Global Resources and Promising Practices for Building and Refining Accessible and Inclusive Smart Cities from Darren Bates LLC.
One of the principles we lift up in our report is to “build with, not for” affected communities. For technology to deliver on the promise of increased inclusion, design and implementation need to be grounded in the needs and priorities of communities. To do this equitably requires actively engaging and listening to residents throughout the process.
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The Roadmap for Inclusive Innovation is a living strategic plan developed from the vision of Mayor William Peduto for the City of Pittsburgh to be a city of equity, access and opportunity through cross-sector partnerships and collaboration. The Roadmap sets out to connect, encourage and measure inclusive innovation in the City of Pittsburgh through internal innovation and partnerships with organizations,…
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Sidewalk Toronto is a joint effort by Waterfront Toronto and Alphabet’s Sidewalk Labs to create a new kind of mixed-use, complete community on Toronto’s Eastern Waterfront, beginning with the creation of Quayside. Sidewalk Toronto will combine forward-thinking urban design and new digital technology to create people-centered neighborhoods that achieve precedent-setting levels of sustainability, affordability, mobility, and economic opportunity. Transcript ________________…
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There is a lot of interest in the project, both locally and globally, and many questions about how it will unfold. As a lead-up tool for the November 1 public meeting, Torontoist and friends have organized a starting draft list of questions and concerns, collected from a range of contributors and viewpoints. There are undoubtedly perspectives and questions missing here,…
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Philadelphia leaders prioritize community while developing a smart city roadmap The City of Brotherly Love is placing a strong focus on community needs instead of simply pushing government agendas or technology trends. • Published Nov. 9, 2017 Philadelphia is launching itself into the smart cities space, but right now leaders are most intent on devising a roadmap to effectively…
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The NSW Disability Inclusion Plan was launched on 26 February 2015 at the Sydney Opera House. The plan is the NSW Government’s commitment to identifying and breaking down the barriers which prevent those with disability from enjoying the same opportunities and choices as everyone else. It aligns with the Australian National Disability Strategy and our obligations under the United Nations…
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n the Government, digital services projects too often fail to meet user expectations or contain unused or unusable features. Several factors contribute to these outcomes, including the use of outdated development practices and, in some cases, overly narrow interpretations of what is allowed by acquisition regulations. OMB is developing tools to significantly upgrade the ability of Government digital services to deliver better results to our citizens and improve the way we capitalize on information technology (IT [1]) to better serve the American people.
One tool is the Digital Services Playbook, which identifies a series of “plays” drawn from proven private sector best practices to help agencies successfully deliver digital services. Another tool is the TechFAR, which highlights flexibilities [2] in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR [3]) that can help agencies implement “plays” in the Playbook that would be accomplished with acquisition support.
The vision for the TechFAR is that it will be expanded in future iterations to address many areas of IT. This edition of the TechFAR is aligned with the Digital Services Playbook guidance to use contractors to support an iterative development process. In particular, it emphasizes Agile software development [4], a technique for doing modular contracting and a proven commercial methodology that is characterized by incremental and iterative processes where releases are produced in close collaboration with the customer. This process improves investment manageability, lowers risk of project failure, shortens the time to realize value, and allows agencies to better adapt to changing needs. Agile software development is geared towards projects where significant design and development are needed, such as digital services (e.g., healthcare.gov or recreation.gov) as well as internal digital services and business systems. It is not designed to be used for commodity IT purchases, especially where commercially available off-the-shelf items can be used as-is at a lower cost and lower risk to the Government….
Read More The American people expect to interact with government through digital channels such as websites, email, and mobile applications. By building digital services that meet their needs, we can make the delivery of our policy and programs more effective.
Today, too many of our digital services projects do not work well, are delivered late, or are over budget. To increase the success rate of these projects, the U.S. Government needs a new approach. We created a playbook of 13 key “plays” drawn from successful practices from the private sector and government that, if followed together, will help government build effective digital services….
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The Smart Cities Plan will position our cities to succeed in the 21st Century economy. It is a plan for supporting productive, accessible, liveable cities that attract talent, encourage innovation and create jobs and growth.
It represents a new framework for cities policy at the federal level – and it is a framework that will guide action across various portfolios, to deliver better outcomes for our cities, the people who live in them and all Australians.
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The partnership between a U.S. urban-innovation lab and a government agency could bring a bold experiment in city-building and high-tech to Toronto, Alex Bozikovic explains More below • An illustrated primer on how Sidewalk Toronto would work An artist’s illustration shows Sidewalk Labs’s Quayside redevelopment of the Toronto waterfront. ILLUSTRATIONS COURTESY OF sidewalk labs Published October 17, 2017Updated November 12, 2017 A unit of…
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The concept of Smart Cities is a construct in which to frame local government transformation. Cities need to transform in order to develop sustainably, improve resilience, meet citizens’ rising expectations, and attract investment, new businesses, and talent. This is a complex undertaking, especially when coupled with constrained financial resources, fast-growing populations, and aging (or limited) infrastructure. As a result, Smart…
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Smart cities create a symbiosis between information, the Internet of Things and technologies to make better decisions and provide desired services. These cities map community preferences to improve services and infrastructure including public transport, libraries and waste services. They use sensors, Bluetooth and iPhones to track conditions and activities and send awareness messages ahead of emerging problems and disasters. Smart…
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We highlight the innovative efforts of several of the leading international smart cities, drawing advice from their efforts. Source: 7 smart city strategies from pioneering cities across the world
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Cities, the American-Canadian author Jane Jacobs once observed, are engines for national prosperity and economic growth. But in their current form, modern cities are also catalysts of inequality and environmental degradation. Today, the share of city dwellers in poverty is growing; 33 per cent live in slums; and 75 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions originate in metropolitan areas.…
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Socialchallenges.eu is a platform aiming at creating a marketplace where actual social challenges can meet powerful and innovative solutions. A space where the work among different players make the European Social Ecosystem vibrant and collaborative. Where a challenge is transformed into a new business opportunity. The Platform supports committed Public Authorities, Private Companies, Third Sector Organisations in defining, prioritising social…
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Newcastle City Council adopted its Disability Inclusion Action Plan 2016-2019 prepared in accordance with s.12 of the NSW Disability Inclusion Act at its Ordinary Meeting on 22 March 2016. The plan outlines how council will contribute to making Newcastle an inclusive and accessible city for everyone.The Newcastle City Council Disability Inclusion Action Plan 2016-2019 was prepared in consultation with the…
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Yesterday, The Hon Julie Bishop MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Australia officially announced the launch of the country’s International Cyber Engagement Strategy, which outlines Australia’s cyber affairs agenda for the next 3 years.The Strategy is underscored by private sector partnerships and presents a practical plan of action to position Australia to take full advantage of the opportunities of the…
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The Urban Pathways project will make a direct contribution to the implementation of the New Urban Agenda and the Paris Agreement and will help delivering on the Sustainable Development Goal 11, by making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. This will include access to sustainable transport (11.2), improving air quality and waste management Source: URBAN PATHWAYS project
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I was recently asked by a city that I work closely with to contribute suggestions for how their next planning strategy could reflect the impact of the technology agenda. Drawing on experiences and conversations with cities, Universities, government bodies and professional organisations over the last year, including the “Digital Urbanism” workshop help at the Academy of Urbanism Congress 2013 in…
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The Australian government recently released an ambitious Smart Cities Plan, which suggests that cities should be first and foremost for people: If our cities are to continue to meet their residents’ needs, it is essential for people to engage and participate in planning and policy decisions that have an impact on their lives. Source: While governments talk about smart…
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