The Transformation to SMART Cities of the future.

Digital transformation refers to the integration of digital technologies into almost every facet of business and nation-building. The global pandemic further catalyzed and catapulted the transformative process, which has fundamentally changed the ways in which we operate, how we do business, exchange goods and services, and interact culturally with supercharged change, intrinsic to the digital age. Certainly, discerning governments across the globe have recognized that it is imperative if not urgent, to make public sector services more automated and less face-to-face. Speed, efficiency, security, and accessibility, are some of the immediate mutual wins for citizens and the state. The new digital frameworks are also determining new jobs, and creating innovative knowledge centers and opportunities, which move economies away from traditional models in readiness for a more modernized, agile future, ultimately aimed at simplifying life and elevating it to quality with sustainability at the core. Evolving from this foundation and driven by the United Nations 2050 development goals to reduce carbon emissions, urban city planning in the top three global urban cities has embraced the transformative effects to be exemplars and beacons for other UN signatory countries and developing states, to follow suit or else get left behind.

Copenhagen, Seoul, and Toronto earned 90-of-100 in the Digital Cities Index, for their use of digital technologies in supporting their urban sustainability by up to 33%.  Singapore was elected as the SMARTEST city, Helsinki – Finland the second smartest, and Zurich ranked third . These cities exude Smart pathways of progress which innovatively mesh digital transformation with green and sustainable solutions, geared to support natural resource optimization, creative environmental initiatives, time and human resource planning…people, processes, productivity, and profitability, which are central to such integrative solutions.

 A SMART city or Intelligent city according to the European Commission goes beyond the digital divide, to plan for smarter transportation, upgraded delivery of utilities like water and electricity, waste disposal, heating, and cooling. SMART CITIES are response centric, in their administration, provide safer, healthier public spaces, and cater to their aging populations. Education is also delivered innovatively and interactively and is directly aligned with development goals, careers, trades, and skillets of the future, seemingly more perfectly thought out and chiseled for tomorrow’s leaders and shakers. Productivity is well-planned one could say.

Smart Cities feature Smart buildings, these are Energy optimized buildings powered by Renewable energy. SMART INFRASTRUCTURE, embedded digital technologies that are interconnected, modular, and multifunctional. This includes Smart Parking spaces, meters, and lighting. SMART MOBILITY electric cars, buses, commercial vehicles, and charging stations. SMART ENERGY enables systems that power cities from fossil fuels to renewables, utilizing Smart power grids and power saving for maximum efficiency. SMART TECHNOLOGY uses analytics to inform strategic decisions and city planning to uplift urban life. SMART HOMES citizens reside in Safety and comfort, with intelligent devices appliances, cooling, heating, and remote-controlled options. 

If this sounds like sci-fi …it isn’t…the future is HERE and NOW. Smart Cities are being implemented using the Internet of Things( IoT) to steer their purpose, public utilities, and public services in order to attain the UN Sustainable Development Goals (link to UNSDGs) While the overriding objective may be reduced carbon footprint, SMART Cities make perfect sense in terms of incorporating technology with human functionality. 

In the more vulnerable small states of the world, such migration and transformation will not only be challenged by size but by the expertise required to ensure implementation, economic barriers, and environmental constraints. Nevertheless, most capital cities are transforming their digital frameworks to embrace more efficient ways to conduct business and live life with quality and excellence at heart.