Smart City Development in the USA

Smart City Development in the USA
Sandra Baer
Personal Cities
www.personalcities.com
Cities Across the US Are Transforming

Creating new collaborations—a recognition of the need and the value to build trust between
government and the private sector; creating alliances with universities, nonprofits, entrepreneurs
and citizens to effect change

More active government planning—moving strategies to action and leveraging faster, simpler
operations; seeing the value of holistic, inclusive, resilient cities

A new appreciation of the power of social media to change the balance of power in cities and
among citizens—through the sharing economy, the circular economy, crowdsourcing,
crowdfunding, citizens have a voice
The “New” Smart City

Aligned! It understands the value of collaboration & the power of partnerships to get
things done

Aware of its character, its sense of place, & actively works to communicate its image to all
who live, work, play & visit the city

Inclusive; it invests in human & social capital to fuel stakeholder engagement

Views technology as the enabler to create a better quality of life—for livable,
workable, sustainable communities

Resilient & regenerative; using natural resources, technology innovation & human
talent in optimal ways

Economically vibrant; leveraging investments holistically to shape a 2030 future that
is healthy, happy, safe & prosperous
Green Cities Defined

Focused on reducing its carbon footprint

Good air and water quality

Efficient recycling and management of waste

Percentage of LEED-certified buildings

Acres of land devoted to green space

Use of renewable energy sources

Clean transportation and multiple mobility options

Easy access to products and services that reflect a green lifestyle
The Real Opportunity for City Leaders
The savvy city leader owns these qualities:
①
They have a vision! Work collaboratively, across all departments, engaging all stakeholders to
shape a sustainable future
②
They are receptive to innovation and new technologies. Open their minds to new ideas and new
ways of doing business
③
They have the money or know where to find it—they know that investments in smart city
innovation will keep the city attractive, vibrant and growing
Oakland, California
Oakland’s Sustainability Vision
To protect a clean and ecologically healthy environment; grow a strong economy and foster a safe,
equitable and vibrant community
SunShares: a program that fosters the purchase of solar power and zero-emission vehicles at a
discounted rate
Intensive Water Conservation Incentives: Reducing urban runoff, converting lawns to droughtresistant plants, fostering water efficiency as a community necessity
Sustainable Design: Strategic design guidelines support transit use, revitalized retail and development
of mixed income housing
Boston, Massachusetts
Boston’s Energy Accomplishments
Ranked as the top energy-efficient city in the US, Boston requires all buildings to benchmark energy
usage and communicate performance
Targeting Greenhouse Gas Reductions: 25% by 2020 across neighborhoods, businesses and
transportation sectors
Preparing for the Impact of Climate Change: Recognizing sea-level rise and its affect on all city
development decisions
Increasing Community Engagement: Using performance measures to motivate and educate every
citizen
Washington, DC
Washington, DC’s Green Investments
Investing in DC’s green economy is good for our environment and good for business. Energy
efficiency is the mandate; job creation in this expanding sector is the benefit!

Planting a tree canopy covering 40% of the city

Building the biggest bike share network in the US

Diverting 80 percent of the city’s waste from landfills

Expanding urban agriculture so that 75 percent of residents are within a quarter-mile of healthy,
local produce.
Resetting the Future of Our World
True engagement toward a sustainable world requires alignment
 Join up
 Team up
 Create new collaborations, new alliances, new confederations
Our ability to inspire people to join up, get aligned, generate
enough power to solve problems will enable us to make valuable
contibutions to our communities. Today, it is essential to our
survival.
Thank you!
Sandra Baer
President, Personal Cities
[email protected]
Malaga, Spain
Malaga, Spain

Málaga is capital of the Costa del Sol, a metropolitan area of 1.2 million people, as well as one of
the world’s most famous tourism destinations

As it works to become a knowledge-based economy, Malaga is “Open for Business!” Actively
creating new collaborations with the University of Málaga, the 500 company Technology Park of
Andalusia

Leveraging its cultural infrastructure—over 30 museums, vibrant city center and port, Malaga is a
destination for living, working, playing

Aggressively switching their modes of mobility—away from cars to public transport, bikes and
intelligent highway systems
Melbourne, Australia
Melbourne, Australia

Communicate the city’s vision for stakeholder engagement!

Stay local! Promote place-based decision-making

Expand social media! Ensure information is highly accessible to all urban dwellers

Take risks! Adopt more entrepreneurial approaches to deliver current and future needs of local communities

Start small! Initiate pilot projects around participatory democracy and participatory budgeting

Educate! Ensure the built environment reflects the needs of all vulnerable groups (inclusionary zoning, affordable housing
and public transport, safe and accessible public space).
LinkNYC
Connecting New York
18
3
Nektria RECShipping

Nektria is a startup based in Barcelona, Spain. Founded and invested by Silicon Valley and
Barcelona-based executives: Amit Sood (Google), Miguel Valls (Dadata Capital LLC), Hans
Hickler (former CEO DHL Express USA).

They have launched RECShipping (www.recshipping.com): the first SaaS solution for ecommerce
logistics allowing shoppers to chose their delivery day and time slot at a variable price (demand
management) while also optimizing delivery routes for carriers (supply management).

RECShipping will become the world's Operating System for ecommerce delivery.
VERGE2016
From Rhetoric to Action
Strategies to Accelerate Smart Cities
Sandra Baer
Personal Cities