Connected Urban Development

Following the Partnership for Urban Innovation Conference, The Climate Group has provided its report on the conference and has interviewed two of the key stakeholders in the discussions at the conference, and in taking the findings from the conference forward.

John Chambers, Chairman and CEO of Cisco Systems and Josep Roig, Secretary General of Metropolis, the world association of major metropolises expolained their perspectives on public-private partnerships, their interest in the Smart2020: Cities and Regions initiative, why the smart+connected path to technology innovation is proving to be successful today and will take on great significance to the success and sustainability of our urban communities.

We thank all for attending the Partnership for Urban Innovation: Global Conference in Shanghai last week.

It was a busy week and we all benefitted from the diverse, challenging and inventive ideas and discussions throughout the conference. The conference was enhanced the vibrancy, buzz and innovation on display throughout the city of Shanghai, and from every corner of the world at the World Expo. Partners in the conference, such as The Climate Group, hosted separate events to this conference throughout the week, and we are thankful to all that our event was seen as enhancing to those events, and to the urban innovation agenda for all those organisations, individuals and programs that were represented.

The plenary agenda explored the themes of:

• How cities are responding to the Better City, Better Life theme of the World Expo
• The launch and progress of urban transformation partnerships
• Urban innovation in China
• Global cities of the future

 These themes were also explored in more detail in five breakout sessions (chaired by Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group and knowledge partners):

1. Urban Design and Networked Development - co-chaired with Urban Land Institute
2. Smart and Connected Urban Mobility - co-chaired with Metropolis
3. Sustainable Cities: Challenges and Solutions - co-chaired with The Climate Group
4. Economic Growth in Cities - co-chaired with The World Bank
5. Social Life of Cities - co-chaired with The Young Foundation

On day 2, delegates went on a tour of the World Expo site. At the Cisco pavilion, four showcase sessions provided unique content on the urban innovation projects that Cisco has been advancing with cities globally. The showcase sessions were on:

• Urban Mobility Innovation - particularly the development with the city of Busan
• WorkLife Innovation - a networked and distributed work ecosystem in The Netherlands and South Korea
• Urban Sensing and Mapping - a preview of the next phase in the Urban EcoMap projects in Amsterdam and San Francisco
• Dialogue Cafe - A conversation from London, to Lisbon at the public TP pod at MUDE, and to the Cisco Pavilion at the World Expo, Shanghai

Please return here in the coming days as the conference page will be updated with:

• presentations
• interviews
• photos
• videos
• thought leadership content

 from the partners, speakers and participants who made the conference come together so successfully.

 Thanks again to all those who attended and participated. For those in the wide network represented who couldn’t make the journey this time, and to those engaged in the urban innovation debate, we hope that our forthcoming content sharing will be of use to your work, enable you to view the content discussions throughout the two days, and to enable follow up connections across the urban innovation community.

 The theme of Better City, Better Life brings global urban innovators to Shanghai this month to experience the spectacle, of  the World Expo.

Where better then for the landmark phase in the evolution of the Connected Urban Development program to be announced? The successes of the program, with the seven cities, Cisco and many partners and supporters from MIT, The Climate Group, Clinton Global Initiative and local integration partners, has seen three successful conferences and peer networking forums. Building from the great conferences in San Francisco (2008), Amsterdam (2008) and Seoul (2009), bring us to Shanghai in 2010. Join us online over the next month as we lead into the conference, share the content and follow up online and with those attending following the conference.

As we lead into the rapidly approaching Partnership for Urban Innovation: Global Conference in Shanghai on 17-18 June, join us as we will now kick off a dialogue to provide some further insight into the exciting agenda that is in place for this landmark event in the progression of Connected Urban Development, and the ongoing engagement with a wider community of urban innovators from global cities, companies, institutions and individuals.

We have set up the event to provide leading insights from the Connected Urban Development member cities, Cisco Systems, and The Climate Group as lead conference partners. In addition we have Knowledge Partners joining the debate, with expertise from The World Bank, Urban Land Institute (ULI) , The Young Foundation, Social Innovation eXchange (SIX) . From Cisco the breakout sessions will be co-moderated by all the Lead and Knowledge Partners and will be supported by the Smart+Connected Communities Institute, as part of the company’s focus on engaging this community and others in online debate on the key topics addressed at the conference.

 The objectives for the conference are:

• recognize leading cities for their efforts in addressing sustainable development
• discuss challenges cities are facing and solutions they are developing at the intersection of environmental sustainability, economic development and social inclusion
• continue and expand the global community of collaboration

To summarize the conference here, we will be hosting a two day event which will look at policies, solutions and approaches on day1 and Day2 will provide the opportunity at the Expo to experience leading urban innovaiton showcases:

The Agenda 

Day1 (17th June) - Conference and discussions sessions:

The plenary sessions will include city, business, NGO and academic leaders, including Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers, The Climate Group CEO Steve Howard and Metropolis secretary general Josep Roig. The plenary sessions will focus on how urban innovation, such as those initiatives led by Metropolis, Cisco and The Climate Group, is enabled by multi sector innovation partnerships across the world. The day’s proceeding will also include plenary sessions on urban innovation in China, specialist sessions on key topics in delivering Smart+Connected Communities;

• Urban Design and Networked Development
• Sustainable Cities: Challenges and Solutions
• Smart and Connected Urban Mobility
• Economic Growth in Cities
• The Social Life of Cities

 The final plenary session of the day will explore the innovation dynamics in delivering successful global cities of the future from the angles of urban planning, social innovation, real estate and technology development.

Day2 (18th June) - Expo tour day:

World cities, countries and companies, including Cisco are showcasing their visions, solutions, and approaches to the theme of the Expo. Cisco’s Smart+Connected Life pavilion, and leading cities and expo pavilions  and other leading pavilions will form a hosted tour on day 2 (18th June) for delegates to the conference.

All conference agenda information is being posted to the event website at www.cisco.com/go/pui_2010. Please refer here for the latest information, agenda, breakouts, speaker information and post event content.

As Shanghai experiences and debates the topics of urban sustainability, economic growth, social inclusion and livability, we look forward to sharing perspectives on the conference themes throughout the next month….. 

Following from the Cities in Action for Climate Change publication, Cisco and Metropolis, the global cities association, in partnership with the Connected Urban Development partnership has developed a survey that researches the role of urban innovation for sustainability in global cities.

In Autumn of 2009, the membership of Metropolis and the Connected Urban Development community contributed to the Urban Innovation for Sustainability survey. The survey seeks information about the top priorities of municipal leaders around the world and their efforts to create more sustainable cities. The survey is part of a research project that explores the challenges cities face; how city leaders introduce innovations; where cities are today in their quest to be more sustainable; and how city leaders perceive the role of information and communications technology (ICT) in fostering greater sustainability.

In summary, the study uncovered several important themes that should inform the work of the CUD community, the Metropolis Partnership for Urban Innovation Commission and Cisco’s Smart+Connected Communities programs in coming years:
1.       For cities, sustainability is first and foremost about the environment, but economic development and social inclusion also are crucial priorities of the wider urban sustainability agenda.
2.       “Livability” is the watchword in municipalities’ sustainability efforts, with a clear focus on climate change mitigation.
3.       Local governments are actively driving the push for more sustainable cities, marshalling resources to address the problem, orchestrating the input of the private sector and community groups, and leading by example in urban innovation initiatives, even in the face of obvious funding challenges.
4.       ICT is recognized as a vital contributor to urban innovation—and, therefore, to sustainability—in cities.

This builds from the publication, Cities in Action for Climate Change, which sets out the actions which cities are currently taking towards applying innovative approaches of technology to enable sustainable cities.

This survey takes a forward looking perspective on the priorities, plans and attitudes of global cities.

Both publications can be accessed on the Connected Urban Development and Metropolis websites.

In partnership with Metropolis, the global cities association, Cisco and the Connected Urban Development partnership have developed a publication, Cities in Action for Climate Change, that sets out the extent of actions which cities take towards applying innovative applications of technology to enable sustainable cities.

This publication by the Metropolis International Institute and Cisco, provides an overview of what some of the most insightful cities have been doing over the last few years to address climate change with concrete solutions. These span Metropolis member cities, those in the Connected Urban Development program, and other proactive and innovative cities across the world.

With an introduction by Metropolis and Cisco, the publication is intended as a repository of publically available information on sustainability programs by cities across the world. Cities in Action for Climate Change is intended to serve as insight and inspiration into the wide ranging and innovative approaches being taken by cities off various sizes, geographies, and cultures to respond to their local sustainability imperatives, and to highlight the global leadership being taken by cities to respond to global climate change challenges.

This publication complements the forward looking survey of global cities, Urban Innovation for Sustainability, also published at this time.

Both publications can be accessed on the Connected Urban Development and Metropolis websites.