IEEE has selected the municipalities of Wuxi, China and Trento, Italy for the IEEE Smart Cities Initiative.
These two cities will join Guadalajara, Mexico, the initial city participant, said IEEE Smart Cities Initiative Steering Committee.
Gilles Betis, chair of the IEEE Smart Cities Initiative, said: “We selected the cities of Trento and Wuxi because they provided compelling evidence that they were particularly well positioned to utilize the resources offered through the IEEE Smart Cities Initiative, and they demonstrated plans to invest their own human and financial capital into the project, indicating their commitment to improving the quality of life for their citizens.”
City planners from Wuxi and Trento will collaborate with IEEE experts to explore the issues and address what is needed for their growing urban populations.
In addition, their participation in the IEEE Smart Cities Initiative will comprise an inaugural workshop, whitepaper development, graduate student support (PhD and Masters), development of content for “MOOCs” (Massive Open Online Courses), and organization of an international conference on smart cities.
The largest issue Wuxi is attempting to solve is enabling sustainable growth for its city. Being able to tap into the brain power of IEEE experts in that process will help Wuxi achieve its urbanization goals to reduce pollution levels and traffic congestion, provide adequate energy, housing and employment, and generally ensure its city residents enjoy and thrive in their living environment.
