| dc.description.abstract | The ‘smart city’ concept has developed throughout the last two decades as a contemporary solution to rising global issues and as a continuously advancing blueprint for a better future. A ‘smart city’ is set to deal with growing issues such as increasing urbanization, centralization, and urban infrastructural challenges in an era of a rising climate crisis. The term ‘smart city’ thus proposes green and sustainable solutions, reduced energy consumption, economic efficiency, enhanced mobilization, and improved technological infrastructures for a more efficient and easy life for the modern, smart citizen. This literature-based analysis explores the relationship between smart and sustainable in a critical account. Based on data from secondary sources, this thesis illustrates the ways in which Milan is transitioning into a smart city. This process is discussed as a double-bind, a contradiction between economic growth and environmental sustainability. By taking a step back and looking at the world as an accelerated and globalized space, this thesis investigates the effects of urban regeneration. The concept of the ‘smart city’ is constructed and exists alongside processes of neoliberal policies within a technocratic landscape. Looking at the effects of these processes, this thesis investigates the meaning of ‘liveability’ and ‘quality of life’ within the smart city of Milan. | eng |