On December 4, the Mayors of over 40 cities were invited at the Committee of the Regions in Brussels to discuss the digital transformation. They are all part of the Digital Cities Challenge, an initiative of the European Commission to help European cities develop and implement policies that focus on smart, sustainable growth through the uptake of advanced technologies by local stakeholders, through building up local innovation ecosystems. The Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is one of the 6 Mentor Cities of this challenge, based on the region’s track record in the digital economy and the application of digital, data and smart cities innovations.
Mayor Franc Weerwind of Almere, also Amsterdam Economic Board Member responsible for Digital Connectivity shared his vision and principles. Weerwind’s key message to his fellow cities and region is cooperation outside the beaten tracks: breaking silos within municipalities, but also cooperation between government, knowledge & education institutes and the regional business sector.
“The digital city is a citizen-driven, inclusive and green city – it is not driven by technological progress, but by the demand and needs of our citizens,” Mayor Weerwind said. “We as Mayors can use the power of digital transformation itself to get things done by linking the right skills, knowledge and organisations together.”
Read Mayor Weerwind’s full speech with links to further information about the activities in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area via the link below.
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Hi Francois, that sounds interesting. To reach more members of our community, you could also post an even on our Events list or, if you are looking for participants, post a request. I wish you an inspiring round table!
As the speech of Franc Weerwind shows, it starts with breaking silos between city departments. We are looking into organising a round table where city engineers, city sustainable and smart project managers and policy makers can share their issues with access to their data silos to make decisions.
The round table would take place in Den Haag or Rotterdam early February (location and place to be determined).
If you feel that you are concerned by the subject and would like to participate, I'd appreciate if you could le me know. Thank you.