{"id":29997,"date":"2021-05-25T13:01:46","date_gmt":"2021-05-25T13:01:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/technopolis-group.com\/?p=29997"},"modified":"2021-10-20T14:52:04","modified_gmt":"2021-10-20T14:52:04","slug":"responding-to-the-changing-needs-of-europes-cities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/technopolis-group.com\/nl\/responding-to-the-changing-needs-of-europes-cities\/","title":{"rendered":"Responding to the changing needs of Europe\u2019s cities"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The start of the Intelligent Cities Challenges (ICC), an EU project to boost the uptake of new advanced technology by EU and international cities, coincided with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The European Commission and consortium, led by Technopolis Group, managed to adapt the project and orient the support and advisory service delivery towards the new needs of cities as a consequence of COVID-19.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nIntelligent Cities Challenge wants to get small and medium-sized cities out of\ntheir comfort zone. Over 2 years, participating cities go through several phases\nof designing and implementing new city strategies to integrate digital and\nnon-digital technology-driven solutions at a local level. To do so, they get\nsupport from leading national and international experts and inspiration from renowned\nmentor cities\u2019 best-practice cases all while building collaborations with other\ncities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The project\nby the European Commission\u2019s DG GROW and EISMEA is designed to help cities that\naren\u2019t usually known as technology frontrunners leapfrog ahead into the future.\nThe project partially relies on the experience from its predecessor, the\nDigital Cities Challenge, but comes with an increased budget to support a growing\nnumber of cities \u2013 a total of 136 core and mentor cities take part. The aim is\nto pick up technological solutions that help foster sustainable and green\ngrowth, enhance skills and support local SMEs and start-ups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So far, so\nexciting? Well, it\u2019s just that cities could apply to take part in the project from\nFebruary 2020 \u2013 right when the COVID-19 crisis reached Europe. Cities suddenly had\ndifferent priorities than writing convincing pitches on why they deserve a spot\nin the challenge. The consortium, led by Technopolis Group, supported the\nEuropean Commission in responding to the changing circumstances and needs and\ncame up with a package of solutions and adaptations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COVID-19:\nChanging needs, adapted support<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

In the ICC,\ncities play an active role. They are required to put in the effort to create\ntech-driven strategies and to implement solutions with the support and advice\nthey receive over the entire duration of the project. To allow cities to compile\ncompetitive applications in addition to dealing with the pandemic, the\napplication period was extended, the initiative\u2019s focus and dissemination\nefforts were targeted towards supporting COVID-19 recovery as a first step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Secondly, cities in Europe and beyond were \u2013 and are \u2013 encouraged to share best practices on tech-driven solutions in the fight against COVID on a dedicated database on the ICC\u2019s website<\/a>. Other cities and stakeholders can draw inspiration from such best-practice cases to come up with solutions that fit their local context best. Examples include disinfection robots for hospitals<\/a> that clean hospitals without exposing staff to unnecessary risks or a network of volunteer mask sewers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a third immediate measure, we organised a series of webinars on how cities can respond to the pandemic<\/a> using tech-based solutions. The speakers of the event were drawn from European and International cities but also from the project\u2019s consortium, which is made up of leading consultancies. The webinars were open to any city representative or stakeholders, which led to a big turnout from across Europe, with over 400 registrations for some of the events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nCOVID-19 crisis didn\u2019t only influence the start of the project; the pandemic is\nalso leaving its mark on the overall methodology of the ICC. Cities were\nsupposed to receive continuous face-to-face advice from the project\u2019s more than\n60 lead and 150 thematic experts, and the \u201ccity lab\u201d events were meant to take\nplace in-person. Additionally, informal knowledge exchange and collaboration\nbetween cities were planned to take place at the side-lines of the events. Social\ndistancing rules still make in-person events largely impossible. This is why\nTechnopolis Group is using a large variety of digital tools and approaches to\nrecreate the \u201ccity labs\u201d online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From\ncrisis response to blueprint<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This\nadapted methodology is proving appealing to the participating cities and\nexperts, who are making the project thrive with their energy and enthusiasm, regardless\nof the circumstances. The strong commitment on both sides makes it possible to\ndeliver tailor-made advice for the local context and challenges of each city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the initial adaptation to the pandemic is gradually pushed to the background by the need to recover from the crisis, the ICC is launching several initiatives to \u201cbuild back better\u201d. One example is the Tech4Good marketplace<\/a> hosted on the ICC website where cities can see what technology-driven solutions other cities have already implemented and draw inspiration from for their own sustainable and digital recovery strategies. Secondly, a reskilling guide will be published in the coming weeks with guidance for cities on how to facilitate training programmes in sectors with increasing job opportunities. Additionally, the Local Green Deal Blueprint will be presented at the upcoming Mayors Summit on the Local Green Deal<\/a>. This blueprint will guide cities on how to design and implement their own city-level deals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ICC adaptation hasn\u2019t only been well received by the cities but also by decision-makers. In the context of the economic recovery from the current crisis, the European Commission is using the ICC as a platform to raise awareness of further funding opportunities among cities that don\u2019t have much experience in accessing EU investments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The start of the Intelligent Cities Challenges (ICC), an EU […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,230],"tags":[],"solution":[181,165,157],"sector":[85,86,173,70],"class_list":["post-29997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-geen-onderdeel-van-een-categorie","category-technopolitan-nl","solution-communication-nl","solution-complex-nl","solution-network-management-nl","sector-digitalisation-nl","sector-entrepreneurship-nl","sector-green-economy-nl","sector-higher-education-nl"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nResponding to the changing needs of Europe\u2019s cities - Technopolis Group<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/technopolis-group.com\/nl\/responding-to-the-changing-needs-of-europes-cities\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"nl_NL\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Responding to the changing needs of Europe\u2019s cities - 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