Framework
A Framework to enable and facilitate your city’s transformation into an Ethical Smart City.
4. Design
Prototypes of Smart City solutions for your current and future stakeholders are ideated and tested.
Generate designs for your current and future stakeholders. Evaluate the perceived value by prototyping and testing.
The fourth step, Design, entails the co-creation of Smart City Solutions that are aligned to the community’s current and future needs as well as testing the value of these solutions through prototyping. Using tools to engage the communities and evaluate these solutions, this step allows for co-design and co-evaluation.
This step begins with the ideation process of Smart City solutions, which are based on community needs and aligned with their values. Various prototypes of potential solutions are created and tested to develop viable, feasible and desirable designs. Through public engagement, stakeholders are able to provide feedback on the solutions and its relevance to the community. This feedback leads to the improvement of the solution – taking it from an abstract idea to a tangible application.
Tallinn, Estonia and Penela, Portugal are examples of cities that leveraged their communities in designing solutions to their challenges.
Generate
Design for Your Current and Future Stakeholders
Designing solutions to address community challenges and needs creates an opportunity to develop projects that are relevant to current and future stakeholders. The combination of the specific challenge, community values and appropriate technology and a commitment to co-design are at the core of Ethical Smart City solutions.
The designed solutions must also consider the limitations and risks as identified in previous steps to ensure their resilience and relevance for the various stakeholders in the community over time. At the end of this step, you will be able to come up with potential Smart City solutions that are aligned to your community’s values.
The generative output in this step is supported by the ESC Solution and Opposite Thinking tools. Either of these tools can be used to facilitate the ideation activity to propose solutions.
Precedent
How was Tallinn able to leverage its digital community to co-design the right solutions for its public urban spaces?
Originally, Tallinn offered a digital feedback tool allowing its residents to propose their own public space solutions. However, this option was limiting and inaccessible as interested residents were required to submit proposals through architectural plans. Find out what Tallinn did to encourage their residents to co-design public urban space solutions in their smart city.
Tools
Evaluate
Design the Perceived Value, Prototype & Test
The value of a solution is assessed when its ability to address challenges is proven. Smart City projects and initiatives need investments in time and money, so having a clear view of its value helps you and your stakeholders feel confident in the proposed solutions.
Small scale deployments are commonly used to test and establish the potential of proposed solutions. Pilot projects are also a great way to gather feedback from stakeholders and adjust solutions based on their input.
Supported by innovative procurement practices, these prototypes balance implementing solutions and creating value. In this step, you will be able to evaluate the solutions on the basis of their value and contribution to the different stakeholders in the community.
The evaluative output in this step is supported by the ESC Testing and Prototyping Testing tools. Either of these tools can be used to test the proposed solutions for their viability, feasibility, and alignment to community needs and values.
Precedent
How did Penela facilitate its traditional agrarian community to test smart city solutions?
Penela is a village in Portugal that supports a population of approximately 6,000. The community has a low demographic density, which is also mostly aging. Find out what Penela did to encourage the testing of ideas and solutions and promote regional development and address its rural challenges.
