Open Innovation and Sustainability: Smart Cities and Local Government

Dear Colleagues,

A smart city, defined as an innovative urban development aiming for sustainable development and high quality of life of its citizens (Lim et al., 2019), has been increasingly linked to the concept of open innovation (Dezi et al., 2018; Javed et al., 2020). This raises questions regarding the relationship between smart cities, sustainable development, and the open innovation paradigm (Tura and Ojanen, 2022). Open innovation impacts on the design of business models by inspiring the dynamic interaction of companies with a wide variety of external stakeholders (Yun et al., 2020), and encourages them to participate in electronic marketplaces (Felin and Zenger, 2014). Specifically, open innovation practices have augmented knowledge flow, accelerated innovation, and increased markets for the external benefit of the results of innovation (Chesbrough, 2003). They have also been argued as key factors for driving the transition to sustainable practices (Jesus and Jugend, 2023).

Consistent with the open innovation paradigm, smart cities are open in terms of the actors and the resources they involve, and they actively promote data sharing. The opening of data banks and infrastructure, together with the notions of sharing and co-creation, facilitates new levels and types of connectivity. In this view, open innovation is a fundamental element of smart cities’ ecosystems and is actively supported by the technological and governance layers (Della Corte et al., 2021). Indeed, local governments play an essential role in the sustainability of innovation, not only in helping to advance business models facilitating collaboration among universities, industries, and society, but also in both helping to create knowledge and stimulate demand, thus promoting new industries (Yun and Liu, 2019), and in improving public services (Paskaleva and Cooper, 2018; Aastvedt and Higdem, 2022).

This Special Issue aims to promote the use of emerging technologies and innovation processes to foster open innovation in business models and public services for achieving sustainability. We welcome the submission of empirical, theoretical, and review articles that are focused on implementing emerging technologies and innovative processes for enhancing open innovation processes to achieve sustainability. Additionally, this Special Issue aims to address all issues concerning the interaction between smart cities and sustainable practices in the design and implementation of innovative public services.

List of topics (non-exhaustive list)
- Enhancing sustainable innovations and stakeholders’ collaboration in smart cities.
- Investigating how the concept of open innovation can promote collaboration in networks that involve companies, governments, and communities on a micro- or macro-level.
- Open innovation and sustainability: knowledge-based smart city development.
- Smart technologies and open data for inclusive and sustainable urban environments.
- Open-innovation-led sustainable urban development.
- Local governments and smart city transition: innovative and sustainable districts.
- Emerging technologies and open innovation for sustainable practices.
- The role of city governments in smart cities for open innovation in public services for sustainable practices.

Main references

1. Aastvedt, A.; Higdem, U. Co-creation, Collaborative Innovation and Open Innovation in the Public Sector: A Perspective on Distinctions and the Convergence of Definitions. Nord.  J. Innov. Public Sect. 2022, 1, 53–68.
2. Chesbrough, H.W. Open innovation: The new imperative for creating and profiting from technology. Harvard Business Press: Boston, MA, USA, 2003.
3. Della Corte, V.; Del Gaudio, G.; Sepe, F.; Luongo, S. Destination resilience and innovation for advanced sustainable tourism management: A bibliometric analysis. Sustainability 2021, 13, 12632.
4. Dezi, L.; Pisano, P.; Pironti, M.; Papa, A. Unpacking open innovation neighborhoods: le milieu of the lean smart city. Manag. Decis. 2018, 56, 1247–1270.
5. Felin, T.; Zenger, T.R. Closed or open innovation? Problem solving and the governance choice. Res.  Policy 2014, 43, 914–925.
6. Javed, A.; Kubler, S.; Malhi, A.; Nurminen, A.; Robert, J.;  Främling, K. BIoTope: building an IoT open innovation ecosystem for smart cities. IEEE Access 2020, 8, 224318–224342.
7. Jesus, G.M.K.; Jugend, D. How can open innovation contribute to circular economy adoption? Insights from a literature review. Eur.  J. Innov. Manag. 2023, 26, 65–98.
8. Lim, Y.; Edelenbos, J.; Gianoli, A. Identifying the results of smart city development: Findings from systematic literature review. Cities 2019, 95, 102397.
9. Paskaleva, K.; Cooper, I. Open innovation and the evaluation of internet-enabled public services in smart cities. Technovation 2018, 78, 4–14.
10. Tura, N.; Ojanen, V. Sustainability-oriented innovations in smart cities: A systematic review and emerging themes. Cities 2022, 126, 103716.
11. Yun, J.J.; Liu, Z. Micro-and macro-dynamics of open innovation with a quadruple-helix model. Sustainability 2019, 11, 3301.
12. Yun, J.J.; Zhao, X.; Wu, J.; Yi, J.C.; Park, K.; Jung, W. Business model, open innovation, and sustainability in car sharing industry—Comparing three economies. Sustainability 2020, 12, 1883.
13. Yun, Y.; Lee, M. Smart city 4.0 from the perspective of open innovation. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2019, 5, 92.
14. Yun, J.J.; Zhao, X.; Jung, K.; Yigitcanlar, T. The culture for open innovation dynamics. Sustainability 2020, 12, 5076.

Prof. Dr. Manuel Pedro Rodríguez Bolívar
Dr. Fabiana Sepe
Guest Editors

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• open innovation
• smart cities
• emerging technologies
• sustainable cities
• innovative public services
• smart initiatives for city sustainability