Dans un contexte de multiplication d’expérimentations de « réseaux électriques intelligents » (REI) et de « villes intelligentes » à travers le monde, cette thèse questionne les reconfigurations qui affectent l’action publique liée à l’énergie depuis l’émergence de ces innovations technologiques. À partir d’une analyse de l’instrumentation des politiques énergétiques et de la gouvernance de quatre démonstrateurs de « smart communities » au Japon, nous souhaitons saisir la reformulation du rôle de l’État et de ses modes d’interaction avec les collectivités territoriales et avec les acteurs privés. Nous défendons la thèse que la pratique de l’expérimentation tend à devenir un instrument privilégié de la conduite des politiques locales, en réponse à d’importantes transformations qui affectent les politiques énergétiques. En nous appuyant sur une analyse néo-institutionnaliste, nous montrons que l’introduction des REI est marquée par des permanences dans le processus d’élaboration des politiques publiques et dans les cadres cognitifs mobilisés, mais aussi par un « changement graduel transformateur » dans les instruments déployés. À travers l’étude des quatre premiers démonstrateurs de smart community mis en place entre 2010 et 2015 par le Ministère de l’Économie, du Commerce et de l’Industrie (METI) à Yokohama, Toyota, Kyōto Keihanna et Kitakyūshū, nous procédons à une analyse de l’influence de la pratique expérimentale sur la production de politiques énergétiques locales et sur les modes d’interaction entre l’État et les acteurs locaux. Il apparaît alors que la pratique expérimentale est appropriée par les acteurs locaux volontaristes comme un moyen de valoriser leurs « bonnes pratiques » et d’ériger leur territoire en vitrine de l’exemplarité. Cette démarche s’inscrit dans une perspective stratégique visant à capter les financements privés et publics, mais elle résulte aussi d’un repositionnement de l’appareil étatique visant à renforcer son contrôle au sein de politiques énergétiques territorialisées par la promotion d’expérimentations en phase avec ses stratégies. Nous mobilisons en particulier les notions de « méta-gouvernance » et de « gouvernement à distance » pour qualifier les dispositifs déployés par l’État pour conférer des marges de manœuvre aux acteurs locaux et accorder des concessions ponctuelles qui s’inscrivent dans ses perspectives stratégiques, tout en effectuant un contrôle sur ce processus afin de maintenir la structure du réseau. / As smart grids’ experiments and smart cities are spreading through the world, this doctoral thesis questions the reconfigurations that have been affecting public action about energy issues since the appearance of these technological innovations. Through an analysis of energy policy tools and case studies of the governance of four ‘smart communities’ demonstration projects in Japan, my goal is to understand how the State redefines its role and its process of interaction with local governments and private actors. My main contribution is to analyze the practice of experimentation as an emerging tool of local policies, in response to major transformation that affect energy policies. Based on a neo-institutionalist approach, I highlight that the introduction of smart grids is based on continuities in terms of policymaking process and cognitive frames, while the policy tools used to implement smart grids are characterized by a ‘gradual institutional change’. Through an analysis of the first ‘smart communities’ demonstration projects that have been implemented by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) between 2010 and 2015 in Yokohama, Toyota, Kyōto Keihanna et Kitakyūshū, I study the influence of experimentations in the implementation of local energy policies and in the interactions between the State and local actors. My case studies show that proactive local actors took over experiment as a way of enhancing the exemplariness of their territory and “best practices”. From a strategic point of view, this approach aims at attracting public and private funding, but in an institutional perspective, it also reveals how the State positions itself in order to increase its control over territorialized energy policies by promoting experimentation projects according to its strategies. I use the notion of ‘meta-governor’ and ‘governing by distance’ as a way of describing the measures implemented by the METI and other ministries to give room for manoeuvre to local actors and to grant concessions that fits with their strategies, while controlling over this process in order to maintain the general structure of the grid.

The development of educational technologies under the concept of Virtual reality (VR) is neither a core issue in academic education nor in applied research publications, although potential exists. With the goal of closing this gap, the authors investigate possibilities of VR in teaching and training. Whether we can speak of a new didactic technique and if certain smart communities adopt such is investigated through three cases. Our focus is on who the target audience is, what requirements need to be considered, and how this manifests in the teachers' activity. Subsequently, a starting point for a target group-oriented design of virtual reality in higher education is provided.

The development of educational technologies under the concept of Virtual reality (VR) is neither a core issue in academic education nor in applied research publications, although potential exists. With the goal of closing this gap, the authors investigate possibilities of VR in teaching and training. Whether we can speak of a new didactic technique and if certain smart communities adopt such is investigated through three cases. Our focus is on who the target audience is, what requirements need to be considered, and how this manifests in the teachers' activity. Subsequently, a starting point for a target group-oriented design of virtual reality in higher education is provided.

[pt] A busca por uma realidade mais sustentável, desde Brundtland até os Objetivos do Desenvolvimento Sustentável, vem ganhando destaque na agenda global. O avanço tecnológico, as transformações digitais e a urbanização acelerada, sem precedentes, integram essa agenda, quando se fala em smart cities. Estas, na teoria incluem os objetivos da sustentabilidade e do bem-estar, mas na prática, ainda são centradas em tecnologias e ficam distantes dos impactos significativos nos desafios atuais. Aplicar novas tecnologias em antigas soluções sem que o cidadão enxergue sentido e usabilidade não basta. É preciso desenvolver soluções inovadoras que, com o uso das tecnologias, alavanquem um desenvolvimento genuinamente sustentável e gere o bem-estar das pessoas. A lacuna na literatura acerca da inexistência de modelos que contribuam para uma ampla adoção e permitam a operacionalização da transição para smart cities, combinado com a ampla e crescente adoção do Design Thinking, deu início a esta pesquisa, que parte da hipótese que o Design Thinking é uma estratégia colaborativa adequada a ser adotada para gerar projetos inovadores para smart cities, atendendo às necessidades de bem-estar das pessoas e do desenvolvimento de forma sustentável. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi, assim, desenvolver um modelo que use a abordagem do Design Thinking para criação de projetos com foco em smart cities, sob a ótica do bem-estar das pessoas e do desenvolvimento sustentável. A metodologia aplicada abrangeu pesquisas bibliográfica, documental, ex-post-facto e de campo, incluindo uma fase de pesquisa-ação. Primeiro houve uma fundamentação teórica, realizada por meio de revisão da literatura existente a respeito das smart cities, que resultou da identificação de seus elementos essenciais, e das etapas de operacionalização do Design Thinking. Por meio de pesquisa documental e ex-post facto de estudos de casos foi analisado se e como o Design Thinking tem sido aplicado em smart cities, quais foram as motivações para sua adoção e os pontos positivos e negativos da operacionalização a partir dos modelos existentes. As informações geradas embasaram teoricamente a criação de um modelo específico de Design Thinking para Smart City. Este modelo foi testado em campo, no bairro de Copacabana, no Rio de Janeiro. Envolveu um Diagnóstico com a população local, com aplicação de 388 questionários e atividades de verificação da aplicabilidade dos dois produtos criados para este modelo – o Mapa das Forças Locais Atuantes e o Mapa de Inovação Local. Junto com estes dois produtos, soma-se aos resultados a inclusão de duas etapas frente aos modelos existentes: Descoberta e Distribuição, esta última com foco na descentralização e multiplicação das soluções. A pesquisa alcançou seu objetivo de desenvolvimento do modelo proposto, confirmando a hipótese inicial e contribuindo para a operacionalização de pequenas intervenções locais, alinhadas e integradas, para gerar impacto frentes aos desafios atuais e tornar as cidades genuinamente smart cities. Campos para novas investigações foram identificados, tais como a formulação de políticas capazes de equilibrar tecnologias e bem-estar, e o uso da identidade local como estratégia de engajamento e ação em smart city. / [en] The search for a more sustainable reality, from the Brundtland Report to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, has gained prominence in the global agenda. Concerning smart cities, unprecedented technological advancement, digital transformations, and accelerated urbanization integrate this agenda. In theory, smart cities encompass sustainability and well-being objectives, but in practice, they remain technocentric and distant from substantial impacts on current challenges. Applying new technologies to outdated solutions without citizens perceivable meaning and usability is insufficient. It is imperative to develop innovative solutions that, through technology, drive genuinely sustainable development and well-being. The literature gap on the absence of models contributing to the widespread adoption and operationalization of the transition to smart cities, coupled with the extensive adoption of Design Thinking, triggered this research. The hypothesis declares that Design Thinking is a suitable collaborative strategy for generating innovative projects for smart cities, meeting well-being needs, and promoting sustainable development. The research aimed to develop a model using the Design Thinking approach for smart city projects, focusing on well-being and sustainable development. The applied methodology encompassed bibliographic, documentary, ex-post-facto, and field research, including an action research phase. The theoretical foundation involved a literature review on smart cities, identifying essential elements, and the Design Thinking stages. The application, motivations, and positive/negative results of Design Thinking operationalization in smart cities were examined through documentary research and ex-post facto analysis of case studies. The information theoretically underpinned the creation of a specific Design Thinking model for Smart City. Field research to test the model occurred in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, involving a local population diagnosis with 388 surveys and verification activities for the applicability of two products created for this model—the Map of Local Acting Forces and the Local Innovation Map. Additionally, two stages were added to existing models: Discovery and Distribution, the latter focusing on decentralization and solution multiplication. The research achieved its goal of developing the proposed model, confirming the initial hypothesis, and contributing to operationalizing small local interventions, aligned and integrated to generate impact against current challenges and make cities genuinely smart. Areas for further investigation were identified, including formulating policies balancing technology and well-being and using local identity as a strategy for engagement and action in smart cities.