In the 21st century, metropolises worldwide are facing many challenges: scarce resources, insufficient living space, climate change, new demands on mobility, infrastructures, and social coexistence, to name a few. At the same time, technical and digital progress offers many approaches and opportunities to meet these challenges. Berlin identifies as a smart city that seeks to use this potential to shape public services and make the city a better place to live for everyone. To this end, Berlin has had a Smart City Strategy since 2015, which has been rethought and further developed since spring 2021 as part of an extensive participation process.

This process includes four major groups of actors: experts, members of the administration, interested members of the public, and the city committee ‘Digital Berlin’. nexus supports the strategic process by addressing, selecting, supporting, supervising, and advising the city panel.

In six separate meetings, 70 randomly selected Berliners expand on the results of the other participation strands to develop specific goals and concrete measures for the Smart City Berlin, together with the administration. Based on the results of the other participation strands and in collaboration with the administration, the citizens develop specific goals and concrete measures for the Smart City Berlin. The result is a set of proposals for the formulation of the Smart City strategy with the aim of shaping the future developments of the digital city in a sustainable, cooperative, community-oriented, and resilient way, keeping the well-being of future generations in mind.

Additionally, the 6 meetings of the city panel are framed by a kick-off event prepared by nexus, which took place on 20 November 2021 in the Red Town Hall (Rotes Rathaus Berlin), and a closing event planned for June 2022.

Duration: 09/2021 – 12/2022
Client: Technologiestiftung Berlin
Team: Prof. Dr. Christiane Dienel (Projektleitung), Ina Metzner (operative Projektleitung), Hussein Assad, Niklas Peter

graphic: dankegrafik & 123comics GbR