Relevance to Internet Governance: The UN Strategy on Sustainable Urban Development highlights digital transformation and new technologies as one of four frontier issues that require a special, coordinated response. The New Urban Agenda calls for the adoption of “a smart-city approach that makes use of opportunities from digitalization, clean energy and technologies”. The explosion in digital technologies is playing a major role in shaping cities – from the internet of things, to digital platforms for service delivery and 5G for autonomous mobility – and our challenge is to set a new direction that favours inclusive, resilient and sustainable use of technologies by local governments. These technologies, if well-governed, can contribute to sustainable development by reducing carbon emissions and facilitating the ecological transition, increasing access to affordable housing, enhancing participation in policy making for citizens, and ensuring access to inclusive services for communities. The issue is closely connected to Internet Governance from a local level perspective.
Relevance to Theme: The main objective of this workshop is to highlight the relevance of urban digital transformation work for the benefits of all, driving sustainability, inclusivity and prosperity and the realization of human rights in cities and human settlements. No sustainable future can be built in a vacuum, it needs to be connected to the local.
