For the past fifteen years or so, cities have been facing the rise of digital technology. This issue has been put on the agenda not only by public actors who feel more or less compelled to embrace the modernity of the "smart city," but also by a wide variety of actors outside the traditional urban field, who see economic opportunities in it. The thesis is based on a survey conducted in the cities of Nice, Rennes, and Montpellier. It examines the effects of digital technology on the dynamics of collective action and on the links between policies
and politics
. A detailed analysis of how local authorities are adopting digital technology shows that the emphasis on communication often outweighs concrete achievements, but that the digital shift is nonetheless causing significant destabilization, disrupting practices and, above all, raising new questions about the very foundations of their actions. The study then shows that behind the highly standardized rhetoric, different paths and emphases are emerging in the three territories, while at the same time the contours of a specifically French trajectory for metropolitan areas in their relationship to digital technology are becoming apparent. Finally, the thesis highlights the affirmation of the platform as a figurehead in the digital world, whether in the practices, discourses, or imaginations of the actors involved. At the same time, it reveals that it is precipitating a break with the model of the networked city that has dominated our imaginations for 150 years, and the thesis explores the political consequences of this.
Thesis defense on Friday, December 18, 2020
, University Professor, University of Grenoble Alpes (rapporteur)
Patrick Le Galès, Director of Research at the CNRS, Professor at Sciences Po Paris (rapporteur)
Cécile Maisonneuve, President of La Fabrique de la Cité
Antoine Picon, Director of Research, École Nationale des Ponts ParisTech (Thesis Director)
Antoinette Rouvroy, Qualified Researcher at the National Fund for Scientific Research in the Faculty of Law, University of Namur, Belgium