The new smart city alliance will initially focus on the development of ‘smart parks’
The University of Adelaide, in Australia, confirmed it will work with local and state governments, entrepreneurs and industry to help transform the city of Adelaide into a smart city. The initiative will be executed under the new Australian smart cities consortium.
The university said that the development of smart parks will be one key focus of the consortium under a new agreement with the city of Prospect as part of the Connected Places project.
“Smart cities initiatives are about making cities better for the people who live there,” said associate professor Nick Falkner, director of the University of Adelaide’s Australian smart cities consortium.
“The work carried out in Prospect by members of the consortium will involve using non-camera based sensors – ensuring there is no personal identification or invasion of privacy – to be able to analyze how people are using the parks at different times and monitor what’s happening in the park,” the city said.
City of Prospect acting mayor Mark Groote said that the agreement between six local government bodies, led by Prospect, to implement and harness new technology “is another step towards a digital future, which will ultimately benefit communities using our public spaces, and councils in the way we manage parks, gardens and play spaces”.
Experts from across the university’s five faculties are part of the Australian smart cities consortium, working at city-scale and supporting development of policy, new products, designs and services. “Our smart cities initiative is unique because of our ability to link smart science and technology to social well-being and business outcomes because of the broad range of research disciplines the consortium brings together,” said professor Mike Brooks, University of Adelaide interim vice-chancellor.
“Our students will have the opportunity to work alongside researchers in computing, engineering and sciences together with urban design and other social and economic disciplines – producing real benefits for the people of Adelaide,” he said.
