Guma, P.K. orcid.org/0000-0001-8511-5664 and Wiig, A. orcid.org/0000-0002-6224-2633 (2022) Smartness beyond the network: water ATMs and disruptions from below in Mathare valley, Nairobi. Journal of Urban Technology, 29 (4). pp. 41-61. ISSN 1063-0732
Abstract
This article critiques decontextualized notions of smart urbanism by examining the variegated and spontaneous infrastructural configurations stemming from the deployment of a digital project in an informal urban setting. We offer an empirical examination of the rollout of water ATMs in Mathare Valley, Nairobi, to highlight three types of “smartness beyond the network”: first, where water ATMs evidence a smart digital infrastructure that transcends the networked urban water supply; second, where residents, in their adoption and use of water ATMs, unsettle their original operation, in the process driving them further away from their original design through disruptions from below; and third, where persistent manifestations of pre-existing mechanisms exist that are non-state and non-networked and sometimes integrate indicating digital technologies heterogeneous articulations and smartness from below. In sum, we argue for unpacking Southern and alternative visions for smart digital infrastructure, considering that smartness, within diverse urban settings, is informed not just by hegemonic and aspirational articulations of city making, but also by dwellers’ context-specific and nonlinear processes of place making.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2022 The Society of Urban Technology. |
Keywords: | infrastructure; smart urbanism; automation; heterogeneity; Southern urbanism |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Research Institutes Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 24 Nov 2023 14:46 |
Last Modified: | 24 Nov 2023 14:46 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Informa UK Limited |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/10630732.2022.2037180 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:205854 |