Leading Smart City Companies Advocate Rio+20 Urban Development Strategy
Key strategists, led by Living PlanIT, convene at Smart Cities for Sustainable Urban Development Event at United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
Read More on the UN EventGeneva, Switzerland – 1-2 December 2011
Geneva, Switzerland, 1st December, 2011: Living PlanIT, the urban technology specialist, and its key partners are today participating in an event at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to discuss effective strategies for making ‘smart cities’ a key driver of the economy.
At the event, the development of ‘smart cities’ and their contribution to sustainable urban development will be presented by technologists, corporate planners and experts, including senior representatives of the UNECE, Living PlanIT SA, Microsoft Corporation, Philips, city planners Buro Happold and Harvard Business School. The recommendations of the meeting will, in turn, be presented at the Rio+20, the UN Conference on Sustainable Development.
Technology-driven approaches may offer the greatest opportunity today for progress in urban development, to achieve a higher quality of life and sustainable economic development. The next-generation of urban development will be based on integrated technology platforms, which complement and centrally manage the diverse range of data collected from activities monitored within a city. Structuring city-wide data in this way can make a social infrastructure more efficient, more environmentally friendly, and provide a greater range of information and services to enterprises and citizens. Living PlanIT’s Urban Operating System (UOS™), orchestrates all manner of intelligent devices, from those embedded in the very fabric of buildings, to those managing energy, water, waste, education, transportation, medical and interactive surfaces. It provides the platform that centrally manages the enormous amount of data collected within a city and is becoming the de facto standard for the industrialization of the internet.
Steve Lewis, Living PlanIT, said:
“Governments and industry acknowledge that the innovation of smart cities is a key driver of an efficient and sustainable economy. But there is currently uncertainty about how to integrate a solution across the vast range of technologies and how they can be properly structured, financed, deployed and profitably managed. This meeting is an important step forward in agreeing a strategy to harmonise technologies to enable a practical, cost effective, sustainable smart cities model.”
Scott Foster, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, said:
“Rio+20 in June 2012 is all about acting on sustainable development - implementing solutions that benefit the environment and support the burgeoning global green economy. Smart cities that combine social and environmental capital in an efficient technology framework can make a critical contribution and will be investigated at this side event held during the Regional Preparatory Meeting.”
Andrew Comer, Managing Director, Environment and Infrastructure, Buro Happold, said:
"A step-change is required in the planning, design, construction and operations of world cities if the impacts of global shifts in demographics, resource depletion and climate change are to be mitigated.
At Buro Happold, we are committed to helping cities develop through sustainable social, economic and environmental measures that offer resilience for the future. There is no doubt that the application of emerging technologies will play a key role in achieving those goals."
The event on Smart Cities and Sustainable Urban Development will be held during the United Nations Regional Preparatory Meeting for the ECE Region of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development on 1-2 December 2011 in the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland. The event brings together an array of companies working together in the sector. It will provide presentations of corporate strategies, an analysis of the terms and definitions of ‘smart’ eco-cities as these may contribute to promoting international cooperation in this field and conclusions and recommendations for the Regional Preparatory Meeting.
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development Regional Preparatory Meeting for the ECE Region
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
1-2 December 2011, Geneva, Switzerland Palais des Nations, Geneva
Thursday 1 December
10:00 – 13:00 Opening Session – Regional Preparatory Meeting
13:15 – 14:45 Side Event – Salle XVIII – Palais des Nations
Smart Cities and Sustainable Urban Development
Provisional Programme
Moderator
Mr. Frederic Romig, Vice President, Government Affairs, Living PlanIT SA
Introduction to Smart Technologies and Green Buildings
Mr. Scott Foster, Director, Sustainable Energy Division, UN Economic Commission for Europe
Smart Cities for Sustainable Urban Development
Mr. Steve Lewis, Chief Executive Officer, Living PlanIT SA
Urban Planning, Design and Construction for Smart City Developments
Mr. Andrew Comer, Managing Director, Environment and Infrastructure, Buro Happold
Sustainable Behaviour as Key for Sustainable Development - Implementing Flexible Working Models
Ms. Kevyn Eva Norton, Program Manager, New World of Work, Microsoft Corporation
Smart Solutions – Sustainability in Action
Mr. Cees Bijl, Vice President, Global Segment Leader Outdoor, Philips Lighting
Taxonomy and the Definition of Smart Cities
Professor Amy C. Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management, Harvard Business School
Conclusions and Recommendations for the Regional Preparatory Meeting
All participants
15:00 – 18:00 Afternoon Session – Regional Preparatory Meeting
For further information please contact:
Media
Living PlanIT SA
16 Grosvenor Street
London W1K 4QF, United Kingdom
media@living-planit.com
www.living-planit.com
