Global Resources and Promising Practices for Building and Refining Accessible and Inclusive Smart Cities from Darren Bates LLC.
What is the Digital Divide, and why should I care? It’s hard to imagine that in a city like Austin there is still a large segment of the city that has no idea how to use a computer; however, even in this high tech mecca, the digital divide exists. The digital divide is a term that describes the disparity between…
Read More
Net Inclusion 2018 welcomes digital inclusion community practitioners, advocates, academics, Internet service providers, and policymakers to discuss local, state and federal policies and policy innovations impacting digital equity, sources of financial and programmatic support of digital inclusion programs, plus digital inclusion best practices from across the country. Net Inclusion 2018 will begin Tuesday, April 17th with pre-conference events in the…
Read More
Smart City Seattle: The Digital Equity Initiative Seattle’s Digital Equity Initiative was launched in response to the City’s quadrennial Technology Indicators Report, released in May 2014. The Report found significant disparities in internet access and digital literacy skills for those of lower education, low-incomes, seniors, disabled, minorities, and immigrants. The Initiative is one part of the Mayor’s broadband strategy to…
Read More
Smart Cities Need Technology That Understands All Humans Cities need to be accessible to all, including those with hearing and sight impairments, and restricted mobility The world’s cities and their populations are growing at an unprecedented rate. The United Nations predicts that by 2050, 66 percent of the world’s population will live in urbanized areas, compared to just a…
Read More
Smart cities are getting more and more attention in the media, from technology companies and entrepreneurs, and increasingly from both local governments and civil society. On one hand, smart cities hold the promise to potentially make the growing number of cities around the globe more efficient, more tech-savvy, more wired–and with all that, they can hopefully improve the quality of…
Read More
The city nearly drowned. In the warm days of mid-June, about 160 years after the old river town was incorporated, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was hit with the worst flood in its history. One of those 500-year floods that no one thinks they’ll ever see. The kind of flood that evokes allusions to Noah, or Katrina. The Cedar River swelled…
Read More
Government is transforming applications, contracts, and payment portals to all be housed online. This is incredible, but only if you have all three legs of the stool — the internet in your home, a computer beyond a smart phone, and the digital literacy training to help you use these tools to access the resources needed. As Pittsburgh develops as a technology city…
Read More
Inclusive Innovation Meetup at City Theatre In 2017, 136 organizations hosted 79 free events across 20 neighborhoods in 8 days centered on 1 theme, Inclusive innovation. Inclusive Innovation Week is a platform for the City to support and promote organizations and businesses working towards equity in a transforming Pittsburgh. During the week, important conversations about equity and innovation are brought forward…
Read More
Digital Inclusion Digital Inclusion refers to the activities necessary to ensure that all individuals and communities, including the most disadvantaged, have access to and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). This includes 5 elements: 1) affordable, robust broadband internet service; 2) internet-enabled devices that meet the needs of the user; 3) access to digital literacy training; 4) quality technical…
Read More
This white paper will provide the reader with insight into the role technology plays for the full participation of persons with disabilities and older people in the digital society. The authors consider equal opportunities to participate in all realms of life a human right. The paper will help the reader to understand what the barriers to full digital inclusion for…
Read More
By Max Starkov Background: There are approximately 48.9 million Americans with some form of disability. People with disabilities spend over $17.3 billion annually on travel, and the economic impact is at least double that figure since many of them travel with at least one or two other adults (Open Doors Organization). The vast majority of them use the Internet to plan…
Read More
slider container SmartPGH was conceived to reconnect displaced communities to jobs, education and essential services. Through the USDOT Smart City Challenge grant and others like it, we’ll use technology to develop the kind of safe, reliable transit all Pittsburghers deserve. We’re on the cusp of a new revolution in transportation and information technology that has the potential to change the…
Read More
The Roadmap for Inclusive Innovation is a living strategic plan developed from the vision of Mayor William Peduto for the City of Pittsburgh to be a city of equity, access and opportunity through cross-sector partnerships and collaboration. The Roadmap sets out to connect, encourage and measure inclusive innovation in the City of Pittsburgh through internal innovation and partnerships with organizations,…
Read More
Open Data is an essential part when creating Smart Cities, but this may sound like an exaggerated statement without substantiation founded. The best in these cases is to answer the question, how can Open Data help Smart Cities? Here we list ten examples to demonstrate the importance of this relationship. We live in a world where more and more people…
Read More
San Antonio officials announced Tuesday night it had formed a new standing committee to address technology and innovation. break According to Mayor Ron Nirenberg, the innovation and technology committee will take on smart city goals, strategy for growing the cyber security industry, digital inclusion initiatives, open data and expanding municipal broadband access all under one roof. “We’ve been working in…
Read More
Showcasing for the first time late last month, the Smart Regions Conference brought together a diverse group of leaders to discuss opportunities in Smart Cities. Rhonda Binda (Venture Smarter), Bjorn Simmons (Wyzerr), Michael Beck (Code for Kids), Austin Lee (Northern Kentucky University), Jason Miller (Centric Consulting), and Seema Shah (LaGuardia Community College) collaborate on Innovation, Inclusion and the Workforce of…
Read More
The smartest solutions thrive beyond city limits. Smart Regions enable smaller communities to implement smart city solutions, and focus on outcomes that put people first in our rural and suburban areas as well as our urban cores. They use technology to optimize or altogether replace failing systems and infrastructure, and in doing so alleviate otherwise strained municipal budgets. To begin…
Read More
CES 2018 Accessibility Technology showcases innovative technologies that are changing the way people work, live and play regardless of age or disability.
Read More
To build an inclusive smart city, look through an age-friendly lens. As the aging population expands, some cities are implementing strategic plans to ensure the needs of the elderly are met — especially in terms of mobility and housing. Published Jan. 9, 2018 Attention to equity in city planning and in the distribution of municipal services is booming,…
Read More
Can Phoenix become a transit city? It’s looking like more and more of a possibility lately. Phoenix’s Metro light rail system is less than six years old but has already surpassed ridership projections for 2020. The system is carrying 48,000 passengers a day, or 22,000 more than initially projected, according to the Arizona Republic. Extensions of the system, […] .entry-header Perhaps no other…
Read More