In October, Emerging Innovators attended Smart Cities Week (SCW) in Sydney to
represent the voice of a new generation and influence conversations at this
significant event.
The Emerging Innovators kicked off the week with a members-only workshop that
provided opportunities for all of us to meet, learn about key projects in the
regions we represent and work on our 2019 Action Plan.
That same day we also hosted two expert panels on data, governance, design, and
Smart City trends expertly chaired by SCCEI
members Oliver Lock and Prugya Maini, and then enjoyed a keynote speech by QLD Coordinator Zoe Eather who gave a Millennial’s perspective on Smart Cities.
The day concluded with a session run by University of Technology Sydney (UTS) to inform their new Masters, which will be the first degree in Australia to focus specifically on Smart Cities.
The following two conference days saw the Emerging Innovators volunteer with the operational aspects of the event and most importantly, speak on panels and actively engage in discussions with the other delegates.
Marika Svikis delivered a fantastic opening speech, putting a young face on the agenda which is exactly what we wanted to achieve. Tara Ritchey spoke on diversity, while Julia Hamilton and Janine Betz discussed the future of planning alongside Chris Isles from Place Design Group, who launched the Smart Cities Explorer tool that same day (Check it out – It’s awesome!).
Sean Audain and Chris Rowlands shared their experiences driving smart city initiatives in Wellington, NZ and Bendigo, VIC. We were all thrilled to witness Katherine Tobias
win the inaugural Emerging Leader award!
In summary, SCW 2018 gave us a great opportunity to promote our brand but most importantly learn about the great community of people who work on and are
passionate about smart cities.
We all cannot wait for Smart Cities Week 2019!
