Carbon Costs Without Governance Gains: Assessing Digital Participatory Sensing in Algeria’s New Towns

Smart city initiatives are advocated throughout the Global South as a means to enhance environmental efficiency and foster democratic participation. However, the environmental and distributional implications of the digital infrastructure required for these initiatives are infrequently quantified. This research investigates the tangible outcomes of digital participatory sensing across Constantine and two of Algeria’s new towns, considering the carbon footprint of this digital intervention, its adoption by urban planners, and its social outreach collectively. Employing a convergent mixed-methods approach, the study integrated a six-month sensing intervention involving 384 residents across Constantine, Ali Mendjeli, and Sidi Abdellah, yielding 18,432 geolocated reports. Additionally, the research incorporated attributional carbon accounting, convolutional neural network classification of satellite imagery, 25 stakeholder interviews, and an analysis of 1,182 pages of planning documents. The intervention produced approximately 1,247 kg CO 2 e, equating to the annual electricity consumption of an Algerian household. Notably, no planning document reviewed referenced the citizen-generated datasets, and 23 out of 25 stakeholders had never reviewed them. Participation rates declined from 80% in central districts to 40% in Sidi Abdellah, with residents over 60 years contributing merely 1.8% of participants. In contexts where planning institutions are fragmented, digital participation appears to incur environmental costs without corresponding influence on redistribution. For policy considerations, low-technology engagement remains the most justifiable default, and digital tools should be implemented subsequent to institutional reforms. From a theoretical standpoint, the environmental and democratic assertions of smart cities are contingent upon governance capacity rather than technological sophistication.