A Smart City with Human Goals
Each day I feel like I learn about a new and potentially disruptive technology that will change the way I get to work, the way I shop, how I stay in touch with friends and family, even how I monitor my health. I often find myself asking “Why?”. I prefer talking to my mates than typing away on my phone, it’s not necessarily better for me.
The Smart Kalasatama district in the city of Helsinki will provide housing for 20,000 new residents and 8,000 jobs on an old commercial harbour area (quite similar to #thebays). Their goal? To give their citizens an extra hour of free time each day - humanising its smart city goals and putting an emphasis on it’s citizens.
Access to high speed broadband to get your day's work done faster. Apps to tell you where to park and pay your bill remotely. A vacuum waste system transports waste to a waste management facility and keeps garbage trucks off the road. An old abattoir factory has even been turned into a place where local students test start-up ideas in a real-life setting with local businesses. One of the keys to the success of this plan is Helsinki's Open Data Policy, where the data collected by both the Government and NGO's is available free of charge to everyone. This places no limits on who or how the data can be used, with some of the best and brightest talents finding new and innovative ways to improve people’s lives.
It's interesting to think about. What would that look like for you? What would you do with an extra hour in a day? Coach your kid's netball team? Walk the dog? Take up a new hobby? Donate some time to a local charity? Spend time with your family and friends? What difference would that make to your home, your community and your city?
It will be interesting to follow the development of Kalasatama (and the Bays Precinct) so far the district has over 3,000 residents and the early signs are exciting. They are creating a city for their people and in the words of Shakespeare's Corialanus III, "What is a city but the people?"
To read more, visit the Smart Kalasatama website here.