of this political philosophy and vision in the upcoming years. access, and availability (Open Data Impact, McMurren et al., 2017). New public management reforms have substantially Finally, the case of Copenhagen leads us to reflect on the accelerated the digitalization of the public administration. importance of the population’s readiness (mindset), its This program also arrived in time to face new challenges: expectations (objectives), and the concrete municipal decisions the economic crisis in 2008 and 2009 (OECD), considered to be implemented (vision). Both citizen participation and the as the worst economic downturn since the 1929-1933 Great involvement of residents seem to be high in Copenhagen, as Depression (IMF). After the dramatic impact of the economic can be seen by the fact that residents evaluate and comment crisis, the Basic Data Program focused on job creation and on policies on, for example, energy savings, apps, rebuilding, innovation to help the country recover. More time is needed to and smart city solutions, via an engagement portal. assess if the most recent update of the Open Data Program will have helped Denmark to overcome the COVID-19 crisis. A democratic process appears to be operating, and it seems to be following a “natural” process, even if the municipal team has A first estimation would expect benefits of around thirty-five not really focused so much on citizen participation. This process million euros from 2020 owing to a decrease in administrative is arguably an automatic part of Danish political culture, which costs. Besides, the private sector expects a return of sixty- emphasizes high-level responsibility and strong involvement seven million euros by promoting digital services, facilitating on both sides. administrative processes, and reducing costs (Open Data Impact, McMurren et al., 2017). Lastly, the Open Data Program 7. Data management is expected to bring benefits to citizens through more integrated public services. Denmark is a high-income constitutional monarchy in Northern Europe. In 2018, the Human Development Index (HDI) indicated 7.2 Copenhagen connecting that Denmark’s score, 0.930 (out of 1), is above the average of countries in the OECD (Human Development Report (HDR) In 2014, Copenhagen won the World Smart Cities Award in 2019, United Nations Development Program (UNDP)). The Barcelona for its Copenhagen Connecting plan, which aims to OECD countries that came close to Denmark HDI’s score are make the city greener and smarter and brings together citizens, the Netherlands and Sweden. businesses, government, and research organizations (Smart City Expo World congress Website, 2020).12 7.1 The danish basic data program The Copenhagen Solutions Lab, a government-backed venture, In 2016, a team of scholars assessed Denmark’s open-data aims to coordinate and implement all projects related to big policy and its digitalization of government services. Their work data. So far, the biggest project that has been managed by evaluates three features: available address data set, potential the lab is Copenhagen Connecting. (Copenhagen Solution consolidating, and freeing-up address data. Based on the Lab Website, 2020). This project aims to build data-collecting benefits of Danish address data, the egovernment strategy from infrastructure and aggregate data on an open platform that 2011-2015 extended its program by focusing on a principle: “Good would benefit the city by providing information that can be used Basic Data for All,” better known as the “Basic Data Program” to generate solutions that meet the needs of the city and its (Open Data Impact, McMurren, Verhulst and Young, 2016). inhabitants. Copenhagen Connecting collects real-time data from Wi-Fi hotspots installed all around the city to track the Some other scholars identified some benefits in their “Pricing movements and activities of cell phones, bikes, buses, and of Public Sector Information Study.” They wrote that “by vehicles. reducing charges to zero, it increases data reuse by 1,000 to 10,000%, attracted new users such as SMEs, increasing in the The data collected can be analyzed to monitor, for example, how same time economic activity, market dynamism, innovation, pedestrians, cars, and bikes move through the city, allowing employment and efficiency” (de Vries et al., 2011). Free access researchers to create an intelligent traffic management system to basic data amplifies use and diffusion of that data. to optimize traffic flow, limit congestion, and ultimately minimize CO emissions (Copenhagen Solution Lab Website, 2020).2 One aim of the Danish Basic Data Program was to enhance and improve public sector efficiency through data quality, equal The data can also be used to incentivize green transportation. For (12) https://www.copcap.com/news/copenhagen-is-the-worlds-smartest-city 134 Quélin and Smadja | HEC PARIS | SMART CITIES | The sustainable program of six leading cities | 2021