Smart Governance for Smart Cities

This paper argues that the mainstream urban governance approaches are built upon the legacy of reductionist doctrine and public administration tools which are not fully compatible with the complex nature of urban infrastructure systems. However, recent technological innovations associated with the notion of smart cities and the emerging sociopolitical trends are opening up new opportunities to develop governance approaches that can overcome such incompatibilities in urban systems. On the other hand, successful introduction of innovations in urban infrastructures, which we understand as complex sociotechnical systems, requires smarter governance approaches that are compatible with systems paradigm. The pace of change in social and technological landscapes of cities is fast. This conceptual paper brings together insights from sociotechnical systems, systems theory, and governance literature to shed light on why city administrations should closely follow these changes and adapt the governance approaches accordingly; or governance may become a main hindrance for utilizing the benefits of technology to deal with increasingly complex urban challenges.