EITA Smart Cities Forum

We Can't Change The Weather, 

- Overview

A smart city is an emerging conceptual view of a city that facilitates the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to engage with citizens, to develop social and intellectual capital, and to make better use of hardware Infrastructure (physical capital) that reduces the use of environmental capital and supports smart growth (sustainable economic development).

The smart city concept goes beyond the use of ICT to make better use of resources and reduce emissions. That means smarter urban transport networks, upgraded water and waste facilities, and more efficient ways of lighting and heating buildings. It also includes more interactive and responsive urban management, safer public spaces, and meeting the needs of an aging population. 

As the world continues to urbanize, with the total population expected to double by 2050, there is an increasing need for smart, sustainable environments that reduce environmental impact and provide citizens with a high quality of life. Smart cities bring together technology, government and society to achieve the following characteristics: smart economy, smart transportation, smart environment, smart people, smart life, smart governance.

- The Rapid Urbanization of the Globe: Unprecedented Challenges

"We live in a world experiencing economic turmoil, climate change, aging populations, and rapid urbanization. But we also live in the midst of tremendous technological innovations that have the potential to address the issues that challenge every city." -- (CISCO)  

Urbanization is changing our planet. Today, about half the world’s seven billion people live in cities. By 2050, that proportion is expected to rise to two-thirds. And because the global population is increasing, by then, more than six billion people will live in cities. Urban living places significant burdens on the environment. Cities need to be fed with water, power, and food, and so require the complex infrastructures that make that possible. All this needs to be done in a way that is sustainable.

Being such huge magnets for talent and investment, it is no wonder that cities have become the world’s major growth engine, generating more than 80% of the global GDP. Smart cities are cites where everything is connected to each other and this is highly depended on technologies. Technological literacy is a key to turn a city into smart city which is well connected, sustainable and resilient, where information is not just available but also findable. 

However, the speed and scale of urbanization brings tremendous challenges. Widening income gaps, worsening pollution, and aging buildings and bridges are all telltale signs that today’s cities are struggling to keep up with city dwellers’ growing dreams for a sustainable, prosperous future.

- Achieving Sustainable Urbanization

"Achieving sustainable urbanization, together with the preservation of our planet’s fragile ecosystem, is recognized as one of the major challenges for humanity in the coming decades. Cities are responsible for more than 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), and they are accountable for 60-80% of global energy consumption, contributing to environmental degradation locally, regionally and globally. These percentages are expected to rise with the growing population rates in terms of migration and increasing birth rates." -- (ITU-T)  

The process of urbanization has become so important that it has become a catalyst in the transformation of major cities to smart cities. More specifically, these cities are planning to evolve from rather passive cities into smart cities. The umbrella term of a smart city, is a city that uses data and technologies to improve the lives of the citizens and businesses that inhabit it. 

- Role of Technology in Smart City

Successful smart cities will depend on driving innovative solutions in six areas: economy, environment and energy, government and education, life and health, security and mobility.

A smart city is a blend of infrastructure and technology playing their respective roles in creating a clean and energy efficient place with quick and easy access to services and digitization of information. The smart city typically uses the ICT (Information & Communication Technologies) to create a two-way communication network between the citizens and government. 

The ICT helps the government analyzing the demand pattern of the state and thus creating a pool of resources to address the same online. The electronic medium of communication in a community helps in creating a collective intelligence which can be deployed for resource optimization with the help of analytics and deep learning.

- The Main Goals

EITA Smart Cities Forum offers a unique opportunity to understand how the latest technologies could be harnessed to create economic clusters, foster entrepreneurship and develop new industries in cities and urban centers. It focuses especially on ubiquitous technology - technologies that are thoroughly integrated into everyday objects and activities. 

The main purpose of this forum is to bring together researchers/academics/industries in the field of system, networking and communication to discuss major challenges, research problems, and potential applications to support smart cities and urban informatics.