the world, the Smart City system has long begun to gain popularity among leading countries with developed economies and the European Union. Smart City affects both everyday life in the city and the sphere of state and local administration, public safety, industry, transport, ecology, medicine, energy, mobility and other spheres of life of citizens, both at the national and local levels.
Keywords: globalization, smart technologies, digitalization, digitalization, development, Smart City.
Collections for the poor: monetary charitable donations in Dutch towns, c. 1600–1800
