The premise for this research project is that citizens that is, the end-users of municipal services and infrastructure possess – knowledge and capabilities that are key to achieving significant leaps toward smart and sustainable urban development. However, the participation of citizens in relevant decision-making processes is currently severely limited by a number of barrier factors, including lack of suitable processes and tools for participation, lack of knowledge on sustainable development, and lack of awareness of participation opportunities.
To address this shortcoming, this current multidisciplinary research project investigates barriers to, and opportunities for, citizen participation in Nordic municipalities. Our project develops scalable, citizen group-specific and easy-to-adopt methods that promote citizen participation in smart and sustainable urban development in the Nordic context.
The research program is part of the research program “Sustainable Urban Development and Smart Cities” funded by NordForsk. You can read more about the research program here.