Tokens, dataspaces and digital twins: towards a new way of sharing territorial data

The ecological, energy, and climate transition increasingly relies on a central resource: data. Cadastral data, energy consumption, photovoltaic production, networks, climate risks, biodiversity, mobility, land use, built heritage... all these elements already exist, but too often they remain scattered across different actors, tools, and formats.

However, the ability to cross-reference this data is becoming essential to better understand a territory, objectify vulnerabilities, prioritize investments, and guide transformation paths. It is in this context that dataspaces, tokens, and digital twins are gaining importance.

Behind these sometimes technical terms lies a simple idea: allowing multiple actors to share data within a controlled, traceable, and secure framework, without losing control over what is transmitted, used, or valued.

The dataspace, a space of trust for sharing data

A dataspace can be understood as a digital space of trust in which multiple actors agree to share certain data according to common rules.

Unlike a centralized platform that vacuums all data into a single system, the dataspace is based on a more open and sovereign logic. Each actor retains control over their own data. They can decide what information they share, with whom, for what purpose, for how long, and under what conditions of use.

In the case of a territory, this approach is particularly relevant. A local authority, a developer, an energy company, a network operator, a real estate operator, or a consulting firm can all produce useful data. But this data only has collective value when it can dialogue with each other.

A dataspace user therefore shifts from a silo mentality to an ecosystem mentality. It is no longer just about storing data, but about organizing its circulation, qualification, and use within a shared framework.

The token, a digital token at the service of control

In this context, the token can play a key role. It should not be reduced solely to the idea of cryptocurrency. A token can be seen as a digital token representing a right, a proof, an authorization, or a unit of value linked to a piece of data.

Applied to dataspaces, the token can serve several purposes.

It can represent an access right to specific data. For example, an actor may be authorized to view aggregated energy data, but not sensitive raw data.

It can also be used to track data usage. Who accessed it? At what time? For which project? Within what scope? This traceability becomes essential as soon as the data involves sensitive infrastructure, consumption, usage, or environmental issues.

Finally, the token makes it possible to imagine new models for valuing data. Well-qualified, regularly updated data that is useful to multiple actors can become a digital asset, not in the speculative sense of the term, but in the operational sense: it creates value because it enables better decision-making.