GCTC Smart City Projects Presented at Smart Cities Conference and Workshop

On November 28, 2023, the NIST Global Community Technology Challenge (GCTC) presented three smart city projects on a panel at the Smart Cities Connect conference in Washington, D.C. The cities’ projects were representative of city efforts to enhance transparency and open access to information between local government and community residents, which could serve as models for other communities. Panel members included Jennifer Tifft, Office of the Mayor of Syracuse, New York; Raimundo Rodulfo, Chief Technology Officer of Coral Gables, Florida; and Dr. Mariela Alfonzo, CEO of State of Place, a small business focused on data analytics to enhance community quality of life at the intersection of technology, data, geography, and urban design.   The panel was chaired by Michael Dunaway, NIST program lead for GCTC.

Following the cities’ presentations, Michael Dunaway briefly described the National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (NSSCET) and the document’s reference to smart cities, Internet of Things, and connected infrastructure. He also invited attendees to participate in the NIST Virtual Public Listening Session on 19 December that is seeking public input on the Request for Information (RFI) on implementation of the NSSCET.

Following the conference, the GCTC team and city representatives participated in a workshop hosted by the U.S. Department of State’s Office of the Science and Technology Adviser to define concepts and values that could assist Foreign Service Officers in presenting U.S. smart cities policies and initiatives to overseas contacts and aid in identifying economic opportunities for U.S. technology firms.