Making a city smart is a novel way to approach
municipality. Lyngby-Taarbæk is a host to many
such challenges (Nam and Pardo, 2011). But what is
technology and information driven companies as
a Smart City? Bolici and Mora (2015) define Smart
well as one of the most respected technical
Cities as urban areas in which information and
universities in Europe, The Technical University of
communication technologies (ICTs) are used to
Denmark, DTU 4. The municipality has identified
solve their specific problems and support their
Lyngby-Taarbæk as a City of Knowledge & Urban
sustainable development in social, economic and/
Development. Their City of Knowledge vision
or environmental terms. The Lyngby-Taarbæk City
includes attracting and retaining knowledge-based
of Knowledge initiative defines Smart Cities as
businesses, developing Lyngby-Taarbæk into a
digital and inclusive cities that seek to optimize
university town, creating urban life, forming
how the city functions by creating synergies
networks, furthering social innovation and
between the physical and the social in the digital
internationalization, inspiring entrepreneurship,
space. According to their definition, a Smart City
and broadening municipal services to the busines-
should support relationships between authorities,
ses and citizens in Lyngby-Taarbæk 5.
businesses, organizations and citizens, mainly
The City of Knowledge initiative is designed as a
through sharing of data and information across
triple helix model (Etzkowitz, 1993; Etzkowitz and
organizational boundaries. Wikipedia3 offers this
Leydesdorff, 1995; Ranga and Etzkowitz, 2013). The
definition: A Smart City uses digital technologies
Triple Helix thesis is that the potential for
or information and communication technologies
innovation and economic development in a
(ICT) to enhance quality and performance of urban
Knowledge Society lies in the hybridisation of
services, to reduce costs and resource consumption,
elements from academia, industry and government
and to engage more effectively and actively with its
to accelerate production, transfer and application
citizens. It is safe to say that a Smart City is an
of knowledge. The City of Knowledge & Urban
emerging phenomenon and as such has no precise
Development includes stakeholders from all three
definition. However, what all of these definitions
sectors and is governed by an independent
have in common is a focus on the digital space and
organization that is jointly funded by all of the
how new technologies and new means of collabora-
sectors. The participating stakeholders all agree on
tion can facilitate and accelerate how we address
the common vision for the City of Knowledge &
many of the societal challenges that result from
Urban Development, and presumably expect to
increased urbanization.
benefit from this collaboration. However, their motivations for collaborating vary considerably.
The City of Knowledge: Lyngby-
The key to success in the triple helix model is to
Taarbæk‘s Smart City Vision
create a win-win-win situation where each of the
There are a number of Smart City initiatives in
partners can focus on their own benefits while
Denmark. Perhaps the most prominent one is
their individual contributions will add value to the
Copenhagen Smart City Initiative which has won
larger ecosystem in which they operate. Figure 1
awards like the World Smart Cities Award in 2014.
shows an example of a triple helix model.
Additionally, various smaller municipalities have
Academiamainly contributes through knowledge
started their own Smart City initiatives, although
creation which is disseminated through teaching
some of them might not explicitly use the Smart
and research. Government contributes to a healthy
City concept. One of them is Lyngby-Taarbæk
environment for innovative collaboration, creating
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_city DTU is listed number 43 in Thomson Reuter’s list of the World’s most innovative Universities, and counts number 7 of all the European Universities on the list. See: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/15/idUSL1N11K16Q20150915 5 http://www.vidensby.dk/English.aspx 3
4
Perspektiv nr. 25 • 2015 • 53