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"Together, they highlight five "technologies that matter" for cities in 2020: mobile broadband; smart personal devices, whether they're dirt-cheap phones or tablets; government-sponsored cloud computing (modeled on the U.K.'s national "G-cloud" initiative); open-source public databases to promote grassroots innovation, and "public interfaces." Instead of Internet cafés, imagine an outdoor LED screen and hacked Kinect box allowing literally anyone to access the Net using only gestures."

Who will own the brains of smart cities--citizens or corporations? At stake is an impending massive trove of data, not to mention issues of privacy, services, and inclusion. The battle may be fought in the streets between bands of Jane Jacobs-inspired hacktivists pushing for self-serve governance and a latter-day Robert Moses carving out monopolies for IBM or Cisco instead of the Triborough Bridge Authority. Without a delicate balance between the scale of big companies and the DIY spirit of "gov 2.0" champions, the urban poor could be the biggest losers. Achieving that balance falls to smarter cities' mayors, who must keep the tech heavyweights in check and "frame an agenda of openness, transparency and inclusivness."

"San Francisco earned the recognition of being the greenest among 26 other major cities examined by the United States and Canada Green City Index, a study commissioned by Siemens Corporation. The city bagged the greenest city title by scoring high points from its sustainability strategies in air quality, buildings and transportation as well as topping the waste category."

Great article on participatory budgeting and gov 2.0 from my good friend Darren Sharp.... "The Gov 2.0 network Gov Loop and Personal Democracy Forum recently launched a special series on 'Designing Digital Cities' that explores ideas for how to meet the demands of 21st century citizens in an era where doing more with less has become a priority. GovLoop founder Steve Ressler kicked things off in a blog post asking what ingredients go into a true digital city in 2011 in the context of emerging tools, technology, processes and assets."

" More than half the people on Earth now live in cities, so they'll be where we have to face our changing weather patterns. The most prepared cities are finding ways to keep citizens safe--and make them money. "

When it comes to changing the way we use energy, cities are at the centre of the action, says Manish Bapna, managing director of the World Resources Institute.who reports here on the recent meeting of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group.