The Smart City Plan 2011–2013 in Shanghai

Abstract

This chapter explores public sector innovation in China focusing on the city of Shanghai. It particularly addresses the smart city plan set in place from 2011 to 2013 through the model developed by Chourabi et al. (2012. Understanding Smart Cities: An Integrative Framework. Proceedings of the 45th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. Computer Society. IEEE). The findings reveal the importance of top-down policies rather than bottom-up approaches to innovation and policy change. The smart city plan inherits a process of transformation from the 1990s in four areas: governance, technology, built-in infrastructure, and economy. It develops specificities for this Chinese case in management and organization and more recently shows a built-in capacity to develop a favorable policy context with the central government. A limited scope for people and communities and the natural environment variables shaping changes which are so-called smart is founded. The results highlight the specificities of the Chinese city, Shanghai, innovating on smart city grounds.

The authors are grateful for help with English proof-reading at UCJC Madrid, thanks to Natalie Murray and Rafik Loulidi. We are also grateful for the helpful comments to this work at the Social Innovation Research Conference (SIRC): Innovations in public and social policy and in public service delivery, hosted by the School of International Relations and Public Affairs Fudan University, Shanghai, China, May 21–22, 2015, and particularly from Albert Meijer, Utrecht University. Some parts of this research have been funded by Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros de Telecomunicación (COIT), and by Accenture Spain. The work, however, represents the view and work of the authors.