Connected Urban Development

This fifth snapshot on the Partnership for Urban Innovation: Global Conference themes is on Sustainable Cities: Challenges and Solutions.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) reduction and sustainability strategies energy generation and distribution, transport, water management, infrastructure, green buildings and urban planning, all converge in cities where the bulk of the world’s citizens reside. Thus “sustainable cities” has become a topic of immense worldwide interest.

The need to make cities and communities sustainable has been championed by government and non-governmental organisations and by the companies developing the technology solutions. A complex mix of “players” has emerged, all wanting to participate and to push their particular vision for sustainability.

This has resulted in an eco-system of swirling, connected and disconnected stakeholders, all with different aims and goals, and yet united in a common vision: to achieve “sustainability” in the development and operation of cities.
For all the hype, a gap remains between adoption of the plethora of innovative and truly sustainable technologies that are readily available, and the solutions which are implemented. The danger in not closing this gap is significant. In spite of all the interest on the supply side, the demand for these technologies and services may not grow fast enough for companies continue to invest in solutions, and GHG emissions may not be reduced quickly enough.

So what is stopping the adoption and implementation of these technologies? Some of these technologies are new: We are witnessing the “wow” factor of technology in action such as concentrated solar thermal arrays blazing in the sun which make for attractive videos and still images for TV, magazines and sustainability publications. But some of the technologies exist. However, their adoption may not be straightforward, but will require combining technologies, new ways through advanced networking and communications.

The challenge is that sustainability or climate change are not solely technology challenges, rather this is a deployment challenge. Informational, market, institutional, policy and organisational barriers remain. Market development will require removing these barriers and obstacles to make sure the existing technologies and solutions are capable of full deployment in a widespread manner worldwide.

In this break out session, with a lively ensemble of practitioners, who are actively involved in the business side of sustainability, we will identify the barriers and engage participants in a stimulating discussion within the following framework:

1. What technology is available now - First we set the scene briefly to display the vast array of sustainable solutions available from an ICT technology perspective
2. Who are the players – Secondly, we will examine who are the players and the stakeholders in the eco-system of the development and operation of cities and what are their roles and aims
3. What are the barriers – Thirdly, we will examine the barriers to adoption of the various sustainable technologies that can be applied, by way of case study examinations and where a barrier to adoption was overcome by innovative, and ultimately, practicable and financeable strategies and solutions
4. Where are the examples of barriers being overcome?

The outcome of the session will be to engage in a robust debate on these issues and to raise awareness of an area of the sustainability debate which is often neglected, pointing to examples where barriers have been overcome, as a basis for developing strategies for market transformation.

Please join us on the conference page of the website for updates to the discussions and content for this and all of the other conference breakout sessions, following the conference.

This snapshot on the Partnership for Urban Innovation: Global Conference themes is on Urban Design and Networked Development.
The way people live, work, learn, and play in 21st-century cities is changing. As a result, city designs and developments are becoming increasingly characterized by a people-centric approach toward a networked-built environment differentiated by interaction, collaboration, responsiveness, on-demand uses, and ubiquitous availability of digital technology.
This session will engage participants in a discussion on how people-driven, technologically enhanced city design and development can transform urban life, the experience of “place,” and real estate demand. The session will explore perspectives on citizen experience, new trends in urban design and the impacts on traditional real estate uses, and public-private partnerships and other new operating models.

Panelists will explore:

• How has the citizen experience of the city been enhanced?
• What are trends in new city design to create connection, collaboration and convenience? How is the resulting real estate impacted as cities transition to multipurpose, space on demand programmable entities?
• How are these new cities disrupting traditional real estate uses of space?
• What is the impact on the real estate business models and what are the resulting value propositions?

Please join us on the conference page of the website for updates to the discussions and content, following the conference.

Advancing the Connected Urban Development program’s progress in Connected and Sustainable Living through buildings and energy efficiency applications, the city of Madrid, in partnership with Cisco and technology partner Telvent, has announced the launch of the UrbanEnergy Management pilot project in the city.

Promoted by the Municipal Company for Housing and Lands of Madrid; Cisco, and technology partner Telvent, has deployed network infrastructure, connectivity and control systems in a pilot, apartment building in the city: Calle de Las Margaritas, 52. The development is intended as temporary housing on a rental basis to young people in Madrid.

The “Energy Efficiency Manager” installed in homes, can, at any time and in real time, manage energy consumption, controlling emissions of carbon dioxide and make decisions about the way in which residents make use of energy both at the individual apartment level and throughout the building. In the future this is intended to extend across the urban community.

The solution, which allows consumer to set limits and comparisons of consumer weekly, monthly or yearly, provides to citizens and municipal managers, daily tips to improve efficiency and be more environmentally responsible.

Further details can be found on the projects section of the CUD website, where a fact sheet and presentation sets out further details of the pilot solution and roadmap.