Cities worldwide face various complex environmental, social, economic, and governance challenges, amplified by ongoing crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic or consequences of military conflicts. It is increasingly evident that the multifaceted nature of these problems requires comprehensive, holistic approaches instead of attempts to find solutions that only focus on individual problem aspects. Ideally, the challenges are tackled by always aiming at a more sustainable development, i.e., a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. To address the wide range of global challenges and to promote a more sustainable and equitable world, the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were developed as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that was officially adopted by all member states of the UN in September 2015. They are a set of 17 global, interconnected goals and address a range of social, economic, and environmental challenges. The role of the SDGs in promoting more sustainable cities lies in providing a comprehensive framework for governments, organizations, and communities to work towards common objectives.

When aiming to promote a sustainable development, it is critical for any type of stakeholder to first obtain a clear picture of the situation in the region of interest. Accordingly, it is necessary to identify associated indicators for each SDG that provide insights into the status quo or past developments. And last not least, these indicators can only be examined properly if data sets with information about them are available and accessible. Several approaches exist that aim to provide such data-based information for cities. Yet, these tools are often limited regarding the data sources used, but above all when it comes to the spatial resolution of the cities under consideration: they only allow the exploration and analysis of SDGs on a macro level, usually the complete city. However, cities are not homogeneous – different quarters vary a lot with regard to their population, usage, building structure, etc. Even inside of quarters, social disparities can often be determined. Thus, to accurately identify existing problems, and to improve living conditions accordingly, an analysis at macro level is not enough.

In order to examine the potentials and challenges of an approach that allows spatially differentiated analyses of SDGs within cities, the project SMEXI (Small Scale Exploration of SDG Indicators) was initiated at DFKI. Using the city of Kaiserslautern, Germany, as a first test bed, the aim was to provide an interactive and adaptable, digital platform facilitating the tracking of SDGs in cities at a small scale. A first prototype of the SMEXI system was realized at the end of 2023 from Akhil Yeerasam making use of various data sets from the city administration of Kaiserslautern and other, mainly publicly available sources. It is a web-based tool that uses local districts and statistical districts as spatial units for fine-grained examinations. It offers means to compare different parts of a city, and to manually define scores for different SDGs.

In October 2024, SMEXI was published as Open Source. Our aim is to continue the development of the tool and to use it in varius sustainability scenarios. We encourage everyone to make use of SMEXI in their own city with a focus on their own interests - don't hesitate to contact us!