Smart Cities in the High North: A Сomparative Analysis of Arkhangelsk, Bodø, Murmansk and Tromsø

* Статья содержит упоминание запрещенных в Российской Федерации социальных сетей. Номер был подготовлен до решения суда о запрете деятельности указанных социальных сетей. Упоминание осуществляется исключительно в научных целях и не нацелено на одобрение экстремисткой деятельности

Abstract

This article presents the results of a comparative analysis of the development of “smart” initiatives in four northern cities: Arkhangelsk (Russia), Bodø (Norway), Murmansk (Russia) and Tromsø (Norway). The purpose of the comparison is to identify the use of smart city technologies for the sustainable development of northern urban territories and to identify urban practices potentially relevant for Russian cities. The theoretical framework is based on identifying two dimensions or approaches to understanding smart cities in the research literature: techno-centric and human-centric, where the humancentric approach includes the active role of citizens, realized through participation mechanisms. The empirical part of the study is based on a qualitative analysis of online media materials and research publications for the period 2017–2019, which makes it possible to construct narratives about “smart” initiatives for each of the cities under consideration. The data for the study were collected as part of the international scientific project “SMARTNORTH” in 2019–2020. The comparison shows the key differences in approaches to understanding smart cities: the Norwegian cities lean towards the human-centric approach, while the Russian cities are closer to the techno-centric one. As urban practices relevant for Russian cities, we suggest considering such human-centric elements as “urban laboratories” providing a capacity for online and offline engagement, and the gamification practices evident in Norwegian city of Bodø.