?DIGITAL MEDIA AND WELL BEING IN CITIES: CURRENT TRENDS?

SUSANA FINQUELIEVICH

Beer Sheva

Conferencia; ?Well Being in Digital media?; 2015

Ben Gurion University

The concept of well-being in cities is attracting increasing attention in the context of urban development policies. However, the notion of urban well-being using digital media is still vague. It often tends to be confused with the concept of ?smart cities?. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) as enablers of e-services have the capacity to allow processes of urban transformation, by helping cities become ?smarter? and more ?sustainable?. In what degree do smart cities contribute to the well-being of citizens? By reviewing current trends in urban well-being policies the paper questions the concept of urban quality of life as limited to improved infrastructure and public equipment. It refers urban well-being also to intangible collective capital, such as the preservation and transmission of cultural heritage, collective memory, political participation; social equity, and inclusion for minorities and vulnerable social groups, which in the long run contribute to increasing the wellbeing of urban inhabitants. Finally, it proposes the use of ICTs to enable cities to provision and offer innovative citizen services to enhance their quality of life.