Gendering the Smart Cities:: Addressing gender inequalities in urban spaces

Abstract

This article aims to advance the debate on gender and smart cities. Smart cities, with technology as a basic component in urban management, are initiatives seen as a path towards sustainability and inclusiveness. Discussed by academics and practitioners to promote better living in urban spaces, gender issues have been neglected when studying and designing smart cities. Gender (in)equalities affect women's and men's lives in many ways, which include the different experiences and unequal situations in cities. By failing to address gender issues, urban spaces can potentially exacerbate inequalities. Additionally, disregarding gender issues through gender-blind policies does not make cities neutral but rather gendered only for a universal Subject. Based on a systematic and integrative literature review, we sought to answer the research question: Why gender shoud be considered when studying and designing smart cities? In addition to addressing the question, the intersectionality approach is presented as a means to promote gendered smart cities.