In 2021, the city of Konstanz has been selected as one of 27 "Smart Cities Model Projects" in Germany by the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community. The aim of the federal project is to develop integrated, cross-sector strategies for the city life of the future and to test them in practice in various neighborhoods. Konstanz is pursuing a strategic alignment of its activities around digitisation and sustainability and will develop and implement a holistic and bundled strategy as part of the "Smart Cities made in Germany" funding program. By means of intelligent technologies and the networking of administration, urban planning, (everyday) life, mobility and business, a green and inclusive "Smart City" is to be created that shall significantly reduce urban resource consumption. Through participatory design concepts that promote the co-determination of Konstanz's residents, digitalisation is to be used to achieve climate neutrality, new spaces for networking and digital experience are to be created, and instruments are to be developed that advance sustainable urban development.
Building on Konstanz's digitisation and climate protection strategy, the Wuppertal Institute is undertaking the accompanying scientific research. The goal is to work out the trends and influences within the framework of an "urban foresight", to specify the requirements and fields of action for the smart city project, and to develop a sustainability monitoring system that makes the essential target variables measurable through KPIs (key performance indicators).