by Brianna Crandall — February 10, 2012—A list of “the world’s smartest cities” has been compiled by Boyd Cohen for Co.Exist, a subsidiary site of FastCompany.com, the online version of the FastCompany magazine. Boyd Cohen, Ph.D., LEED AP, is a climate strategist who helps lead communities, cities and companies on the journey towards the low-carbon economy, and is the co-author of Climate Capitalism: Capitalism in the Age of Climate Change.
Dr. Cohen “crunch[ed] a list of variables about innovation and sustainability” to compile what he believes may be the first-ever global rankings of smart cities. He drew from several well-known global and regional rankings of smart-city components, such as the level of innovation in top global cities, the quality of life of cities, regional rankings of green cities, digital rankings for cities in the United States, and a study of digital governance in municipalities worldwide.
Dr. Cohen’s broad definition of smart cities is: “Smart cities use information and communication technologies (ICT) to be more intelligent and efficient in the use of resources, resulting in cost and energy savings, improved service delivery and quality of life, and reduced environmental footprint—all supporting innovation and the low-carbon economy.”
The top 10 smart cities turned out to be:
- Vienna
- Toronto
- Paris
- New York
- London
- Tokyo
- Berlin
- Copenhagen
- Hong Kong
- Barcelona
Dr. Cohen mentioned that there were many other strong candidates that are runners-up in his inaugural ranking, including Amsterdam, Melbourne, Seattle, São Paulo, Stockholm, and Vancouver.
