Szabolcs Fabula

Abstract

Smart cities have spawned a global discourse, which is, however, dominated by notions and theories originating from major metropolis regions in the Global North/West, as well as by quantitative approaches. Drawing on case studies from Hungary, this paper aims to reveal how place-specific factors influence smart-city development and to discover the characteristics of this development in the Hungarian context. For this purpose, qualitative research methods, namely a content analysis of policy documents and semi-structured expert interviews,were used. Based on the results, we distinguished four development paths: representative, stalled, organizational model, and focused smart city. Findings broaden the general understanding of smart-city development, providing policy recommendations for the future adaptation of the concept.

Keywords: smart city, Hungary, case study, global-local context, medium-sized cities

Ádám Szalai Szalai [szalaiad@sol.cc.u-szeged.hu], Economic and Social Geography Department University of Szeged Egyetem u. 2, 6722 Szeged: Hungary
Szabolcs Fabula [fabula.szabolcs@geo.u-szeged.hu], Economic and Social Geography Department University of Szeged Egyetem u. 2, 6722 Szeged: Hungary