Ugo Valenti: Smart City Expo World Congress 2017. Empower Cities. Empower People.
During these recent years, the concept of smart cities has been widespread across the globe raising awareness about the need to transform cities and through them, the world. Many have agreed that digital technologies and more precisely ICT and IoT are the backbone of the cities of the future and it is true that without them urban transformation would be impossible. But tools are precisely that. Metropolises are run and inhabited by people and they are indeed the lifeblood of cities themselves. If ships need crews, then smart cities need smart, engaged and empowered people.
Every day the urban population grows bigger and by 2050 70% of the world’s inhabitants will live in cities. Fortunately, new emerging technologies are helping us to manage mobility, energy consumption, urbanism, economy and information in a radically different manner. They are also shifting the relationship between governments and residents, taking it one step further and engaging them as part of urban governance.
It is inevitable then that a smart society starts to involve people fully and gives them an active and decisive role in the evolution of our cities. That is why Smart City Expo World Congress once again reaffirms its positioning and puts people and cities at the left of the action, making them the indisputable protagonists of a new urban paradigm.
It is also for this reason that the event has updated its image: the logo puts focus on the city; the geometric shapes, that move around to give a 360º perspective, take on an even more human and spontaneous feel, and the images put the citizens in the foreground too, in order to give both them and cities a powerful and collective global voice.
From 14th to 16th of November, Smart City Expo World Congress will address this global challenge from 8 perspectives - Governance, Mobility, Safe Cities, Economy, Sustainability, Circular Economy, Society and Data&Technology.
The Congress will provide a platform for in-depth discussion with more than 400 international experts who will share their ideas and bring the smart city debate up to date. Meanwhile the Exhibition Area will be the perfect meeting point to showcase solutions, network and identify new business opportunities and collaboration with companies, governments and organizations around the world.
In parallel, the event will host more than 50 Side Events, among which is Smart Mobility World Congress, the new international event to accelerate the future of urban mobility. Smart transport will be the focus of an event that will attract key players in the sector and aims to become a world reference in the field of mobility.
To do so, to transform the world and make it better, we invite cities, companies and citizens to come and engage in dialogue, establish alliances, learn from each other and devise ways to walk together and make this possible. Join us at Smart City Expo World Congress, #theEventforCities that gathers all players on stage during three days to jointly reshape our future.
Best,
Ugo Valenti
Director
Smart City Expo World Congress
Exhibit in Smart City Expo World Congress: https://goo.gl/YSQZUx
Visit the event: https://goo.gl/yKkBgW