SmartCitiesWorld Podcast

Exploring Sunderland’s smart city connectivity credentials

In this episode of the SmartCitiesWorld podcast, we’re dive into the smart city work of Sunderland. Our guests, Liz St. Louis, Director of Smart Cities at Sunderland City Council, and David Conway, Director of Technical Services at Sunderland University, give us an exclusive look at Sunderland's journey to create ubiquitous connectivity across the city.

Sunderland's primary goal as a smart city is to leverage digital infrastructure to enhance the quality of life for its residents, making it a fantastic place to live, work, and play. We discover how aim to provide inclusive services and ensure that no one is left behind on their smart city journey, and how this is reflected in David’s work at the University, creating equal access to education and leveraging technology for research and student experience.

We hear about the city’s efforts to form strategic partnerships with organisations both locally and globally, and how the council ensures that the partnerships it forms will truly serve the local community.

The podcast highlights how the digital fabric underlying the city's initiatives extends to various sectors, contributing to sustainability, the digital economy, and creating a connected and efficient city.

Flexibility is a key part of achieving Sunderland’s smart city roadmap, with a focus on real-world problem-solving and staying open to new opportunities. We discover how the council is aiming to impact various fields, from health to education and beyond, making a tangible difference in people's lives.

For more smart cities news and developments, become a member of SmartCitiesWorld today.

How to transform digital public service infrastructure

In our latest episode of the SmartCitiesWorld Podcast, senior editor Luke Antoniou speaks with Hong-Eng Koh, Global Chief Public Services Industry Scientist for Huawei’s Enterprise Business Group.

With more than 30 years of knowledge and experience in public sector operations and ICT applications, Mr Koh is particularly well placed to explain how digital transformation at government level can drive forward digital public services and the digital economy for governments at all levels, from cities to central.

Here, we discover why digital public service infrastructure is the root of smart city offerings, what this type of infrastructure encompasses, and the need for incremental improvements. Beyond this, we also speak to Mr Koh about how the different development paths and processes that exist in each individual city shape the approach that governments must take to overhauling digital public service infrastructure, as well as the role that Huawei plays in supporting these efforts.

We’re introduced to a number of leading case study examples of digital public service infrastructure transformation during the conversation, from ranging from the Spanish city of Alicante and its more than 8 million visitors each year, to Dubai and its role as a leader in digital public services.

Beyond technology requirements, we also hear from Mr Koh on the eight common factors that should shape all digital public service infrastructure development paths, beginning with leadership and vision, and ending with the need to build a wider technology ecosystem, via data strategy, security and sovereignty.

You can find more from Mr Koh in his latest opinion for SmartCitiesWorld on digital public service infrastructure here.

For more information from Huawei, take a look at their whitepaper on Public Services Digital Infrastructure.

About Hong-Eng Koh

As a former Singapore Government official and subsequently leading the implementation of the first generation Singapore’s nationwide mega e-government project, Hong-Eng Koh has more than 30 years of knowledge and experience in public sector operations and ICT applications. Before joining Huawei in 2016, he spent 16 years in Oracle on various regional and global leadership roles in the government, education and healthcare segments. Throughout his career, Hong-Eng has been involved in the transformation of public sector agencies in 70-plus countries. He has also authored various papers on the digital transformation of the public sector, even resulting in the development of corresponding solutions. Hong-Eng is widely recognised internationally and has received various awards. He is a sought-after speaker and workshop facilitator.

Re-evaluating smart cities for a joined-up future

What is a smart city? It’s a question that has been asked time and time again, and with a definition that has shifted significantly in recent years, it’s one that doesn’t always have a firm answer.

In this episode of the SmartCitiesWorld Podcast, we’re joined by Chris Dymond, Founder and Director of digital capacity-building agency Unfolding, and Academic Director of the Smart Cities Management Programme at Zigurat, to re-assess what smart cities are in today’s context, and how the taxonomy for developing smart city strategy must now extend to include tech, environment, and people all at once.

There’s also discussion of how the cities and local authorities can begin to unpick bad habits and break down siloes through digital transformation, along with the need to strike a tricky balancing act between upskilling workers for a digital future without adding to digital inclusivity challenges as a public sector employer.

Listen to our latest episode now and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts to ensure you don’t miss our next episode.

For more information about Unfolding, Sheffield Digital or the Zigurat Smart Cities Management Programme, use the links below:

https://www.unfolding.co.uk/

https://sheffield.digital/

https://www.e-zigurat.com/en/smart-cities-masters-program/

In conversation with Marc Hannis, Ofwat

Marc talks about why Ofwat introduced the Innovation Fund and its aims to accelerate innovation in the water sector, which has historically been more risk-averse and slower to innovate than others. 

He explains how a central pillar of its efforts to drive innovation are Ofwat’s competitions and challenges, which have seen the regulator invest £60m into 40 projects so far. He talks about some of the individual projects and how he is keen to address the gap for more early stage innovation.

One of his aims is to promote greater collaboration outside of the sector to remove the insularity of only looking internally for solutions. He talks about his hopes for the £4m Water Discovery Challenge, which aims to attract innovators working in cities and transport to help tackle challenges at a critical time for his sector.

Ofwat are one of the many organisations speaking during the Cities Climate Action Summit, 18-20 April. To find out more, head to: https://www.smartcitiesworld.net/cities-climate-action-summit-2023

 

Information accurate at time of recording, 6/3/23

How cities can tackle their biggest challenges through partnership

The latest podcast from SmartCitiesWorld sees editor Luke Antoniou welcome Venturous Group’s Benson Tam and Arup’s Michael Kwok to talk all things collaborative in city technology.

Together, there’s discussion of the role that Venturous Group and Arup are playing – both together and individually – in driving forward a partnership model to help develop smarter cities. This includes understanding of the state of play within Venturous Group’s citytech network, and insight into the development of the Neuron smart building platform – itself a joint venture between Arup and Venturous Group.

Further, we find out about the importance of scalability and right-sizing solutions for adoption by different types of organisations, whether they’re cities or private-sector owned and operated entities that have many of the same needs as modern cities.

There’s also discussion of the next steps for the smart city concept and vision, and how citizens themselves will be able to personalise their own city experiences based on individual preference, based on the technology that can be created and adopted within a city context through new partnerships.

For more on Venturous Group’s work, both with Arup and its other citytech partners, download the SmartCitiesWorld Shenzhen City Profile, which includes more case studies on how Venturous Group is supporting the advancement of city technology.

In conversation with Emily Yates, CIO, SEPTA

The latest episode of the SmartCitiesWorld podcasts sees host Luke Antoniou joined by Emily Yates, chief innovation officer at SEPTA - the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority.

We take a route back through Emily's career to this stage, including her time as Smart City Director for the City of Philadelphia, and discuss how the wealth of experience she has accumulated across her career has culminated in her latest role.

On the agenda are the ways in which SEPTA's challenges have become clearer since the pandemic begun, the importance of systems thinking across different city departments and agencies, and the true nature of what it means to be innovative in the provision of public services.

 

* Information accurate at time of recording, 4/8/22

Urban climate action for today and tomorrow

Clare Wildfire and Madeleine Rawlins at Mott MacDonald join the SmartCitiesWorld Podcast for a conversation on all things urban climate action.

If you’re a member of SmartCitiesWorld, you’ll know that one of the topics we cover probably most regularly is climate change, and more specifically climate action – what does action look like for cities, where are they making progress, what still needs to be done, and how can they build resilience into their planning now?

On this episode, SmartCitiesWorld senior editor Luke Antoniou is joined by two special guests from global engineering, management and development consultants, Mott MacDonald: Clare Wildfire, Global Practice Lead for Cities, and Madeleine Rawlins, Global Practice Lead for Climate Change. With their help, this episode delves further into some of those questions above to work out where we are, the good and bad of progress so far, and what lays on the path to a greener urban future.

Listen now for more on progressing the narrative on urban climate action, the potential for a green recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, the importance of building resilience into city strategies across the board from here on out, and methods of funding the urgent climate action cities need.

For more on climate action, become a SmartCitiesWorld member today and browse our dedicated Climate Action content hub.

Clare Wildfire

In her global leadership role at Mott MacDonald, Clare uses systemic engineering at building and city scales to push boundaries and, most importantly, improve people’s lives. She leads regeneration, low carbon and sustainable innovation projects. From her 30 years’ experience in the sector, originally as a building services engineer on low impact buildings, Clare combines her practical understanding of construction and development drivers and processes at macro and micro levels with policy engagement, bringing insight into the technical, political, financial and behavioural aspects of sustainable development and healthy, resilient, low carbon living.

Madeleine Rawlins

Madeleine leads Mott MacDonald’s international climate and environment portfolio as well as working with the Mott MacDonald Executive Board to embed climate change across the business. She brings over 20 years’ international experience in climate change, including managing one of the largest carbon credit portfolios in the world based out of Asia as well as leading international policy programmes on climate change.

Podcast: In conversation with Xavier Brice, CEO, Sustrans

The latest episode of the SmartCitiesWorld Podcast sees editor Luke Antoniou joined by Sustrans CEO Xavier Bryce for a conversation on all things sustainable urban mobility. 

Improving the sustainability of our urban transport networks is a key objective for cities, and while progress has been made in the last five years or so, clear paths forward – especially paths backed by proven business models – aren’t always obvious. 

In this episode of the SmartCitiesWorld Podcast, Sustrans CEO Xavier Brice explains the potential route forward for planning urban transport networks and services, and how our existing approach may need to be turned somewhat on its head as we emerge from the pandemic. 

Xavier explains the need for a better mix of electric vehicle planning and usage, active travel, shared mobility and public transport, as well as the need for more integrated transport and urban planning to make more efficient use of the limited space available to transport and city authorities. 

He also goes into detail about establishing sustainable business models and use cases for greener mobility, as the conversation turns from one aspect of sustainability to another on the financial struggle that transport authorities can so often face. Xavier explains the importance of local transport authorities taking the lead on innovative models and networks for urban mobility, versus a more prescribed central government approach. 

Furthermore, there’s conversation on public uptake and awareness of more sustainable transportation modes and the impact that transport authorities can have on public decision making, plus the role that organisations such as Sustrans can play in ensuring that, above all else, it is simple for people to make the green choice when it comes to mobility. 

Xavier is passionate about improving how we travel for the better. He believes that the way we choose to get around shapes how happy we are as individuals and as a society. 

Mobility-as-a-Service: the sustainable future of mobility?

In the latest episode of the SmartCitiesWorld Podcast, senior editor Luke Antoniou catches up with the Urban Mobility Partnership’s Chris Pritchett to talk MaaS implementation, transport integration and a shift to more sustainable travel. 

 

To begin with, there’s discussion of exactly what MaaS means to Chris and UMP at a time when definitions of the term can be fluid. Here, Chris explains why it’s important to get that definition right to properly help travellers to understand the types of new and shared mobility options that are potentially available to them. 

 

From there, Chris details how public and private partnerships, such as those seen within UMP, are crucial to getting MaaS pilots and schemes off the ground in order to provide genuine mobility alternatives for those in urban areas and beyond. There’s also talk of how to level up the digital side of mobility services to encourage better transport connectivity and interoperability between operators, and the benefits that could bring to passengers. 

Chris also details the work that UMP has planned for 2022 and how authorities can look to take the opportunity to get back on track with their mobility plans as we continue to transition out of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Chris is head of energy and future mobility at Foot Anstey. Recognised as one of the most innovative and creative lawyers in the business, Chris was named in 2019’s The Lawyer Hot 100. His ambition lies in finding new opportunities in emerging technologies – helping to create hybrid energy and data projects that put the customer first. Chris is an extremely innovative, commercial and client-focused lawyer who is always ahead of renewable energy industry developments. Foot Anstey is a member of the Urban Mobility Partnership, a transport coalition founded to ensure that effective policy and innovative technology supports better mobility and helps to tackle major challenges of congestion, air quality and climate change. 

Podcast: The key to enabling city collaboration

The latest SmartCitiesWorld podcast sees senior editor Luke Antoniou joined by Kalyn Sims, CTO of Hexagon Safety & Infrastructure, to discuss the ley to cross-departmental and inter-agency collaboration in today’s smart cities.

 

In this latest episode of the SmartCitiesWorld podcast, sponsored by Hexagon, Kalyn Sims, CTO of Hexagon Safety & Infrastructure gives her take on the importance of providing cities with a holistic view of city operations and how that leads to improved collaboration and efficiency.

To begin with, Kalyn explains the increased importance of intra- and inter-agency collaboration in recent years and how technology has helped to improve how departments and agencies work together across cities. There are also best practice tips and advice on how to establish those partnerships across cities’ operational teams and how to prevent siloes.

Building on that, Kalyn delves into how to break down some of the most common barriers to collaboration between city departments and agencies, explaining the ways that city leaders can foster a team atmosphere, and develop a holistic approach to technology procurement.

There’s also discussion of the role that Hexagon’s Safety & Infrastructure division plays in assisting cities to achieve their collaboration goals through the implementation of Hexagon Connect.

 Kalyn Sims is the chief technology officer of Hexagon Safety & Infrastructure. Her focus is on the growth and development of new product offerings and innovative technology. Sims joined the organisation in 2011 through an acquisition of her company, Denali Solutions, which she founded in 2000. Prior to founding Denali Solutions, Sims worked as a management consultant and software engineer for several corporations, including Booz, Allen & Hamilton, and Thermo Electron. She holds a bachelor's degree in computer science and a master's in business administration.

For more information about Hexagon Connect, visit: https://www.hexagondata.com/en/solutions/hexagon-connect/

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