Digital Inclusion and Social Cohesion in Smart Cities
Overcoming Barriers in the Digital Age
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59490/dgo.2025.987Keywords:
Social Cohesion, Digital Inclusion Barriers, Smart Cities, Digital Divide, Social exlusionAbstract
In the era of smart cities and digital transformation, ensuring digital inclusion has become a critical factor in fostering social cohesion and equitable urban development. While digital technology brings unprecedented opportunities for development, education, and civic engagement, barriers such as limited infrastructure, financial constraints, digital literacy gaps, and social exclusion continue to hinder full digital inclusion. This article explores the complex challenges of the digital divide and its impact on marginalized groups, including older adults, low-income households, migrants, and rural communities. Through a critical review of literature and policy analysis, this study examines key obstacles to digital inclusion in smart cities and evaluates the European Union’s response to these challenges through policy interventions, broadband expansion, digital skills programs, accessibility standards, and affordability measures. Additionally, the paper highlights strategies to enhance digital participation, such as citizen engagement, inclusive urban planning, and public-private partnerships. Through the analysis of EU initiatives and emerging policy approaches, this research contributes to the discourse on digital equity and provides insights into building smart, sustainable, and inclusive urban environments. The findings emphasize the need for integrated, cross-sectoral strategies to bridge the digital divide, ensuring that all citizens can access and benefit from the digital economy and society.
Downloads
References
A. Petrosyan, Ed. (2024, November 5). Worldwide internet user penetration from 2014 to October 2024 [Review of Worldwide internet user penetration from 2014 to October 2024]. Statista. [link]
Correa, T., & Pavez, I. (2016). Digital inclusion in rural areas: A qualitative exploration of challenges faced by people from isolated communities. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 21(3), 247-263.
Damodaran, L., Gilbertson, T., Olphert, W., Sandhu, J., & Craig, M. (2015). Digital inclusion-the vision, the challenges and the way forward. International Journal on Advances in Internet Technology, 8(3/4), 78-92.
DeHart, J. (2022). Understanding equity and diversity in smart city infrastructures: Chicago, IL, USA. XRDS: Crossroads, The ACM Magazine for Students, 28(3), 60-61.
Dezuanni, M., Marshall, A., Cross, A., Burgess, J., & Mitchell, P. (2019). Digital mentoring in Australian communities - A report prepared for Australia Post. [link]
European Commission. (2021). 2030 Digital Compass: The European way for the Digital Decade. [link]
Ferri, D., & Favalli, S. (2018). Web accessibility for people with disabilities in the European Union: Paving the road to social inclusion. Societies, 8(2), 40.
Ginters, E. (2022). Cutting-edge technologies sustainability assessment towards EC Digital Decade 2030 Compass objectives. WSEAS Transactions on Systems and Control, 17, 153-158.
Helsper, E. (2008). Digital inclusion: An analysis of social disadvantage and the information society. Department for Communities and Local Government.
Colding, J., Nilsson, C., & Sjöberg, S. (2024). Smart Cities for All? Bridging Digital Divides for Socially Sustainable and Inclusive Cities. Smart Cities, 7(3), 1044-1059. https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities7030044
Itoh, N., & Sagawa, K. (2019). Accessibility and Standards in Japan—Historical Overview and the Future —. In Proceedings of the 20th Congress of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA 2018) Volume VII: Ergonomics in Design, Design for All, Activity Theories for Work Analysis and Design, Affective Design 20 (pp. 1498-1505). Springer International Publishing.
Kaššaj, M., & Peráček, T. (2024). Sustainable connectivity—integration of mobile roaming, WiFi4EU and smart city concept in the European union. Sustainability, 16(2), 788.
Kolotouchkina, O., Ripoll González, L., & Belabas, W. (2024). Smart Cities, Digital Inequalities, and the Challenge of Inclusion. Smart Cities, 7(6), 3355-3370. https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities7060130
Mervyn, K., Simon, A., & Allen, D. K. (2014). Digital inclusion and social inclusion: A tale of two cities. Information, Communication & Society, 17(9), 1086-1104. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2014.889148
Nunez, I. J. (2022). Essays on the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (Doctoral dissertation). [link]
Kolotouchkina, O., Llorente Barroso, C., & Manfredi Sánchez, J. L. (2022). Smart cities, the digital divide, and people with disabilities. Cities, 123, 103613. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2022.103613
Signorelli, S., Torrecillas Jodar, J., Papazoglou, M., & López Cobo, M. (2024). Mapping EU level funding instruments 2021-2027 to Digital Decade targets.
Smith, A., & Adams, N. (2022). MIT D-Lab: designing for a more equitable world. In Handbook of Innovation & Appropriate Technologies for International Development (pp. 7-21). Edward Elgar Publishing.
Karelis, C., Lachana, Z., Kontos, G., & Charalabidis, Y. (2024, October). A Comprehensive Review of Citizen Science Projects for behavioral change towards Sustainable Urban Environments. In Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (pp. 309-317).
Smith, R. M., Pathak, P. A., & Agrawal, G. (2019). India’s “smart” cities mission: A preliminary examination into India’s newest urban development policy. Journal of Urban Affairs, 41(4), 518-534.
Taylor, D., & Packham, G. (2016). Social inclusion through ICT: Identifying and overcoming barriers to ICT use. Strategic Change, 25(1), 45-60.
Tomczyk, Ł., Mascia, M. L., Gierszewski, D., & Walker, C. (2023). Barriers to digital inclusion among older people : a intergenerational reflection on the need to develop digital competences for the group with the highest level of digital exclusion. Innoeduca, 9(1), 5–26. https://doi.org/10.24310/innoeduca.2023.v9i1.16433
Virkkunen, H. (2024, April 5). Better digital skills for a better Europe. The Parliament Magazine. [link]
Gorelova, I., Lachana, Z., Loutsaris, M. A., Bellini, F., Charalabidis, Y., & D'Ascenzo, F. (2023). The e-government initiatives in the smart cities. Insights from the European Commission’s Intelligent Cities Challenge.
Zhang, L., Zhang, C., Dang, S., & Shihada, B. (2022). Lessons From the Commercial Failure of Project Loon for 6G Research Roadmap Design. Frontiers in Communications and Networks, 3, 867581.
Zhao, P., Yen, Y., Bailey, E., & Sohail, M. T. (2019). Analysis of urban drivable and walkable street networks of the ASEAN Smart Cities Network. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, 8(10), 459.
International Telecommunication Union. (2023). Global ICT developments. Retrieved from [link]
Statista. (2024). Internet usage worldwide - Statistics & Facts. Retrieved from [link]
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2021). Bridging the Digital Divide: Skills for the Digital Economy. Paris: OECD Publishing.
European Commission. (2023). Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) 2023. Retrieved from [link]
Sanders, R. (2020). Digital inclusion, exclusion and participation. Glasgow: Iriss.
Damodaran, L., Sandhu, J., & De Angeli, A. (2015). Digital inclusion: The role of user-centered design. International Journal of Digital Society, 6(2), 102-112.
El País. (2024, January 31). Más del 40% de los europeos carece de habilidades digitales para gestiones online. El País. Retrieved from [link]
International Social Security Association (ISSA). (2023). Leaving no one behind: Experiences in digital inclusion in Europe. Retrieved from [link]
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2020). OECD Digital Economy Outlook 2020. Paris: OECD Publishing. Retrieved from [link]
Sanders, R. (2020). Digital inclusion and accessibility: A European perspective. European Journal of Digital Policy, 12(1), 45-60.
World Bank. (2016). World Development Report 2016: Digital dividends. Washington, DC: World Bank Group. Retrieved from [link]
IEEE CTU. (2023). Barriers to digital inclusion: The role of infrastructure and affordability. IEEE Technical Blog. Retrieved from [link]
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Conference Proceedings Volume
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Christos Karelis, Zoi Lachana, Irina Gorelova, Charalampos Alexopoulos, Nikoleta Lavdaria, Francesco Bellini, Yannis Charalabidis
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
