Title: E-deliberation 2.0 for smart cities: a critical assessment of two 'idea generation' cases

Authors: Peter Mechant; Isabelle Stevens; Tom Evens; Pieter Verdegem

Addresses: IBBT-MICT-UGent, Korte Meer 7/9/11, 9000 Ghent, Belgium. ' IBBT-MICT-UGent, Korte Meer 7/9/11, 9000 Ghent, Belgium. ' IBBT-MICT-UGent, Korte Meer 7/9/11, 9000 Ghent, Belgium. ' IBBT-MICT-UGent, Korte Meer 7/9/11, 9000 Ghent, Belgium

Abstract: This paper elaborates on the importance of a user-driven approach in the design and development of innovative services and applications for smart cities. By reporting on two case studies situated in the city of Ghent (Belgium), that are part of larger projects, we illustrate how we have applied different user-centred innovation development methods and strategies in order to generate and evaluate innovative concepts and ideas for smart city applications. This paper discusses and compares the work conducted in these case studies by documenting for each case study (a) the policy context and strategy, (b) the problems addressed and the solutions achieved, and (c) the (e-)deliberation (2.0) approaches used. Furthermore, we assess the effectiveness and impact of both approaches and report on the results and the lessons learned.

Keywords: e-deliberation; smart city; ubiquitous city; digital cities; ideation; idea generation; crowdsourcing; open innovation; opportunity identification; brainstorming; user-centric methods; idea evaluation; online deliberation; smart cities; Ghent; Belgium; e-governance; electronic governance.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEG.2012.047441

International Journal of Electronic Governance, 2012 Vol.5 No.1, pp.82 - 98

Received: 15 Aug 2011
Accepted: 08 Mar 2012
Published online: 21 Jun 2012 *

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