Urban Governance最新文献

Identification of factors influencing the realization of good urban governance in the city of Isfahan using a futures studies approach

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2024.12.012

Reza Mokhtari Malekabadi , Majid Goodarzi , Fahime Fadaei Jazi

Considering the rapid growth of cities and the inability of urban management systems to address complex challenges, good urban governance has emerged as a comprehensive strategy to enhance efficiency and quality of life for urban residents. The need for transparent, accountable, and participatory governance in Iranian cities, particularly in Isfahan, is evident. The current study aims to identify the factors influencing the future realization of good urban governance in Isfahan. The study employs both quantitative and qualitative research approaches. A list of factors contributing to the realization of good urban governance in Isfahan was compiled using a Delphi questionnaire survey conducted among 30 experts. Subsequently, the variables were analyzed using the cross-impact analysis model in the MICMAC software. The results indicate that the mental and mindset transformation of municipal managers, disorder and lack of collaboration among governmental and state sectors, the absence of appropriate and up-to-date perspectives in urban management, a lack of synergy in financial, investment, and management domains, deficiencies in the authority of the City Council to formulate necessary legislation for city governance, inadequate proportions and uncoordinated communication among the governor, district governor, and city mayor, interventions and non-technical mandates imposed by the Ministry of the Interior and the Municipalities Organization within the administrative structure, shifting priorities of the municipality with changes in management, failure to transcend partisanship in urban management, and the underutilization of the full capacities of the city are among the most crucial factors affecting the future realization of good urban governance in Isfahan.

考虑到城市的快速发展和城市管理系统无力应对复杂的挑战，良好的城市治理已成为提高效率和城市居民生活质量的综合战略。伊朗城市，尤其是伊斯法罕，显然需要透明、负责和参与式的治理。本研究旨在确定影响伊斯法罕未来实现良好城市治理的因素。研究采用了定量和定性研究方法。通过对 30 位专家进行德尔菲问卷调查，编制了一份有助于在伊斯法罕实现良好城市治理的因素清单。随后，使用 MICMAC 软件中的交叉影响分析模型对变量进行了分析。结果表明，市政管理人员的心理和思维模式发生了转变，政府和国家部门之间的合作无序和缺乏，城市管理缺乏适当的最新视角，金融、投资和管理领域缺乏协同效应，市议会在制定城市管理必要立法方面的权力存在缺陷，省长、区长和市长之间的沟通比例不足且不协调、影响伊斯法罕未来实现良好城市管理的最关键因素包括：内政部和市政组织在行政结构中强加的干预和非技术性任务；市政当局的优先事项随着管理的变化而变化；在城市管理中未能超越党派之争；以及未能充分利用城市的全部能力。

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引用次数: 0

Enhancing data sovereignty to improve intelligent mobility services in smart cities

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2025.02.002

Bokolo Anthony Jnr , Sizarta Sarshar

Smart cities aim to provide more digitalized, equitable, sustainable, and liveable cities. In smart cities data evolves as an important asset and citizens data in particular is being used to provide data-driven mobility services. Likewise, in smart cities data is produced and used by individuals having no ownership or control over these data thus affecting their security and privacy. Also, actors such as mobility service providers, companies, third parties, etc. often leverage individuals’ data without regarding users’ autonomy. Accordingly, data sovereignty which entails the possibility to govern and keep control over owned data is gaining widespread attention. As a result, stakeholders in the mobility sector need to share data whilst keeping control to manage data access and usage. Although, existing initiatives are promoting sovereign participation using a federated infrastructure. However, achieving an effective governance usage control and access mechanisms can be challenging especially in the transportation sector. It is thus imperative for individuals to have control, ownership, and custody over their data. This has necessitated the notions of data sovereignty. Therefore, this article employs a systematic review to examine how data sovereignty can be achieved for individuals when they use urban mobility services in smart cities by enabling the secure sharing of data by giving control of data over to individuals. Additionally, this article designs a data control scheme that can be applied to realize data sovereign mobility services. Evidence from this study provides technical and non-technical requirements needed in realizing data sovereignty in smart cities.

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引用次数: 0

Cybersecurity in local governments: A systematic review and framework of key challenges

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2024.12.010

Sk Tahsin Hossain , Tan Yigitcanlar , Kien Nguyen , Yue Xu

Cybersecurity has emerged as a critical concern in modern urban governance, as local governments now extend their responsibilities beyond traditional infrastructure management to safeguard digital systems and citizen data in increasingly digitised smart city environments. Despite the importance of robust cybersecurity measures, there is a concerning gap—i.e., local governments often exhibit a cybersecurity posture that is inadequately prepared to counter the rising cyber threats. This discrepancy underscores the urgency for a comprehensive understanding of the challenges restricting effective cybersecurity in local governmental settings. This paper aims to elucidate these challenges of local governments in a structured framework utilising a systematic literature review method named the PRISMA protocol. The findings reveal that the stakes are high when it comes to cybersecurity for local governments, with the key challenges being financial resource constraints, technological vulnerabilities, human factors, and the regulatory framework. This study recommends improving interdepartmental coordination, adopting relevant policies, and executing targeted cybersecurity training to address these challenges. The study also highlights unconventional approaches to mitigate financial and skill resource limitations, including the utilisation of open-source security tools, outsourcing specific cybersecurity functions, and establishing collaborations with local cybersecurity agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector to obtain expertise and advanced resources. Overall, this study offers valuable insights into the critical cybersecurity challenges faced by local governments and provides specific recommendations, equipping urban policymakers, administrators, and researchers with valuable guidance to enhance cybersecurity resilience within this critical yet understudied research domain.

网络安全已成为现代城市治理中的一个重要问题，因为地方政府的职责已超出传统的基础设施管理，而是在日益数字化的智能城市环境中保护数字系统和公民数据。尽管强有力的网络安全措施非常重要，但仍存在令人担忧的差距，即地方政府的网络安全态势往往不足以应对不断上升的网络威胁。这种差异凸显了全面了解制约地方政府有效网络安全的挑战的紧迫性。本文旨在利用名为 "PRISMA 协议 "的系统文献综述方法，在结构化框架内阐明地方政府面临的这些挑战。研究结果表明，地方政府在网络安全方面面临着巨大的风险，主要挑战包括财政资源限制、技术脆弱性、人为因素和监管框架。本研究建议改善部门间协调、采用相关政策和开展有针对性的网络安全培训，以应对这些挑战。本研究还强调了缓解资金和技能资源限制的非常规方法，包括利用开源安全工具、外包特定网络安全功能，以及与当地网络安全机构、学术机构和私营部门建立合作关系，以获取专业知识和先进资源。总之，本研究为地方政府面临的关键网络安全挑战提供了宝贵的见解，并提出了具体建议，为城市决策者、管理者和研究人员提供了宝贵的指导，以提高这一关键但研究不足的研究领域的网络安全复原力。

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引用次数: 0

Why do smart city projects fail to create impact? Understanding decision-making in smart city policy implementation

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2025.02.004

Devika Prakash

Smart city projects have been rolled out in various parts of the world, often promising radical urban transformations driven by cutting edge technologies. However, several studies on smart city implementation have noted how these iconic and technology intensive projects have often failed to create the impact they promise. Extending upon emerging scholarship on decision-making in smart city implementation, I use the framework of the garbage can model of organizational choice to unpack key decisions taken around smart city implementation in the city of Kochi in India and the tensions surrounding its flagship integrated command and control centre (ICCC). The case study reveals that the smart city arrives as a top-down directive from the central government where the existing problems of the city are reconfigured to fit nationally envisioned smart city agendas. The implementation of smart city projects is bound up with political tensions between existing local and state organisations and often disrupted by election-cycles and the shuffling of government bureaucrats at the helm of the smart city organisation. The ICCC arrives in Kochi as a solution-looking-for-a-problem as a mandate from the central government. Over time, the increasing distance between the smart city projects and the existing local authorities results in limited integration of the ICCC with urban governance in Kochi. The study shows how smart city projects are embroiled in organizational path dependency and political controversies contrary to the apolitical and rational technical fixes promised in smart city vision documents.

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引用次数: 0

Exploring big data applications in sustainable urban infrastructure: A review

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2025.02.003

David Victor Ogunkan , Stella Kehinde Ogunkan

As urbanization accelerates globally, cities face unprecedented challenges related to infrastructure management, resource efficiency, and sustainability. To address these issues, many cities are increasingly integrating big data into their infrastructure systems, particularly within the context of smart cities. This study provides a comprehensive review of how big data is utilized to promote sustainable urban infrastructure, focusing on five key areas: energy management, transportation systems, water resources, waste management, and green infrastructure. The analysis draws on successful case studies from cities such as Barcelona, Singapore, Amsterdam, and New York, exploring how these urban centers leverage big data to optimize infrastructure systems and improve environmental and social outcomes. Additionally, this review identifies the challenges cities face when integrating big data into their planning processes, including data privacy concerns, technical expertise gaps, and the high costs of infrastructure upgrades. The findings suggest that big data plays a transformative role in enhancing urban resilience, reducing environmental impact, and fostering long-term sustainability. The study concludes by highlighting future research opportunities, particularly the potential of AI and advanced analytics in further optimizing smart city infrastructure.

随着全球城市化进程的加快，城市在基础设施管理、资源效率和可持续性方面面临着前所未有的挑战。为解决这些问题，许多城市正越来越多地将大数据整合到基础设施系统中，特别是在智慧城市的背景下。本研究全面回顾了如何利用大数据促进城市基础设施的可持续发展，重点关注五个关键领域：能源管理、交通系统、水资源、废物管理和绿色基础设施。分析借鉴了巴塞罗那、新加坡、阿姆斯特丹和纽约等城市的成功案例，探讨了这些城市中心如何利用大数据优化基础设施系统，改善环境和社会成果。此外，本综述还指出了城市在将大数据纳入其规划流程时面临的挑战，包括数据隐私问题、专业技术差距以及基础设施升级的高成本。研究结果表明，大数据在增强城市复原力、减少环境影响和促进长期可持续性方面发挥着变革性作用。研究最后强调了未来的研究机会，特别是人工智能和高级分析在进一步优化智慧城市基础设施方面的潜力。

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引用次数: 0

The future of EPCs: Data, policy, and public perception in the race for energy efficiency

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2025.02.006

Aitziber Mugarra , Cruz Borges , Leandro Ferrón , Oxana Soimu

Amidst the pressing concern about climate change, the construction sector has been identified as one of the main energy consumers in Europe, which also positions it as one of the sectors with the greatest potential for efficiency improvements. In response to this, the European Union established the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) system, with the aim of boosting transparency and encouraging sustainable renovations. However, the results have not been as expected. Some of the causes of this are poor data quality, limited public awareness and inadequate legislation, which together undermine trust in the certification process. In addition, concerns about the possible exclusion of low-income households have sparked debates about the financial burdens and possible rent increases following energy efficiency improvements. This article presents insights from a qualitative study of various stakeholders, including public agencies, technical experts and real estate professionals, examining prevailing perceptions of EPC design, implementation and utility. Key findings reveal that mandatory policies drive adoption, but administrative complexities and inconsistent metrics erode public trust. Furthermore, the gap between specialist and non-specialist audiences prevents the certificate from playing a role in motivating behaviour change. The new version of the European Commission's Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) introduces standardised templates and databases. Added to this, stakeholder feedback highlights the need for public education, accurate energy data and tailored financial mechanisms. This study concludes that to refine EPC policies, integrated and holistic frameworks are needed that address socio-economic risks, foster equity and accelerate Europe's transition to low-carbon housing.

随着人们对气候变化的迫切关注，建筑行业已被确定为欧洲的主要能源消耗行业之一，这也使其成为最有潜力提高能效的行业之一。为此，欧盟建立了能源性能证书（EPC）制度，旨在提高透明度，鼓励可持续翻新。然而，结果并不尽如人意。究其原因，数据质量差、公众意识有限、立法不完善等因素共同削弱了人们对认证过程的信任。此外，对低收入家庭可能被排除在外的担忧也引发了对提高能效后的经济负担和可能的租金上涨的争论。本文介绍了对包括公共机构、技术专家和房地产专业人士在内的各利益相关方进行定性研究后得出的见解，探讨了对 EPC 设计、实施和效用的普遍看法。主要研究结果表明，强制性政策推动了采用，但复杂的行政管理和不一致的衡量标准削弱了公众的信任。此外，专家与非专家受众之间的差距也阻碍了证书在推动行为改变方面发挥作用。欧盟委员会新版《建筑能效指令》（EPBD）引入了标准化模板和数据库。此外，利益相关者的反馈意见也强调了对公众教育、准确的能源数据和量身定制的金融机制的需求。本研究的结论是，为完善 EPC 政策，需要建立综合全面的框架，以应对社会经济风险、促进公平并加快欧洲向低碳住房的过渡。

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引用次数: 0

Cities and sustainability: Exploring contributions, opportunities and challenges of smart city implementation towards social sustainability

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2025.02.005

Dhiyathad Prateeppornnarong

The past few decades have witnessed the smart city concept's worldwide popularity as the way forward for struggling with urban issues and challenges, bringing about sustainability of cities. Smart city implementation, however, has been researched chiefly within the context of major cities where the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure and connectivity is readily available and reliable. In contrast, little was known of smart city implementation in many other fast-growing secondary cities. Drawing from the concept of social sustainability, this research seeks to explore contributions, opportunities and challenges of smart city implementation towards social sustainability of secondary cities in developing countries, using Udon Thani – a fast-growing secondary city of upper northeastern Thailand – as a research context. Grounded in 42 in-depth interviews, the findings show that smart city implementation contributes to social sustainability of Udon Thani in terms of enhancing the safety of the public, the provision of public services and offering opportunities for building a better urban society. Nevertheless, low public awareness of smart city development, inadequate collaboration between different sectors in the locality, and a lack of a smart city plan are posing significant challenges to smart city implementation, reflecting that the development of a smart city project in Udon Thani is not based on a holistic approach; hence, the implementation of the project is decidedly patchy. This research argues that the achievement of smart city implementation relies upon a holistic and multidimensional approach, taking into account integrated urban planning, cross-sector collaboration, marketing campaign strategies and the identification of context-specific instruments.

在过去的几十年里，智慧城市的概念在全球范围内广为流行，成为应对城市问题和挑战、实现城市可持续发展的前进方向。然而，对智慧城市实施情况的研究主要集中在信息与传播技术（ICT）基础设施和连接方便可靠的大城市。相比之下，人们对其他许多快速发展的二级城市实施智慧城市的情况知之甚少。本研究从社会可持续发展的概念出发，以泰国上东北部快速发展的二级城市乌隆府为研究背景，试图探讨智慧城市的实施对发展中国家二级城市社会可持续发展的贡献、机遇和挑战。在 42 个深入访谈的基础上，研究结果表明，智慧城市的实施有助于乌隆府的社会可持续发展，包括提高公众安全、提供公共服务以及为建设更美好的城市社会提供机会。然而，公众对智慧城市发展的认识不足、当地不同部门之间的合作不充分以及缺乏智慧城市规划都给智慧城市的实施带来了巨大的挑战，这反映出乌隆府智慧城市项目的发展并不是基于一个整体的方法；因此，项目的实施明显是零散的。本研究认为，智慧城市的实施有赖于整体性和多维度的方法，同时考虑到综合城市规划、跨部门合作、营销活动战略和特定环境工具的确定。

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引用次数: 0

Multilevel governance in times of COVID-19 pandemic. Patterns of legitimacy and governance capacity

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2025.02.001

Jurian Edelenbos , Jitske van Popering-Verkerk , Mattijs Taanman , Marijn Stouten

Developing multilevel governance capacity is key to deal with crises in a legitimate and effective manner. But how does multilevel governance manifest in response to COVID-19 in the Netherlands? The study shows low to absent multilevel governance capacity, with strong central government authority and limited regional governance. We found that multilevel governance only benefits an effective crises response if the regional level has three assets authority, capacity and legitimacy to vertically connect with decision-making processes in the upper tiers of government. This puts emphasis on developing vertical and horizontal relationships between various governmental levels and authorities in times of crises.

引用次数: 0

Urban progress index (UPI) development: A case-oriented comparative approach

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2024.12.009

Sahar Nedaei Tousi , Hossein Yousefi , Mohammad Hossein Boochani , Mohammad Hasan Ghodusinejad , Setareh Peirov

In the age of globalization, megacities, as the main centers of national wealth production, have become competing places to attract people and creative industries, earn more money and gain more market share. This requires them to redefine their competitive advantages and hence improve their international status. Accordingly, the city ranking approach by means of a composite index, is widely employed and attracts public attention to provide a barometer of how various aspects and parts of a city are unfolding and performing. In this regard, this research is dedicated to compiling an appropriate composite index for ranking and monitoring the progress of Tehran regions in an integrated, inclusive and agreed manner in accordance with the contextual conditions of urban development in Iran. Based on this, Tehran Urban Progress Index (TUPI) was defined and operationalized with 26 criteria and 176 indicators under six main components including “economic efficiency and competitiveness”, “urban environmental sustainability”, “viability, well-being and satisfaction”, “smartness, innovation, and entrepreneurship”, “interactions, interconnection and communication” and “urban governance”. It is concluded that urban innovation and entrepreneurship and then competitiveness and economic efficiency are the most effective factors in the progress of the city. Also, analyzing the spatial pattern of the progress index shows that the areas located in the northern zones of Tehran are in a better position compared to the southern zones. The suggested developed method used in this study can be applied to all other megacities regarding their unique criteria. Based on the results of this paper, some regulations and control policies are suggested for sustainable urban progress.

在全球化时代，特大城市作为国家财富生产的主要中心，已成为吸引人口和创意产业、赚取更多金钱和赢得更多市场份额的竞争场所。这就要求它们重新定义自己的竞争优势，从而提高自己的国际地位。因此，通过综合指数进行城市排名的方法被广泛采用，并吸引了公众的关注，为城市各方面和各部分的发展和表现提供了晴雨表。在这方面，本研究致力于根据伊朗城市发展的背景条件，以综合、包容和一致同意的方式编制适当的综合指数，用于排名和监测德黑兰地区的进展情况。在此基础上，界定了德黑兰城市进步指数（TUPI），并将其操作化，包括 "经济效率和竞争力"、"城市环境可持续性"、"可行性、福祉和满意度"、"智能、创新和创业"、"互动、互联和沟通 "以及 "城市治理 "等六个主要组成部分，共 26 项标准和 176 个指标。结论是，城市创新和创业以及竞争力和经济效率是城市进步的最有效因素。此外，对进步指数空间模式的分析表明，与南部地区相比，德黑兰北部地区的进步指数更高。本研究中使用的建议开发方法可适用于所有其他特大城市的独特标准。根据本文的研究结果，提出了一些促进城市可持续发展的法规和控制政策。

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引用次数: 0

Situating the compliance with land use regulations within the context of sustainable city development: Lessons from Ho Municipality of Ghana

Urban Governance

Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.ugj.2024.12.011

Pearl Seyram Asamoah , Stephen Appiah Takyi , Stephen Biliyitorb Liwur , Owusu Amponsah , Sylvanus Narh Duamor

Urbanizing in cities in the global south continues to reshape land use systems. Consequently, theuncontrolled rate of urbanization in cities such as Ho in Ghana, continues to threaten the sustainability of urban natural assets and agricultural lands. Although there are existing land use regulations and guidelines to guide and control development, the enforcement of these regulations continues to face major challenges. In light of this, this study evaluates the effectiveness of land use regulations in the Ho Municipality and its implications for sustainable city development. In this study, the researchers relied on both primary and secondary data. The primary data were collected through interviews with representatives of institutions such as the Lands Commission, the Traditional Council, and the Ho Municipal Assembly. In terms secondary data, base maps of the study areas, Medium-Term Development Plans, the Land Use and Spatial Planning Act, 2016 (Act 925) and the Zoning Guidelines and Planning Standards were reviewed, serving as tge framework for the assessment of the extent of compliance. Overall, the findings points to a complex combination of compliance and non-compliance with land use regulations. Whereas compliance with land use regulations and activities in the study areas tend to promote sustainability,non-compliance with these regulations on the other hand threatens urban sustainability. For example, in the Ho Poly Area, there was no evidence of encroachment of the buffer zones of overhead power lines and arterial roads. This indicates that there is compliance with land use regulations, and this has positive implications for the sustainability of the city. However, there were no provisions for urban green spaces in the neighbourhood plan, which raises concerns on the ecological and general sustainability of the city. On this backdrop, the researchers recommend stricter enforcement and the adoption of effective urban planning strategies such as institutional collaboration to achieve sustainable city development. Additionally, adopting emerging techniques such as big data, machine learning, and IoT for urban planning and management in these Ghanaian cities can enhance sustainable development.

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引用次数: 0