Methodology
This website is the output of the research seminar ‘Smart Stories’ from the Chair of Urbanism and Urban Architecture at TU Eindhoven. Graduate students in collaboration with the faculty, and external parties aimed to explore the relation between people and smart city initiatives in Eindhoven.
This research seminar started with a literature study on various concepts related to Smart City. Critical readings on the concept of Smart City, its definition and challenges, were outlined and discussed. In order to connect theory and the case of Eindhoven, the group focused on the ideas of societal relevance and role of Smart City initiatives. The case study builds on the awareness of, and participation in, Smart City initiatives among residents in two neighbourhoods of Eindhoven.
This case study focusses on two adjoining neighbourhoods of Woenselse Heide and Temple in the North of Eindhoven. The neighbourhoods can be identified as being under transition both in terms of its demographics and physical structure. Data available from the Buurtmonitor (http://eindhoven.buurtmonitor.nl/) and from the municipality (http://www.eindhoven.nl) on the neighbourhoods was used as a first quantitative introduction to the neighbourhoods (area, population, ethnicity, health, safety, experience index). By means of qualitative methods including observations and interviews, a further understanding of the neighbourhoods was achieved. A total of sixty two narrative interviews were analyzed, with respondents being elderly residents (age group 55+), youth (age group 14-20 years), and other community actors in the neighbourhoods (e.g. Buro Cement, the community centers and the housing committee). These interviews were recorded (text, audio, & video) and categorized and conducted by students from TU/e, participants of the Data Studio from the New Institute, and the municipality. The results of the interviews are gathered in an Excel matrix tabulated, compared and analysed. The excel document was then converted into raw data to use with Tableau. From the results of the matrix, observation, conclusions and recommendations were reached. Following this, a quantitative policy analysis of three different policy documents was conducted by means of counting certain words, identifying their context and actions. The documents where: Maakt ‘t Mee, Smart Society, and Samen Maken Wij de Wijk. Through this method, various insights in terms of priorities, terminologies and possible directions of recommendations of future interventions were identified.
The research exercise found that the quantitative information placed one of the two neighbourhoods (Tempel) at the vulnerable end of the spectrum (older demographics, large percentage of residences from housing corporations, mixed demographics), while Woenselse Heide is a more sophisticated neighbourhood as numbers are more on the average. Based on qualitative data, the research found four main lines of thematic findings— connectivity, community, safety, segregation, and role of governance. The theme connectivity is about the interactive network of the neighbourhood, as well as whether people are attached to their neighbourhood. The theme community concerns the contribution and function of the community houses in the neighbourhoods. Safety covers the current issues/problems the neighbourhoods face, and the prevention methods. The theme segregation burdens the social and racial segregation that is experienced in both neighbourhoods. These themes play a role in both neighbourhoods, though some more in one than the other.
The gathered information is put together in this website, creating the “smart story of the neighbourhoods”. This website works as a guide through the neighbourhoods of Woenselse Heide and Tempel and offers insights in the priorities, needs, and challenges these neighbourhoods face. Importantly it shows us disconnects between data on Buurtmonitor and empirical evidence, and directions to move forward in. Connecting people, and their requirements when transitioning towards the “Smart Society” has to be one of the central aims of this exercise, especially if citizens have a role in shaping the smart city.
