Vision for a Holistic Smart City-HSC: Integrating Resiliency Framework via Crowdsourced Community Resiliency Information System (CRIS)

This vision paper discusses future directions and existing gaps in integrating smart city initiatives with resilience frameworks. It proposes the use of a multi-modular crowdsourced Community Resiliency Information System (CRIS) to overcome traditional smart citiesâĂŹ focus on infrastructure and grid vulnerabilities/resiliency while overlooking socio-economic vulnerabilities. CRIS is conceptualized based on our previous research which identified the importance of customized information and targeted resources to foster preparedness, adaptation and resiliency among diverse communities. Our proposed vision of a smart city integrated with CRIS allows scalable and customizable solutions for policymakers using information generated âĂŸby the peopleâĂŹ, thus ensuring participation of diverse communities in smart city technology, thus creating a Holistic Smart City (HSC). CRIS will foster a two-way communication between government and communities by creating a grassroots, community-based, technology-enhanced needs assessment and disaster-response information system. Among other benefits, CRIS will generate and organize data to be used by the local community and policy makers and foster ongoing dialogue between neighborhoods and policymakers. CRIS will foster social capital at the neighborhood level by increasing grassroots knowledge and access to resources and information, fostering preparedness, adaptation, and resiliency/recovery, and aiding decision-makers in resource allocation and customized communications. CRIS moves the smart city beyond a mere infrastructure to create an interactive space for information exchange, democratic participation and a collaborative resilience-building process.