An active role for politics and society 7. Issues about technology always also include political decisions, they are not just operational issues. This requires a more active role of the City Council, as the city’s highest representative body, in determining the course regarding what kind of city we actually want to live in. 8. Society has outsourced visionary thinking about data and technology to tech companies. This creates the assumption that, as soon as there is a new technology, we obviously ‘have to do something with it’. 9. The political debate receives important impulses from artists and collectives whose field of work involves art, science, and the future. That helps us to develop alternative visions on the use of technology. A different attitude for greater resident participation and autonomy 10. Citizen surveys can give participants a sense of control, but then making a point to authorities and companies is not yet successful. This requires a different attitude from the government and knowledge institutions, as well as more openness to experiment with involving residents in research projects from the very beginning. 11. Even if the legitimate use of technology is clear in theory, this does not mean that the official involved can work well with it in practice. It is important to ensure that the conversation officials need to have with residents can be a comfortable one. 12. Technological applications can reduce the distance between executive officials and residents (WhatsApp neighbourhood prevention groups) but also make it larger (Splitter, the use of (big) data in the social domain). Technology can never replace actively presenting yourself in the neighbourhood. 13. A legitimate outcome of participation can also be resistance. Technology needs to become more visible 14. Partly due to good design, technology often remains invisible. This makes technology pleasant to use, but masks its political relevance. 15. Even if a municipality is open about the use of data and technology, this does not automatically lead to greater trust in the government. Still, openness and clarity about what the technology does and does not record, who owns the equipment and where people can complain, is extremely important. This information needs to be presented in clear language and with an appropriate presentation. 16. To give residents more autonomy, it is important not only to be transparent, but also to provide the opportunities for participation – both before and after the implementation of a technology. Contestability is a key concept here. Not only should residents be heard, but it is also very important to actually follow up on their concerns and wishes. 9
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