Smart
or "green" cities are a new style of city providing sustainable
growth and designed to encourage healthy economic activities that reduce the
burden on the environment while improving the QoL (Quality of Life) of their
residents. In the aftermath of
the various natural disasters happening across the world, building ‘green’
cities is not optional but a must if we were to maintain our economic
activities and living standards within acceptable level of global warming
impacts.
Urbanization is an enormous global issue at the moment.
Agricultural land is being converted into urbanized areas at the same pace as
the rapid growth of developing nations. Social infrastructures, involving
electricity (energy,) water, buildings, transportation, communications,
administrative services and other elements, are indispensable factors for
ensuring that the lifestyles of the people and businesses can be supported. All
of these have to be established within short periods of time and in a way that
makes them effectively useful in the future.
At
the same time, the existing social infrastructures in developed nations are
ageing in such a way that they no longer meet the requirements of modern-day
lifestyles, and the time will soon come when they need to be completely
revised. In addition to this, developed nations are also facing other social
issues, such as reduced birthrates, the ageing of society at large, and a rapid
decrease in tax revenues.
Following
the same old methods to improve the QoL of residents and vitalize economic
activities while at the same time solving the issues that urban areas are
facing is no longer a viable option from the point of view of functionality and
cost. It also goes without saying that reducing the burden on the environment
through such activities as cutting back on CO2 emissions, which is a global
issue, is an extremely important prerequisite. The reason for promoting the
establishment of smart cities lies here: in their bid to adopt recyclable
energy sources through the use of solar power and wind power, etc.
The
active employment of ICT-representative technology (Information and
Communications Technology) will provide smart cities with the means to solve
these problems on an unprecedented scale. Establishing smart cities is not
simply a question of changing the outer appearance of urban areas; it is a
quest to bring innovation to the lifestyles of the residents themselves. Many
of these innovations were unthinkable in the past, such as the widespread
distribution of electric vehicles (EV) that can be recharged by each individual
home and the batteries of which can be used to supply electricity in emergencies.
A
large number of experimental projects are currently being carried out around
the globe in order to discover a core model for smart cities. Each of these
projects is varied and diverse, with some considering energy and others
considering EVs. However, the main aim should be to consider the lifestyles of
the citizens, which in the end will determine the form the cities should take.
Smart cities are not something that should be tackled by just governments and
corporations and then presented to residents. The general public must also be
actively involved in sharing their own ideas and helping to formulate the
cities by throwing their own wisdom into the pot. That is what smart cities are
all about.
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