Today is the last day of the study tour part of the course and I have to say I am quietly excited as the day set out is focused on technology.
There have been many discussions on whether or not Smart communities are about technology or people, the answer is quiet simple. At the heart of SMART communities are people, and I don’t think anyone, whoever you are would disagree. Yet there seems to be a challenge with dealing with what the role of technology should be or is, so let’s clear this up.
Technology “enables” a smart community, smart people and smart leadership. You cannot focus on technology alone but couple it with people, places, process and progress, technology is central to that journey.
So first stop is Cognicity, an initiative set up in Canary Wharf to encourage participants to respond both to current elements of residents’ and workers’ interaction with existing built environments, as well as anticipating future construction and adaptation need.
Enter Strawberry tree an SME that develops green and smart urban devices to provide people with energy, connectivity and local information in public spaces.
By bringing IoT to outdoor public spaces to around 400.000 users, we strive to improve urban living and make cities smarter and greener. http://senergy.rs/o-nama/?lang=en
There were many companies at Cognicity. A company that recycles natural waste and store it in bins that coverts to electricity, amazing when you think about the space levels in London and the fact that energy sources are running out.
A citizen experience app called KnowNow , that deploys Information to help organisations create additional value in real time from their assets and everyday activities through internet connectivity. It will tell you not to get on train and go for a coffee if there is a delay so you are using your time most effectively, that is pretty cool in a world where every minute counts
And how would you feel if roads were not blocked with delivery trucks, when you are trying to get to work, well Voyage Control is a platform for businesses to manage, optimise and track their freight deliveries, by providing a scheduling service to optimise the full supply chain
Some of the ideas are pretty impressive and continued throughout the day to Digital Greenwich. We had the great pleasure of meeting the Greenwich digital team including Councillor Helen Hyland, Trevor Dorling, Director of employment and skills and digital and John Comber, Chief Executive, Royal Borough of Greenwich.
Between them they set out a strategy for Greenwich that for me was on the cusp of a blueprint for Smart Communities. They talked about jobs, skills, technology, and vision and at the heart of their strategy were people. They were the first group of leaders to talk about skills, and people, both in terms of growth and the community support, including a fantastic project around a new leisure centre that will include a library and a digital room for communities to be trained on the internet
But the Digital Greenwich hub also incubates start-ups and support small SME’s to make their solutions a reality, including a service called Sticky World that digitalises’ the concept of a post-it note and connects with communities on local planning permissions, services and much more
But the thing that really struck me about Greenwich was they have connected, to SME’s to education, to businesses and the communities. For me these guys have put the SMART in SMART leadership. If you have never been done to Greenwich I encourage you to do so, it is quite amazing and yes this is the place they have the autonomous cars J
So the study tour has come to an end and what a better way to finish than to be given the great privilege of being asked to say the closing remarks, which was apt considering it was Digital Greenwich.
Addressing Councillor Hyland, Trevor Dorling, John Comber, the CSC Leaders group, the SME’s and not forgetting the fantastic Common Purpose team, I hope that I represented Cisco and my new collegues honourably
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