To grasp the geopolitical dimension of the digital turn, one must understand that its scope is first and foremost anthropological. The world of logos (grounded in causality, hierarchy, and symbolic law) is being supplanted by “arithmos” (correlations, probabilities, and automated adjustments), which feeds the digital “supersocial,” our new authority. This underpins the new geopolitical landscape. Cyberspace becomes the fifth domain of warfare, and AI automates the observe-decide-strike cycle. Europe truly masters only the regulation of the digital, thereby becoming a vassal of the new Sino-American duopoly. The article sketches a scenario of soft totalitarianism, whose military extensions invite us to rethink geography.
The accelerated digital transition has been accompanied by a rapid growth in waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), the management of which has become a central issue in the transition toward a circular economy. Among these waste streams, mobile phones occupy a distinctive position due to their high material intensity, the presence of critical raw materials, and the concentration of environmental impacts in the extraction and manufacturing phases. This article examines the organization of WEEE management in the Republic of Belarus through the case of mobile phones, situating the analysis within a European perspective. Located at the margins of the European Union’s regulatory framework, Belarus exhibits a hybrid model of extended producer responsibility (EPR), inspired by European standards but strongly constrained by institutional, geopolitical, and socio-economic factors specific to the post-Soviet space. The central hypothesis is that the observed gap between Belarusian performance and European standards in terms of collection and recycling is not solely the result of technical or economic limitations, but rather reflects the combined effects of geopolitical constraints, specific institutional arrangements, and social practices that limit the effectiveness of so-called “urban mines”. The methodology is based on a mixed-methods approach combining an analysis of national and European regulatory frameworks, the exploitation of statistical data, and the examination of consumer behavior surveys. The article highlights the structural and behavioral barriers that hinder the transition toward a circular economy in the WEEE sector in Belarus, while also offering comparative insights relevant to other countries located at the margins of the European regulatory space.
The article examines the reconfiguration of land policies within Toulouse Métropole in light of national injunctions relating to the fight against soil artificialisation, as introduced by the Climate and Resilience Law. Faced with the limitations of traditional planning tools, Toulouse Métropole has developed a ‘land strategy’ based on a hierarchy of land resources, supported by digital and algorithmic tools and hybrid geographic data sources, in an approach marked by digital solutionism. The combination of internal expertise—notably that produced by the Toulouse Urban Planning Agency (AUAT)—and practices inspired by experiences outside the territory has enabled the production of territorial indicators and maps of mutable and available land, which are used as tools to aid public decision-making. Based on a qualitative survey conducted between 2019 and 2023 among local public and private actors, the study shows that this organisational change in land strategy aims to strengthen metropolitan coordination capacities in the face of the weakening of the public planning sector, by disseminating the analysis methods developed by the AUAT to member municipalities. This reorganisation is therefore contributing to the territorialisation of the metropolitan institution, based on a technical and administrative land management model initially developed by the central municipalities for their own use.
The territorialisation of climate action is embodied in the Territorial Climate-Air-Energy Plans (PCAETs), which are developed and piloted by local authorities. An increasing amount of data is being made available to support them in this endeavour. Local authorities are experimenting with using this data to produce new, more recent, frequent or detailed indicators. This may seem surprising given that many indicator systems are already available to them. Here, we report on the needs identified during five years of experimentation by a research consortium based in the Dijon metropolitan area. According to our analysis, the demand for new indicators stems from the exploration of novel PCAET governance models. This explains the search for indicators within the scope of the plan's actions, at the territorial or thematic level supported by stakeholders, and the requirement for monthly data to foster a shared vision with local stakeholders.
L’article examine la reconfiguration des politiques foncières au sein de Toulouse Métropole à l’aune des injonctions nationales relatives à la lutte contre l’artificialisation des sols, telles qu’introduites par la loi Climat et Résilience. Confrontée aux limites des instruments classiques de l’aménagement, l’intercommunalité de Toulouse Métropole a élaboré, dans une démarche empreinte de solutionnisme numérique, une « stratégie foncière » reposant sur une hiérarchisation des ressources foncières, soutenue par des outils numériques et algorithmiques ainsi que par des sources de données géographiques hybrides. L’articulation d’expertises internes, notamment celles produites par l’Agence d’urbanisme de l’agglomération toulousaine (AUAT), et de pratiques inspirées d’expériences extérieures au territoire permet la production d’indicateurs territoriaux et de cartographies du foncier mutable et disponible, mobilisées comme instruments d’aide à la décision publique. Fondée sur une enquête qualitative menée entre 2019 et 2023 auprès d’acteurs publics locaux et privés, l’étude montre que cette évolution organisationnelle de la stratégie foncière vise à renforcer les capacités de coordination métropolitaine face à l’affaiblissement de la filière de l’aménagement public, en diffusant auprès des communes membres les méthodes d’analyse développées par l’AUAT. Ainsi, cette réorganisation participe à la territorialisation de l’institution métropolitaine à partir un mode de gestion technico-administratif du foncier initialement élaboré par les communes centrales pour elles-mêmes.
Cet article présente le retour d’expérience d’une collectivité française engagée dans la collecte et la valorisation de données territoriales pour le pilotage de son PCAET. Le projet mobilise une diversité de sources (données ouvertes, réseaux de capteurs, opérateurs d’énergie) et révèle les tensions entre ambition d’ouverture, contraintes réglementaires et réalités organisationnelles. L’analyse identifie trois leviers principaux d’accès à la donnée : l’ouverture des données publiques, l’encadrement réglementaire et la relation partenariale. Ces leviers permettent de surmonter de nombreux freins techniques, juridiques et organisationnels. Au-delà du retour d’expérience empirique, l’étude illustre la maturité de la gouvernance publique des données : elle montre que les obstacles rencontrés ne traduisent pas un manque de maturité des collectivités, mais une immaturité du cadre national d’accès et de partage des données, encore marqué par un flou normatif et institutionnel. Par ailleurs, l’expérimentation démontre que la maturation de ce système peut naître de la fabrique locale de coopérations entre acteurs producteurs et utilisateurs de données. Cette double lecture éclaire les conditions d’une gouvernance des données plus opérationnelle et réflexive au service de la transition énergétique territoriale.
La territorialisation de l’action climatique s’incarne dans les Plans Climat-Air-Énergie Territoriaux (PCAET) élaborés et pilotés par les collectivités. Un nombre croissant de données sont d’ailleurs mises à leur disposition pour les aider dans cette mission. Les collectivités expérimentent la valorisation de ces données pour produire de nouveaux indicateurs plus récents, fréquents ou détaillés. On peut s’étonner de la création de nouveaux indicateurs, alors que de nombreux systèmes d’indicateurs leur sont déjà disponibles. Nous rapportons ici les besoins identifiés pendant cinq ans d’expérimentation par un consortium de recherche rassemblé autour de la métropole de Dijon. D’après notre analyse, les besoins en nouveaux indicateurs s’inscrivent dans l’exploration de nouvelles formes de gouvernance du PCAET, qui expliquent la recherche d’indicateurs au périmètre des actions portées dans le plan, à l’échelle des territoires ou thèmes portés par des interlocuteurs, dans le besoin de données mensuelles pour construire une vision commune avec les acteurs du territoire.
Se sédimentant avec l’imaginaire propre aux smart cities, un récit se déploie et présente les stratégies territoriales des données comme un “point de passage obligé” de l’action publique territoriale. Cet article se saisit des stratégies territoriales des données en train de se faire, à Dijon Métropole et Angers Loire Métropole, pour questionner ce qu’elles produisent du point de vue de l’institution intercommunale. L’article se focalise sur les processus de structuration de la donnée. Inhérents aux stratégies métropolitaines des données, ils contribuent à déstabiliser et transformer les modes de gouvernance des intercommunalités : centralisation des ressources et compétences ; transfert des capacités d’analyse voire de décision. Les relations entre différents échelons – communes, directions intercommunales - s’en trouvent modifiées, au profit de l’intercommunalité et des directions disposant des ressources pour se saisir de l’opportunité.
À la fin des années 2000, le modèle de la smart city s’impose comme une référence pour les urbanistes, notamment en Asie orientale, où se développent des mégaprojets tels que Songdo en Corée du Sud. Cet article, basé sur une enquête ethnographique menée entre 2018 et 2024, explore les raisons de l’emménagement des habitants dans la nouvelle ville de Songdo. Loin d’un attrait spécifique pour son statut de smart city, le choix de ces habitants repose sur des facteurs classiques de mobilité résidentielle, tels que les opportunités professionnelles ou de scolarisation. Les observations et entretiens révèlent par ailleurs que les technologies smart en fonctionnement, comme les conteneurs de tri sélectif ou les dispositifs de domotique, restent souvent invisibles ou inutilisées au quotidien. Toutefois, ces technologies sont aussi détournées, voire reprogrammées par des habitants « experts », exposant des pratiques d’appropriation qui s’éloignent des intentions initiales des concepteurs.
À l’instar de nombreux pays du Nord, le Maroc s’est engagé depuis plusieurs années dans l’ère du numérique. Il a lancé divers programmes pour exploiter les avantages offerts par la ville intelligente. L’objectif est clair : utiliser les technologies de l’information et de la communication pour mieux gérer, contrôler et valoriser l’image de ses grandes agglomérations.C’est dans cette dynamique qu’a été initiée, dès 2006, la création d’une ville nouvelle, pensée comme laboratoire des standards internationaux en matière de durabilité et de Smart City. Baptisée Éco-cité Zenata, cette ville bénéficie d’un financement en grande partie assuré par des bailleurs de fonds et a été conçue avec l’appui d’une expertise internationale reconnue dans le domaine. Zenata se distingue par la mise en place de dispositifs numériques innovants, tant pour la gestion des services urbains que pour l’organisation des déplacements et des infrastructures de transport. Ce projet-phare est ainsi présenté comme une opération « modèle » au Maroc. Cependant, sa réalisation sur un terrain stratégique à proximité de Casablanca — auparavant occupé par des bidonvilles — a rapidement soulevé des enjeux sociaux et économiques liés au relogement de populations défavorisées.Tout en exposant les outils numériques et technologiques déployés dans cette première "ville intelligente" du pays, la contribution interroge les effets socio-spatiaux engendrés par ces transformations. Elle s’attarde notamment sur l’usage des réseaux sociaux et des outils numériques par les anciens habitants des bidonvilles. Ces derniers s’en sont saisis comme de véritables arènes de contestation et de revendication citoyenne. À partir d’un corpus d’entretiens réalisés avec les concepteurs, les gestionnaires et les habitants de la Smart City, enrichi par une analyse des contenus partagés sur les réseaux sociaux, cette contribution met en lumière le rôle du numérique comme levier d’émancipation. Les associations locales et les populations concernées s’en servent pour faire valoir leurs droits et contester les dynamiques d’exclusion induites par le projet.
This paper explores the early emergence and evolution of a key geoinformation actor in the Geneva region. It traces the transformation of the Système d’Information du Territoire Genevois (SITG) – initiated by a group of GIS enthusiasts – into a central actor in spatial data governance at the regional scale. Through a longitudinal analysis of institutional documents, the paper shows how SITG gradually accumulated institutional authority, emerging from bottom-up, technically driven collaborations rather than from a formal political roadmap. Over time, its influence expanded beyond cantonal borders, contributing to the shaping of the Greater Geneva agglomeration as a coherent territorial entity. This story shows how actors and data infrastructures do not simply support territorial governance; they actively constitute it. This empirical study contributes to debates in digital geography, spatial data governance, and territorial planning by foregrounding the socio-technical labour behind geodata actors and infrastructures. It argues that understanding how digital tools shape territorial governance requires close attention to the institutional pathways, informal practices, and embedded power relations that underpin their development. Rather than viewing spatial data systems as neutral supports for decision-making, the paper highlights their active role in constructing the informational and operational foundations of territorial governance. The case of SITG invites broader reflection on how digital infrastructures emerge, consolidate authority, and influence regional vison – particularly in complex, multilevel, and cross-border contexts. In doing so, the paper offers a grounded analysis of the quiet but consequential ways that spatial data infrastructures shape the practices, and institutions of contemporary territorial governance.
This article presents the experience of a French local authority engaged in collecting and leveraging territorial data to support the monitoring and management of its Climate, Air and Energy Plan (PCAET). The project draws on a diverse set of sources—open data, sensor networks, and energy operators—and highlights the tensions between openness ambitions, regulatory constraints, and organisational realities. The analysis identifies three main levers for accessing data: public data openness, regulatory frameworks, and partnership-based relations. These levers help overcome numerous technical, legal, and organisational barriers. Beyond the empirical case, the study sheds light on the maturity of public data governance: it shows that the obstacles encountered do not reflect a lack of capacity on the part of local authorities, but rather the immaturity of the national framework for data access and sharing, still characterised by legal and institutional ambiguity. Moreover, the experiment demonstrates that institutional maturation can emerge from locally crafted forms of cooperation between data producers and users. This dual perspective helps clarify the conditions under which data governance can become more operational and reflexive in support of the territorial energy transition.
The sovereignty challenges of public data in the face of the private sector lead local authorities to implement data management strategies. The study is based on a comparative analysis of the digital strategies of four urban local authorities between France and Belgium. These two countries are characterized by two distinct territorial organization models: a unitary system and a federal system. The results reveal an awareness of sovereignty issues by the actors who develop strategies to address them. In Belgium, the Walloon region benefits from a great capacity for action visible through several regional initiatives, while in France, the Grand Est region has limited autonomy. The comparative analysis highlights a different distribution of management, regulatory, and facilitator roles among the territorial levels of each country, which raises the question of the relevant scope for the management of public data, supported by a European legal framework. Finally, the cross-border context of the study raises the question of sharing cross-border public data. This constitutes a major challenge whose lack of response is likely to be exploited by large digital companies.
This article focuses on the implementation of the REEN Act by the actors within the IT Department of the City of Paris. Based on an ethnographic study within the IT Department, it discusses the appropriation of this Act, highlighting the strategies that the actors employ to overcome a paradoxical injunction: to deploy more digital with less digital. Firstly, these actors appropriate the terminology to delineate their scope of action and distribute responsibilities. Secondly, they attempt to mitigate the environmental impact of the administration's digital technology through various actions. Two of these actions are mentioned here: the implementation of the material doctrine and the awareness-raising of agents. Finally, while the implementation of the Sustainable IT strategy generates new constraints and tensions for the actors, they continue to negotiate with the Act in order to fulfil their core mission: deploying digital tools.
As research on cities and digital technology gains prominence in urban studies, this position critically reassesses the common emphasis on the extraordinary nature of futuristic projects often associated with digital technology in urban imaginaries. Rather than viewing the city merely as a construct governed by algorithms and reduced to technical objects – such as sensors, mobile applications, or platforms its innovations, and its emblematic projects which are often short-lived or unfinished, this article encourages an exploration of how digital technology is negotiated, interpreted, and integrated into everyday life. This includes not only professional and institutional practices but also the daily urban practices of citizens. By focusing on the ordinary urban fabric, we can examine how digital technologies are transforming relationships among institutions, businesses, and residents in city production, as well as how these changes are inscribed within broader urban and territorial dynamics. This perspective also invites attention to the agency of the diverse actors engaged in urban production, acknowledging that their relationship with technology is never overdetermined.
Based on long-term ethnographic and “chatnographic” fieldwork (2015-2024), this article examines the ordinary uses of digital technologies in urban risk management in San José, Costa Rica, focusing on residents’ communication practices via WhatsApp and Facebook around flooding of the Ocloro River. It analyzes how inhabitants mobilize mainstream digital tools to organize collectively in the face of environmental risks and to redefine their relationship with territory and public institutions. Our paper combines interviews, participant observation, and qualitative and quantitative analysis of 4,479 messages exchanged in a WhatsApp group created and managed by residents. The results highlight three main dynamics: (1) the infrapolitical self-organization of residents during emergencies; (2) the accountability—and at times contestation—of public authorities, made possible through the circulation of images, data, and digital traces; and (3) the gradual politicization of environmental issues, leading to collective mobilization for the protection of the river basin, beyond the immediate concern of flooding.The study thus reveals a process of digital placemaking, in which social media become instruments for producing knowledge and governing territory “from below.” WhatsApp and Facebook—everyday, mainstream applications—are used for the production, archiving, and mobilization of lay knowledge in legal and political action. In the Latin American context, these ordinary digital practices contribute to reconfiguring urban governance and transforming citizen participation into a locally grounded form of environmental action.
Like many countries in the Global North, Morocco has embraced the digital age in recent years, launching a range of programs aimed at harnessing the benefits of the smart city. Through the growing use of information and communication technologies, the goal is to enhance the management, oversight, and public image of its major urban centers.In this context, a new city was launched in 2006 as a testing ground for international standards in sustainable and smart urban development. Largely financed by international donors and designed by globally recognized experts, the Zenata Eco-city has introduced a range of digital innovations in urban service management and transportation infrastructure, positioning it as a “model” initiative in Morocco. Constructed on a strategic site near Casablanca, previously occupied by numerous shantytowns, the smart city has also had to confront significant social and economic challenges, particularly around the relocation of low-income communities. This contribution highlights the digital and technological tools deployed in Morocco’s first smart city, as well as the socio-spatial impacts they have generated. Special attention is given to how former shantytown residents have appropriated digital platforms and social media as new spaces for protest and civic engagement. Drawing on fieldwork that includes interviews with planners, administrators, and residents, along with analysis of local social media content, the study reveals how digital tools have been leveraged by local associations and communities to assert their rights and resist the exclusionary dynamics of the smart city.
Sedimenting itself with the imaginary related to smart cities, a narrative is unfolding and presents territorial data strategies as a 'mandatory passage point' for territorial public action. This article looks at the territorial data strategies currently being developed by Dijon Métropole and Angers Loire Métropole, to question what it produces inside the intermunicipal entity. The article focuses on the processes involved in data structuring, which are inherent to metropolitan data strategies. They contribute to destabilizating and transforming the governance modes of intermunicipal authorities : centralisation of resources and skills; transfer of analysis and decision-making capacities. The relationships between different levels – muncipalities, departments - are changing as a result and for the benefit of the inter-municipal authority and its departments with the resources to seize this opportunity.
