GovTech Website published an article about Cincinnati and our approach to use Data Analytics: "Cincinnati Retrospective on Data-Driven Efforts Shares Methodologies, Successes"

The article was about a recent paper published by the City Manager, Mr. Harry Black: "Now, some three years on in this process, he has released a retrospective paper on the methodologies behind the efforts and just what they have meant to Cincinnati government. The paper, published April 18, is, as Black detailed, a look how the municipal government went from missing opportunities for public service to improving efficiencies and holding departments accountable."

Congratulations to Harry Black, our City Manager, and his team, for building Data Analytics into the fabric of our city!  

Public and private stakeholders from Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana are working together to create the nation's first smart tri-state region.

Helping create a model for regional, smart growth.

Moving the smart city conversation forward, focusing on the four pillars of workable, livable regions: connectivity, mobility, security, and sustainability.

Connectivity
Connecting people, places, things, and information in real-time.

Mobilitiy
Auditing and improving the mobility of people, goods, and utilities; enabling economic mobility including access to education and job training.

Security
Focusing on security, auditing public safety and cyber-security.

Sustainability
Committing to sustainability, including practices from energy and transportation to manufacturing and agriculture.

Upcoming events

Round-table at Uptech in Covington:

CONNECTIVITY, SECURITY, AND THE INTERNET OF THINGS:
February 22, 2017 (11am-1pm)

Free Tickets Here

Round-table at The Hamilton Mill in Hamilton:

MOBILITY, SUSTAINABILITY, CLEAN WATER AND CLEAN AIR:
March 15, 2017 (11am-1pm)

Free Tickets Here

Smart Cincy Summit
APRIL 25, 2017 AT UNION HALL

Tickets & Info

Every year the Digital Cities Survey takes a big-picture view of the state of IT in cities to determine which are moving the needle forward by excelling at using technology. The Center for Digital Government and Government Technology are recognizing 62 cities this year for their use of tech to support priorities and improve operations. 

Read more at: http://www.govtech.com/dc/articles/Municipal-Innovation-Trends-from-the-2016-Digital-Cities-Survey.html

Today, to kick off Smart Cities Week, the Administration is expanding the Smart Cities initiative, with over $80 million in new Federal investments and a doubling of the number of participating cities and communities, exceeding 70 in total. These new investments and collaborations will help cities of all sizes, including in the following key areas:

• Climate: The Administration is announcing nearly $15 million in new funding and two new coalitions to help cities and communities tackle energy and climate challenges. For example, one Department of Energy (DOE) campaign has already signed up 1,800 buildings representing 49 million square feet with data analytics tools that could reduce their energy footprint by 8 percent or more, on average.
  
  
• Transportation: The Administration is announcing more than $15 million in new grants and planned funding to evolve the future of urban transportation, including National Science Foundation (NSF) funding for researchers in Chattanooga to test, for the first time, how an entire urban network of connected and autonomous vehicles can automatically cooperate to improve travel efficiency and operate safely during severe weather events.
  
  
• Public safety: The Administration is announcing more than $10 million in new grants and planned funding for public safety, resilience, and disaster response. For example, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is funding the development of low-cost flood sensor-based tools in flood-prone areas of Texas, where predictive analytics will give first responders and local officials new capability to issue alerts and warnings, and the ability to respond more rapidly to save lives when a flood strikes.
  
  
• Transforming city services: MetroLab Network is launching a new effort to help cities adopt promising innovations in social programs, like a collaboration between three counties surrounding Seattle and the University of Washington to use predictive analytics to identify precisely when city services succeed in helping homeless individuals transition into permanent housing, offering the promise of a future of personalized intervention.

See more: White House Announcement

Congratulations to University of Cincinnati for moving more aggressively toward Innovation! 

In his last two messages to UC Alumni,  University of Cincinnati Board Chair Rob Richardson,  writes about the growth and importance of innovation at UC, and about the upcoming Next Lives Here Innovation Summit, to be held on Thursday, Oct. 20th. 

The Summit "will be an in-depth look at how innovation occurs, who is modeling the innovation process to greatest effect here in the region, and where our best opportunities lie for elevating innovation within the UC educational experience."

Please visit the Next Lives Here Innovation Summit website to learn more about this essential opportunity.

In December 2015, the U.S. Department of Transportation launched The Smart City Challenge as a follow up to the February 2015 report, Beyond Traffic. The challenge provides up to $40 million in Federal funds and another $10 million from Vulcan Inc., founded by Paul Allen, to one mid-sized U.S. city to help them address the challenges associated the growing demands on transportation infrastructure.

By early February, they received applications from 78 cities that fully embraced the spirit of the Challenge and presented DOT with unique visions, partnerships, and blueprints for making their ideas into reality.

On March 14, DOT has announced the seven winning cities:

• Austin, TX (proposal/info)
• Columbus, OH  (proposal/info)
• Denver, CO (proposal/infol)
• Kansas City, MO (proposal/info)
• Pittsburgh, PA (proposal/info)
• Portland, OR (proposal/info)
• San Francisco, CA (proposal/info)

The full announcement of the Smart Challenge City finalists.

What can we learn from them? 

Congratulations to all winners! 

Sir Ken Robinson believes schools today stifle creativity, measure intelligence incorrectly and often times send kids off in the wrong direction because of the government's irrational focus on standardized testing.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/673656

Check out also his talk about "Creating a Culture of Innovation":

Lessons in computer programming will be adopted by the national curriculum for primary schools in England from September.

However, this is not a new concept for schools in Estonia who have been teaching computer programming for some time:

http://www.bbc.com/news/education-25648769

Check out also this articles:

Why Estonia Has Started Teaching Its First-Graders To Code

The generation that will change the world!

http://www.forbes.com/video/2965301616001/

There has been some interesting discussion about the innovation community here in Cincinnati.

Some thoughts on the "Why's" and "What's" started online at http://hub.qcmerge.com/.

The team at Cintrifuse wanted to continue the conversation live and give everyone an opportunity to join in the discussion. 

The event takes place on: 

Monday, August 12, 2013, 3-5 PM

at Centrifuse (299 E Sixth St, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202)

If you would like to join, you can register at:

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/7720262513

Barcelona project transforms two hundred hectares of industrial land of Poblenou into an innovative district offering modern spaces for the strategic concentration of intensive knowledge-based activities. This initiative is also a project of urban refurbishment and a new model of city providing a response to the challenges posed by the knowledge-based society.

more...

Any community using technology to improve its economy can participate in the rigorous yearlong awards program 

New York City – July 9, 2013 – The Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) announces the opening of nominations for the 2014 Intelligent Community of the Year award. The 2014 awards marks the 16th year the New York-based think tank will name the Intelligent Community of the Year, a community that is a global leader in creating wealth and jobs by seizing the opportunities of information and communications technology (ICT).

The ICF has posted a nomination form at http://www.intelligentcommunity.org/nominations. There is also a community self-test to determine if a community could be a contender for an award. Nominations will close on Monday, September 23, 2013.

Communities large and small, urban and rural, in developing and industrialized nations are all invited to apply. Nominations are accepted from local governments, institutions, national government agencies and consular offices. There is no cost to submit a nomination. On average, ICF tracks the progress of 400 communities each year through its own research as well as nominations submitted by communities. 

Nominations are now Open for ICF's 2013 Intelligent Community of the Year Awards
The awards program salutes the accomplishments of communities in developing inclusive prosperity on a foundation of information and communications technology. Communities large and small, urban and rural, in developing and industrialized nations are invited to apply for an international award that does not use population as a factor. Deadline for nominations is September 21, 2012. More

Take the Community Self-Test
Not sure if your community is qualified for the Intelligent Community Awards? Take the 15-question Self-Test to evaluate your chances of joining the Intelligent Communities honored by ICF. More

ICF's Louis Zacharilla Keynotes at Sask 3.0 Summit
At the first Sask 3.0 Summit in Regina, Saskatchewan, ICF's Louis Zacharilla presented a keynote address on The Rise of the Intelligent Commumnity. More

ICF's John Jung on Why a Lack of Passion can be Fatal
During a recent trip to Austin, Texas, ICF's John Jung was struck by the tenacious passion of leadership that propelled the city of Austin from a backwater state capital to a Top7 Intelligent Community. More

ICF's Robert Bell on the Power of Small Places
During the last 90 days, ICF's Robert Bell has traveled so several "small" places and writes that it's not the size and scale of a community that makes it great but the attitude. More

You can now submit ideas for the City of Cincinnati:

http://cincinnati.mindmixer.com/

This is a fantastic opportunity to be part of the city planning process, and hopefully it will become a source of some creative and innovative ideas on how to improve our city!

Kudos to the Department of Planning and Buildings for setting it up! It's great to see such an initiative!

As it is said on the Website:

This is our town. Let’s make Cincinnati great!