Brussels 2018 - Using data to empower cities and their citizens

This year Uraia Citizenship Series workshop focused on how cities around the world are leveraging the power of SMART technologies to provide a more effective public service delivery and drive a positive impact on citizens´ lives. 

Click here to download the FINAL REPORT 

Objectives

The main objective of the workshop was to identify how local governments are using big and open data in city management. The following questions guided the discussion:

• How cities can make use of big data to provide better public services in benefit of citizens?
  
• How big data can be leveraged to optimize city operations and reinforce municipal finance?
  
• How cities can effectively utilize big data to draft better policies?
  
• How to incentivize the creative use of data by the local ecosystem (citizens, startups, entrepreneurs, developers, academia, etc) and create a virtuous innovation cycle?
  
• How open data can be used to foster transparency and promote economic development?
  
• How to deal with the multi-level and multi-stakeholder governance issues related to privacy and legal frameworks?

Outcomes

The panelists and participants explored aspects of innovative solutions on four different thematic trails, the projects of each trail can be accessed in the links below. The pictures, concept note, final program and presentations are shared on the bottom of the page.

Thematic trail BLUE – the financial and economic impact of big and open data in cities

• Open data: innovation in the Région de Bruxelles-Capitale, Belgium
  
• Seoul big-data initiatives, Seoul Metropolitan Government, South Korea
  
• Reinventing cities: The Chicago experiment, Chicago City Tech Collaborative, USA
  

Thematic trail GREEN: The impact of open and big data in the lives of citizens

• Smart Waste Bins, La Marsa Municipality, Tunisia
  
• The Wexity Platform support to policy formulation, the case of Some Podji in Benin 

Thematic trail ORANGE – Data as a meaningful instrument for city participation and city efficiency

• Patio Digital initiative: fostering innovation and collaboration in Sao Paulo’s public education policy through open data and transparency. Municipal Secretariat of Education, Sao Paulo, Brazil
  
• Knowing your city, Cities Alliance 
  
• A more clarified community, a more participative community, Municipality of Valongo, Portugal 
  
• Providing local governments with tools to increase transparency, participation and open data, FEMP – Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces 
  
• Euro Mediterranean network of Innovation Centres for smart cities, Euromed Cities Network 
  

Thematic trail MAGENTA – Governing data: who does what? 

• The point of view of central governments. Setting the framework, National Information Technology Development Agency, Nigeria
  
• The point of view of local governments. Challenges and opportunities, Abidjan, Ivory Coast