Smart Cities Connect News

Magic City Develops Real Economic Opportunity, Prioritizes Inclusive Future

In a recent interview with Birmingham’s Director of Innovation and Economic Opportunity, Josh Carpenter, we talked about how the “Magic City” has evolved and what’s on the horizon for Alabama’s most populous urban area. SCC: Read More

US Ignite Responds To City Needs

Every city across the country is being asked to do more with less. Most residents are savvy technology-enabled consumers and they expect their government to react at the pace of innovation. On the other side Read More

Why Small is Smart

The smart cities conversation is almost always dominated by large metropolitan areas. This makes sense since global trends show the world is becoming increasingly urban. But that narrative leaves out the growing importance of small Read More

Dynamic Street Pavers Will Change Street Function Throughout Day

Architectural firm Carlo Ratti Associati (CRA) and Alphabet company, Sidewalk Labs, have designed a modular and reconfigurable paving system called ‘Dynamic Street’ that can change the use of a street throughout the day. The Dynamic Read More

Edinburgh To Install 64K LED Lights with Smart Controls

Wireless technology developer Telensa will provide new smart streetlight controls for 64,000 LED lights around the city of Edinburgh, Scotland as part of the city’s energy efficiency strategy. The deployment is expected to be completed Read More

Charlotte, NC Looks for Ways To Close Gap In Lagging Food Economy

A report commissioned by the city of Charlotte, North Carolina examined farming in a ten-county area, including the number of farmers markets, wholesale activity, access, and security. It concluded that the Charlotte region is behind Read More

Portland’s Traffic Sensor Safety Project Makes Three Most Dangerous Streets Safer

The City of Portland in Oregon has launched its Traffic Sensor Safety Project, the first major project for Smart City PDX – the urban data and technology initiative. The Traffic Safety Sensor Project will install Read More

Five of New York City’s Waterfront Piers Transform

New York City’s waterfront real estate is seeing a transformation of abandoned piers into vibrant parks and public spaces. Pier 57 Abandoned from 2003 to 2009, the Hudson River Park Trust along with developer Youngwoo Read More

Eden Strategy Institute Names Top 10 Best City Governments Globally

According to an Eden Strategy Institute study, the top 10 cities identified as the world’s best city governments, are: London, Singapore, Seoul, New York, Helsinki, Montreal, Boston, Melbourne, Barcelona, and Shanghai. In addition to New Read More

National Complete Streets Coalition Opens Applications for ‘Safe Streets, Smart Cities Academy’ – Due August 19

The National Complete Streets Coalition recently announced that applications are now open for their ‘Safe Streets, Smart Cities Academy’ that will help three cities transform their commitment to traffic safety into practice. The Academy will Read More

from Smart Cities Connect Media & Research

Speaker Highlights Include:

Kerry O'Connor
Chief Innovation Officer, City of Austin

Jane Nickles
Chief Information Officer, City of Greensboro

Kimberly LaGrue
Chief Information Officer, City of New Orleans

Chris Castro
Director of Sustainability, City of Orlando

Anthony Lyons
City Manager, City of Gainesville, Florida

Josh Carpenter
Director of Innovation and Economic Opportunity, City of Birmingham

Kate Garman
Policy Advisor, City of Seattle

Michael R. Pegues
Chief Information Officer, City of Aurora

Jean Duncan
Director, Transportation and Stormwater Services, City of Tampa

Lauren Poe
Mayor, City of Gainesville

Emily Silverman
Smart City Program Manager, City of Denver

Grace Simrall
Chief of Civic Innovation and Technology, Louisville Metro Government

Craig Hopkins
Chief Information Officer, City of San Antonio

Isabelle Lessard
Lighting Expert, Transportation Department, City of Montreal, Canada

Ruthbea Clarke
Research Director, Global Smart Cities Strategies, IDC Government Solutions

Jose De La Cruz
Chief Innovation Officer, City of San Antonio

Out of the many conference choices for Smart Cities, I prioritize attending the Smart Cities Connect conference each year. This conference brings together all the high-powered decision makers from every part of the Smart City ecosystem – city leaders, vendors, academics, researchers and non-profit organizations. The atmosphere is energetic and warm which fosters open, honest conversations and making new connections. I recommend this conference for everyone involved in the Smart Cities movement.

Ruthbea Yesner, VP, Government Insights and Smart Cities, IDC Government Insights

We were excited to host Smart Cities Connect; it gave us a chance to highlight some of the great successes of our departmental leaders in smartification of their teams and, perhaps more importantly, allow them to meet some of the amazing leaders in this space from other communities.

Bob Bennett, Chief Innovation Officer, City of Kansas City

The quality of attendees, speakers and exhibitors at Smart City Connect Kansas City was very impressive and also very targeted for our business. It's so helpful to be together, in one place at one time, with so many of the smart city leaders from around the country.