Urban informatics

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Urban informatics refers to the study of people creating, applying and using information and communication technology and data in the context of cities and urban environments.^[1] It sits at the conjunction of urban science, geomatics, and informatics, with an ultimate goal of creating more smart and sustainable cities.^[2] Various definitions are available, some provided in the Definitions section.

Although first mentions of the term date back as early as 1987, urban informatics did not emerge as a notable field of research and practice until 2006 (see History section). Since then, the emergence and growing popularity of ubiquitous computing, open data and big data analytics, as well as smart cities, contributed to a surge in interest in urban informatics, not just from academics but also from industry and city governments seeking to explore and apply the possibilities and opportunities of urban informatics.^[1][2]