The implementation of new urban solutions and the involvement of a variety of stakeholders can create questions and challenges for those involved in that process. The advantage of belonging to an online Smart City community is that sharing knowledge and experiences can be done easily and quickly. The aim of this posts series is to introduce and open the discussion about current challenges in the Smart City sector, taking advantage of the experienced community that participates in this platform.

The topic of this post is: What is the role of public-private cooperation in the future development of smart cities?

To start the discussion, we have asked Per Erling Fjeld, a project manager from Lyse (a Norwegian industrial group operating within the field of energy and fibre-based broadband), to share his thoughts:

"There is an established dichotomy with city governments acting as customers and the industry as vendors when it comes to developing smart cities and communities. However, the picture has recently become richer with more colours added. The private sector works with citizen organisations, academic institutions and other actors in addition to being clear-cut bidders in city tenders, etc. The same multiple approach can be identified on the purchasing side. In short, there is no definable roles, as this kind of cooperation is the sheer essence of any smart community endeavor." 

 

What are your experiences in this area? What is your advice for future smart city projects? What other issues or questions come to your mind when thinking about public-private cooperation? Share your insights with the community by commenting below!

 

[Are you facing another kind of challege and would like to gather feedback from the community? Create a post!]