Smart City Strategy Articles

Written by:

Lily Maxwell

Lily Maxwell

Lily is a freelance writer, translator and content-creator, specialised in smart cities and urbanism. After studying at the University of Cambridge, she moved to Barcelona and is now based between Spain and England, working with several different urban-focused European organisations. She speaks French, Spanish and English, and aims to tackle German and Italian next!

11 MIN. READ

Leading North American Smart Cities to Watch in 2019

By Lily Maxwell on Sep 25, 2019 10:55:27 AM

In a 2018 report completed by the Eden Strategy Institute, 12 of the globe’s 20 smartest cities were located in the USA. Founded upon a spirit of innovation, it is perhaps no surprise that many of the country’s smart cities are so high-ranking, providing inspiration to other cities all over the world. Following our exploration of 4 up-and-coming North American Smart Cities in Part 1, we’ve chosen to take a brief look at 4 of the most prominent smart cities in the country in Part 2. From 2018’s highest ranking smart city worldwide, New York, to its start-up hub, San Francisco, we’ll take you through some of the smartest initiatives the US has to offer.

Topics:

Smart Government Smart Mobility Open Data Internet of Things (IoT) Citizen Engagement Blockchain Smart Infrastructure

14 MIN. READ

Rising North American Smart Cities to Watch in 2019

By Lily Maxwell on Aug 26, 2019 10:58:58 AM

The US is, in many ways, the birthplace of innovation: it was there that Ford launched the first affordable car and there that Steve Jobs founded Apple Inc. It is perhaps no surprise, then, that the US has also produced some of the world’s most innovative smart cities. With so many to choose from, we’re going to dive right in and take a look at some of the less obvious smart urban centres to see how they’re changing their city’s physical and social landscape in order to improve the lives of their citizens.

Topics:

Internet of Things (IoT) Urban Innovation Smart Infrastructure Smart City Projects

9 MIN. READ

Rising Stars: Eight Smart Cities in Asia to Watch in 2019 - Part 2

By Lily Maxwell on Jul 16, 2019 9:10:55 PM

As we saw in our last article on Asian smart city stars, urban centers in Asia are facing mass urbanization on a much more significant scale than many other parts of the world. They are also often located in climate-vulnerable regions. For example, a World Bank research report assessing the possible consequences of continued sea-level rise on eighty-four developing countries found that the impact of sea-level rise will be particularly severe for the Asia-Pacific region. For this reason, becoming ‘smarter’ and more sustainable is a top priority for many of Asia’s cities. In this article, we will look at four more Asian metropolises that are pushing forward smart initiatives in order to tackle current and prepare for future challenges. If you have not read the first part of the Rising Asian Stars article, you can read it here Rising Asian Stars: Smart Cities to Watch in 2019 - Part 1.

Topics:

Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart Mobility Smart Lighting Smart City Innovation Smart Education Smart City Projects

12 MIN. READ

Bob Bennett: the Role of Smart Cities Technology and their Benefits

By Lily Maxwell on Jul 10, 2019 10:46:02 AM

Bob Bennett, the former Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) of Kansas City talked in our Smart City Leader Interview Series - while he still was the CIO of Kansas City - about the importance of smart cities and smart citizens. He emphasized the role of technology and the benefits for citizens.

Topics:

Smart Government Smart Environment Smart City Smart City Innovation Smart People Blockchain Future Cities Smart Infrastructure Urban Data Platform Smart City Projects

11 MIN. READ

Rising Asian Stars: Smart Cities in Asia to Watch in 2019 - Part 1

By Lily Maxwell on Jun 19, 2019 2:02:08 PM

There were an estimated 47 megacities in existence in 2017, and the majority were located in Asia. The region is facing urbanization on a scale far beyond that of other regions, with an estimated 1.1 billion moving into Asian cities in the next 20 years. Many Asian countries are also in areas that are prone to extreme weather patterns or natural disasters, and this is only becoming more of a problem with climate change. Cities across the continent urgently need to prepare for serious population growth, and the strain it will place on their public services, and the risks that environmental changes pose. For this reason, becoming more resilient and ‘smarter’ is inevitably at the top of most Asian cities’ political agendas. In this article we are going to explore some of the Asian cities investing in becoming smarter and more sustainable in order to make their citizens safer and happier.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart City Solutions Smart Living Smart Government Smart Mobility Smart City Internet of Things (IoT) Climate Change Smart City Projects

11 MIN. READ

Rob van Gijzel on the Importance of Smart Cities & Smart Citizens

By Lily Maxwell on Jun 10, 2019 8:12:22 PM

Rob van Gijzel, the former Mayor of Eindhoven and current Chairman of the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) Foundation in New York and National Ambassador for the Blockchain Cities Coalition speaks about the importance of smart cities and smart citizens.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart City Sustainability Intelligent Community Urban Innovation Blockchain Future Cities Smart City Projects

13 MIN. READ

Boyd Cohen on the Future of Smart Cities

By Lily Maxwell on May 28, 2019 12:56:28 AM

The importance of smart cities & smart citizens: In our interview series, smart city leaders comment on the future of smart cities, the role of technology, and the benefits for citizens. In our second interview of the series, we have asked urban strategist and smart city expert Boyd Cohen to share his expertise, thoughts and insights with us on a number of important smart city topics.

Topics:

Smart City Internet of Things (IoT) Sustainability Smart People Urban Innovation Blockchain Urban Mobility Smart City Projects

17 MIN. READ

Jonathan Reichental on the Importance of Smart Cities & Smart Citizens

By Lily Maxwell on Oct 10, 2018 12:00:29 PM

The importance of smart cities & smart citizens: In our new interview series, smart city leaders comment on the future of smart cities, the role of technology, and the benefits for citizens. In our first interview of the series, we have asked Jonathan Reichental, CIO of Palo Alto, California to share his expertise, thoughts and insights with us on a number of important smart city topics.

Topics:

Smart City Strategy Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart Environment Smart Mobility Smart City Technology Smart City Smart City Innovation Smart People Smart Cities Future Cities Procurement

9 MIN. READ

Blockchain Technologies: The Next Frontier of Smart Cities - Part 2

By Lily Maxwell on Aug 20, 2018 10:06:01 AM

As we discussed in our previous article (Blockchain: The Next Frontier of Smart Cities - Part 1), blockchain has the potential to transform our communities, making the places we call home more collaborative, democratic and sustainable places. It is no surprise then, that a whole bunch of cities - from Santiago de Chile, Toronto, Tel Aviv, Oslo, and Milan, to London, and Stockholm - are already developing blockchain-based projects. Dubai is going even further, aiming to become the world’s first fully ‘blockchain-powered city’ by 2020. Lofty ideals aside, as we examined in part 1, blockchain does actually seem to offer some concrete benefits for communities, as we shall see below.

Topics:

Smart City Solutions Smart Government Smart City Internet of Things (IoT) Smart People Smart Cities Blockchain

10 MIN. READ

Blockchain: The Next Frontier of Smart Cities - Part 1

By Lily Maxwell on Aug 10, 2018 12:06:36 PM

Blockchain is a hot topic. Until very recently, it was associated almost exclusively with cryptocurrency - bitcoin, ethereum etc. However, the power of blockchain to revolutionize the way we exchange goods and services, and transform how we govern - above and beyond the cryptocurrency hype - is increasingly being recognized. When it comes to cities, the transformative potential of this technology is enormous. From enabling P2P energy-sharing systems, as in New York’s ‘Transactive Grid’, which allows local residents to generate, buy and sell their own solar energy, to encouraging behavioral change - for instance through SocialCoin’s blockchain and AI-based ‘social good’ currency (see e.g. the Citibeats solution) - and much more - blockchain is offering new opportunities to create more economically, environmentally and socially sustainable communities. As such, blockchain is likely to be an increasingly central enabler of smart city innovation worldwide. In this article, we will explore the potential benefits of blockchain in an urban context.

Topics:

Smart Government Smart Collaboration Smart City Smart People Smart Cities Blockchain

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