The Smart Community Podcast
Zoe Eather
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"Making Smart Communities that are Accessible, Liveable and Sustainable for All"
The Smart Community Podcast is a hub where Smart and exciting people from all around the world come to discuss all things Smart City, Smart Town, Smart Region - anything that makes a place more liveable. Together we can create the Smart Community Collective.
Disclaimer: All content is representative of personal opinion only and is not associated with any company, organisation or government agency.
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3 days ago
A Practical Futurist Living in the Moment, with Andrew Grill
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a great conversation with Practical Futurist, Andrew Grill, who you may remember from Episodes 38 and 136. This podcast episode is another audio from the YouTube series I’ve been doing catching up with previous podcast guests during the pandemic.
In this chat, Andrew and I discuss how the pandemic has not only brought in a whole lot of new rules and social norms, but it’s also accelerated his futurist predictions. Things that he was predicting to change such as in the future of work, have come to pass incredibly quickly. Andrew tells us how the disruption is a huge opportunity for change but is also exposing the weak points in every ecosystem, and increasing the digital divide. We talk about that digital divide particularly in the education space, where already disadvantaged students are being further disadvantaged, and teachers who were already comfortable with technology are more advantaged and able to be more effective than their colleagues.
Andrew also tells us what has an hasn’t changed for him, including the information he is learning and sharing, the types of work he does, and the mode of delivery and tools for engagement in his work. We talk about the pros and cons of working from home, the mental health impacts and what managers are learning now that they’re in it with their employees, plus using business tools like Zoom for personal social connections and the need for digital hygiene due to the digital fatigue we’re all feeling. Andrew then shares his predictions on the future of work, including the emergence of a third word space that is neither home nor office, and the increase of professional gig workers. We finish our chat with Andrew’s three practical tips for coping while working from home and potentially physically isolated.
As always we hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it!
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Andrew at Andrew.London or on Twitter @andrewgrill
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Sep 20, 2020
Smart Communities in Developing Nations, with Kris Libunao
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great chat to Kris Libunao, the Executive Director and Chief Sustainability Officer of Smart CT, a nonprofit organization based in the Philippines. Kris tells us about her background in urban planning, law and policy research, and what sparked her interest in the space, as well as what a Smart Community means to her. We discuss how Smart City practices need to be different in developing countries and the importance of data gathering, data literacy and community engagement. Kris and I talk about how the Philippines is embracing Smart Concepts and the challenges and opportunities that have been brought to the forefront this year during the pandemic. Kris then tells us about Smart CT and how they’re building a community around the organisation. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of data appreciation and literacy, digital infrastructure and bottom up approaches, plus some of Kris’s favourite Smart Community resources. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Kris via email kris@smartct.org or LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter @SmartCT_PH
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Sep 13, 2020
Smart Community Insights Across Borders, with Peter Bjorn Larson
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a great conversation with Peter Bjorn Llarson, the Director of Smart City Insights. This podcast episode is another audio from the YouTube series I’ve been doing catching up with previous podcast guests during the pandemic. We recorded this chat on the 1st of May, and since then Peter tells me he’s doing well, he’s doing a couple of nice local Smart City projects because obviously he’s not travelling very much anymore.
In this conversation, Peter and I chat about what the situation was like in Denmark pandemic-wise in May, as well as some of the key differences between Denmark and Sweden’s approach. We then discuss the ways the Smart City concepts of digital transformation and data sharing and privacy have come to the forefront during this crisis, and how the private sector has been well placed to respond quickly, having already much of the foundational pieces already in place. We cover data collaboratives, data privacy and security, as well as the ways these complex issues are dealt with around the world thanks to differences not only in cultural attitudes but also digital preparedness of different nations.
Peter then tells us a bit about how he works and how the pandemic has changed the way we work and meet worldwide, which has environmental, accessibility and lifestyle impacts. We talk about this global work from home experiment, Zoom fatigue and the pros and cons of digital workshops and virtual community building. We finish our chat discussing how this crisis has forced us into new ways of doing so many things, including a cool example about how Peter ran a Croatian Marathon in Copenhagen! As always we hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Peter on LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Sep 6, 2020
Rural and Regional Smart Community Strategies, with Imogen Schifferle
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a brilliant conversation with Imogen Schifferle, the Regional Partnerships Innovation Coordinator at Albury City and Wodonga City Councils. Now, in case you don’t know because you’re not from Australia, Albury and Wodonga are twin Australian cities located on either side of the Murray River and the state border between Victoria and New South Wales. The twin cities are a real hub for the region, and have been heavily impacted by the state border closures and lockdowns during the pandemic. So in this episode, Imogen first tells us about her background in digital technologies, particularly mobile technologies, as she’s worked for both Telstra and Samsung, and how she’s now working in Local Government. We discuss the differences in drivers and attitude between private companies and public service, as well as the differences in Smart Community ideas between regional and urban environments. She then tells us about the Rural Smart Community Strategy she’s been working on, and how it’s been informed by the needs of the community and also impacted by the bushfires from late 2019 and early 2020 that ravaged many parts of Australia. Imogen tells us about the 5 themes or initiatives that underpin the strategy and what it was like to try to bring together one strategy for two cities, spanning two states, encompassing 17 Local Government areas and a lot of different needs. Of course we finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of communities and individuals demanding more from their local governments and organisations, as well as some of Imogen’s favourite Smart Community resources. As always we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it!
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Imogen on LinkedIn or Instagram @imcheee
Find out more about Albury-Wodonga at the Two Cities, One Community website at https://www.alburywodonga.gov.au
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Aug 30, 2020
Where to Next For Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 9)
Hello #smartcommunityfriends, I’m back with another bonus episode of the Smart Community podcast that brings together multiple guest answers to the question, ‘Where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” And this time I’m sharing with you the answers from a range of our guests this year:
* Charlie Hamer from Episode 172
* Courtney Ehrlichman from Episode 181
* Debbie Reynolds from Episode 166
* Jamie Leach from Episode 171
* And finally Luke Stow from Episode 173
The themes that come through in all of the guest answers are around sustainability of Smart Communities, but not so much from an environmental perspective. These guests are focused on the sustainability of communities and of Smart projects from the perspectives of sustainable funding, sustainable data driven decision making, and sustainable access to resources, be they local or global.
Several guests make important points about the fact that without sustainable investment of actual dollars, many Smart projects fail to get off the ground or continue past pilot phases. This of course hurts communities not only that were benefiting from those projects but also those that could have benefited had the learnings from the ongoing projects been able to be shared and scaled across other communities.
Then there’s the crucial topic of data being a public good, and that we must be investing not only financially in data, but also the skillsets and mindsets needed to have privacy, security and understanding of data so that we can really use it to drive decision making and policy that benefit the community.
And of course fundamental to every Smart Community conversation is the fact that it’s about sustainable access to resources, from transport to health care to food to manufacturing. Underpinning much of that is access to the internet, so that connectivity piece is crucial in preventing further digital divides.
We also discuss the tension between the global and the local, and the balance between the need for self-sustainability and a village approach in local communities with the knowledge sharing and global collaboration that is so necessary in our world today. We can have both!
As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Aug 23, 2020
Smart Communities and the COVID Chance, with Mark Thomas
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a brilliant chat with Mark Thomas, the Founder and Managing Director of Serviceworks, an international consultancy providing strategic counsel on city building, smart city application, strategy, public policy and customer service. This is the second time Mark has been on the podcast, the last time was back in Episode 111, and this interview was recorded in mid July 2020. So we talk about Mark’s background and his passion for solving wicked problems that matter to citizens, as well as what’s been happening for him and how he’s adjusted his business since COVID. But of course since we recorded this episode, Auckland New Zealand has also seen an outbreak, so just keep in mind that we recorded before that and don’t mention it at all. It’s a bit tricky this year given that I often record interviews way in advance of when they get released on the podcast, and obviously things with COVID change so rapidly but I know you’re all Smart people who will understand that. Mark also shares with us his thinking around what he calls ‘The COVID Chance’, which is about the ways the pandemic has accelerated some of the Smart concepts like data sharing and privacy that we’ve been talking about for years, as well as the opportunities that exist in the midst of the crisis. We discuss the projects Mark has been working on including Mobility as a Service and connected platform projects in China, Indonesia and Malaysia, plus the way Smart solutions need to be customisable for different cultures, contexts and communities. Mark and I then explore the emerging trends of using blockchain in the city space, as well as new urban mobility systems and new citizen data control solutions that are emerging. We finish our chat discussing some of Mark’s favourite Smart Community resources. As always we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Mark via the Serviceworks website, or on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter @MarkThomasNZ
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Aug 16, 2020
Leadership and Changemakers in Smart Communities, with Deke Copenhaver
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a great chat with Deke Copenhaver, the author of "The Changemaker: the Art of Building Better Leaders”. Deke was Mayor of Augusta, Georgia for 9 years, and is currently the principal of Copenhaver Consulting. Deke and I met when I visited the US in January 2020 and we were introduced by our good friend Kerry Grace. Deke tells us about his background in business, real estate and land conservation, and how that sparked his interest in Smart Communities, which only deepened in his time as Mayor of Augusta. Deke shares what both Smart Community and leadership means to him and why long-term thinking is key to both, plus why he thinks Millennials will be the next great generation of leaders. Deke and I discuss some of his favourite community projects while in office, including the Laney Walker Bethlehem Revitalisation Project, and how the community engagement aspects worked in that project. We talk a bit about COVID and how Deke has been moving through this time, and the emerging trends of the mental health aspects of the pandemic, as well as the virtual work and digital divide aspects too. We finish our chat discussing some of Deke’s favourite Smart Community resources. As always we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Deke on LinkedIn or @dekecopenhaver on Twitter and Instagram
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Aug 9, 2020
Smart Digital Societies: Lessons from Estonia, with Calum Cameron
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a really interesting conversation with Calum Cameron, an Aussie based in Estonia, which is the world's first digital society and Europe's favourite startup ecosystem. Responding to the COVID-19 lockdown in Estonia he helped trigger the Hack the Crisis movement and was an organiser The Global Hackathon which combined connected more than 250k people from over 100 countries to develop and implement immediate solutions to the crises, which we talk about in this episode. We start by discussing Calum’s background in IT helping the financial services digitalise, and how he came to be in Estonia. Calum then shares with us a history of Estonia, why they focused heavily on digitalisation in the 1990s, plus some of the interesting ways that manifests, like their digital citizen or e-residency program. Calum tells us how he got into this Smart Community space and why a diverse cross section from society is so important in getting different perspectives and different skillsets to best leverage the technology that’s out there to solve community problems. We talk about how Smart concepts are understood by the general public in Estonia, including how data sharing works between agencies to make renewing your drivers licence a smooth process. Calum and I talk about the importance of trust and the social license to operate in digital societies, and how both public and private sectors in Estonia have intentionally invested in the affordability and reliability of digital infrastructure, as well as dedicated digital education and engagement programs to improve digital literacy in the whole population. We finish our chat discussing the opportunities and challenges of e-learning and digital collaboration, including his work with the recent digital hackathons, plus Calum’s favourite resources in the Smart Community space. At one point we also mention Smart Community festivals and I say in the interview that I discussed it with Martin Tomitsch in his episode but no, it was actually Heath Raftery who I spoke to in Episode 113 about Smart Regions, so we’ve linked all those episodes up in the show notes too. As always we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Calum on LinkedIn or via calum@digitalpath.ee
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Aug 2, 2020
The Nexus of Technology, Human Behaviour and Public Policy, with Susan Shaheen
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a fascinating chat with Susan Shaheen, Professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Co-Director of the Transportation Sustainability Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley. Susan and I chat about her interest in the nexus of technology, human behaviour and public policy, and how the US Smart Cities Challenge sparked her interest in the space, when she was involved with San Francisco’s application. We discuss how pivotal and galvanising that grant was for many cities around America, and how the community engagement framework they used for the San Francisco application really valued a co-creation model between public, private and community. Susan then tells us about some of the projects she’s been working on, including some research documenting the learnings from the cities of their experience of the Smart Cities Challenge. She tells us some of the takeaways from that research, including the four categories of Smart Cities or Communities they uncovered, plus the importance of not relying solely on champions for the long term sustainability of Smart projects. We finish our chat discussing the emerging focus of social equity and social justice in Smart Communities to help solve systemic problems, plus some of Susan’s favourite resources. As always we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it!
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Susan on LinkedIn or Twitter @SusanShaheen1
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Jul 26, 2020
Smart Local Government and Engaged Communities, with Nathaniel Bavinton
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a brilliant chat with Dr. Nathaniel Bavinton, the Innovation and Futures Manager at the City of Newcastle in NSW. Nathaniel and I discuss his background as an urban sociologist and social researcher and how his interest how cities impact cultures and societies has led to his work as a city strategist and sparked his interest in the Smart Community space. Nathaniel tells us about the Newcastle, including the revitalisation that is happening there, and how the community came up with their own 3-part definition for what a Smart City means to them. We discuss how Nathaniel sees Australia embracing Smart concepts, and the opportunities, outcomes and obstacles of knowledge sharing and collaborating with neighbouring cities and local governments. We talk about the way the City of Newcastle has responded to COVID, and how the digital transformation and behavioural changes that were already underway in the local government really enabled those responses. Nathaniel then tells us about Lean In New, the city app that is helping not only engage and support the community, but also providing economic stimulus to local businesses too. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of planning for future city needs with shared digital architecture and going beyond open data to open algorithms and open analytics. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Nathaniel on LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Jul 23, 2020
BONUS! Where to Next for Smart Cities and Communities (Part 8)
Hello #smartcommunityfriends, I’m back with another bonus episode of the Smart Community podcast that brings together multiple guest answers to the question, ‘Where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” And this time I’m sharing with you the answers from a range of our guests this year:
* Jennifer Sanders from Episode 170
* Andrew Funk from Episode 157
* Melissa Dark from Episode 169
* Marco Marechal from Episode 165
* And finally Joy Taylor from Episode 154
The themes that come through in all of the guest answers are around inclusive local communities, community engagement and knowledge sharing in our Smart Communities. Several guests make the point that we need to be having real conversation about what people want and need, and inviting them to be involved in designing the solutions for their local communities. Bringing people along the journey is not easy, and of course this is all easier said than done. It’s easy to say we need better community engagemen…
Jul 19, 2020
Mobility that Serves Smart Communities, with Courtney Ehrlichman
In this episode, I have a brilliant conversation with Courtney Ehrlichman, the CEO at The Ehrlichman Group & Co-founder of RoadBotics. We recorded this interview in early June 2020. Courtney tells us about her background in urban studies, planning and transport and her passions for community, mobility and solving problems across industries. We talk about the concept of Universal Basic Mobility, and what a Smart Community means to Courtney, and why it’s so important that technology is used as a tool to decrease divides and serve human needs. Courtney and I discuss how data can build wealthier communities and why efficiency is so important both from a local government economic development perspective, and from a citizen user perspective. We have a great chat about autonomous vehicle shuttles, and some of the moral, ethical and labour issues associated with them, as well as the other complex pieces of the mobility conversation, such as urban density, land use, housing affordability, emp…
Jul 12, 2020
Systems Thinking in Smart Communities, with Zaheer Allam
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a great conversation with Urban Strategist Zaheer Allam. You might remember I spoke with Zaheer earlier in the year in Episode 158 and when COVID-19 broke out I knew I wanted to catch up with him again. So this podcast episode is another audio from the YouTube series I’ve been doing catching up with previous podcast guests during the pandemic. We recorded this chat on the 4th of May, and since then Zaheer tells me he’s doing fine, he’s still doing lots of writing because borders are still closed, but work is slowly resuming.
In this conversation, Zaheer tells us what the situation is like in Mauritius at the time of recording, what’s changed such as working from home, flexible work options in general and the disruptions for Zaheer personally. We cover a big range of things all along the themes of how COVID has impacted every industry and brought to the forefront a lot of Smart concepts, such as the importance of data, digi…
Jul 5, 2020
Community as the Next Metric in Smart Economies, with Sabrina Chakori
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a brilliant chat with Sabrina Chakori, the founder of the Brisbane Tool Library. Sabrina tells us about her background in environmental economics and her passion for creating a sustainable society, as well as what sparked her interest in Smart Community concepts. We discuss why democratising the economy is so important and the need for other economic models and using metrics other than just GDP. Sabrina tells us about the Brisbane Tool Library and how it fits in the sharing economy, as well as what she’s learned through the process. We explore the concepts of access versus ownership, abundance versus scarcity and the balance between localisation and globalisation. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of alternative economic models and ways to structure our communities. As always, we hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it!
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect…
Jun 28, 2020
The Now of Work in Smart Communities, with Kim Seeling Smith
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a fantastic conversation with Kim Seeling Smith, the CEO of Ignite Global. Kim used to call herself a ‘Future of Work’ expert, but these days she says the future has arrived so she’s become a ‘Now of Work’ expert. This is another audio from the YouTube series I’ve been doing catching up with previous podcast guests and although Kim is not a previous podcast guest she is a good friend of the Smart Community Podcast.
In this episode, Kim and I discuss her background and her work, and how it’s really accelerated with the current crisis. She tells us about her research on what people are learning from this COVID work-from-home experiment, and why we all need to take this disruption seriously, learn from it, and be as prepared as we can be for ongoing disruptions into the future. We explore the relationship between COVID, under- and unemployment, and the critical skills shortage, as well as what the workplace will look li…
Jun 21, 2020
Digital and data literacy in Smart Communities, with Debbie Reynolds
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I had a wonderful chat with Debbie Reynolds, AKA The Data Diva. Now you may remember Debbie was a guest on the podcast just back in March 2020, but we had actually recorded that interview in December 2019. So then when COVID-19 broke out I knew I wanted to catch up again with Debbie and this podcast episode another audio from the YouTube series I’ve been doing catching up with previous podcast guests during the pandemic.
So in this episode, Debbie and I discuss what she’s been up to since we last spoke and how COVID has changed her work schedule. We cover the fact that there is an increased need for data privacy and cyber security expertise during this time while so many people are on the internet more, as well as the need for both digital literacy and data literacy. Debbie and I explore the convergence of our digital personas with our real lives, and how to encourage people to take advantage of the benefits of being online while bei…
Jun 14, 2020
Making Sustainability Accessible in Smart Communities, with Johanna Kloot
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast I have a brilliant chat with Johanna Kloot, the founder of sustainability software GreenKPI. Johanna tells us about her background as a pilot, plus how an illness and her mission of making the world a better place for her nephew led to her career as a sustainability consultant. We discuss what sustainability is, why Smart Cities and Smart Communities are so important and how Johanna sees Australia embracing these concepts. Johanna and I then discuss the projects she’s working on and how GreenKPI came to be. She tells us about the 3 main barriers businesses face in implementing sustainability as well as how important it is to be engaging and empowering people working at the ground level—not just those in head office. We explore making sustainability accessible and the need for small to medium enterprises to be included, plus the three-pronged approach to sustainability integration across consumer, business and government. We finish our…
Jun 7, 2020
Regional Australian Communities coping with Crisis, with Kim Houghton
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast I have a brilliant chat with Kim Houghton, the Chief Economist Officer at the Regional Australia Institute. Now this is another audio from the YouTube series I’ve been doing catching up with previous podcast guests and although Kim is not a previous podcast guest he is a good friend of the Smart Community Podcast. When we recorded this in mid April 2020, Kim was in quarantine in a hotel in Hobart. I am pleased to share an update that he is out of quarantine and everything is going ok.
In this interview Kim and I discuss what COVID has exposed for us, particularly in regional areas, such as connectivity issues, lack of digital literacy and the re-emergence of the decade old conversation about the digital divide in regions. We talk about online learning tools and the wider implications of that for those who don’t have reliable internet, plus the need for capacity and confidence building in digital skills for both young and old in region…
May 31, 2020
Behaviour Change, Empowered Citizens and Sustainable Communities, with Rachel Smith
In this episode I have a fantastic conversation with Rachel Smith, who is a previous podcast guest, and also a transport planning and demand management consultant. This episode is actually the audio from the video interview I did with Rachel, which is part of the series I’ve been doing on YouTube catching up with previous guests during this time of much change in the world. So if you want to see those interviews you can head on over to our YouTube channel to catch up with what previous guests like Ryan McManus, Debbie Reynolds, Sally Illingworth, and Jonathan Reichental have been getting up to in the last few months.
In this episode Rachel and I chat about the work she does in demand management and why it’s important to Smart Community approach, plus what crises can show us about how we can use resources in Smart ways. We discuss what COVID has exposed about the way people live, and the relationship between consumerism and mobility/transport. Rachel and I also talk about why it’…
May 24, 2020
Technology as an enabler for healthy and connected Smart Communities, with Luke Stow
In this episode I have a fabulous chat with Luke Stow, the CEO of Alchemy Solutions, which is an Australian company that specialises in helping organisations make shifts with emerging technology, but they come at it from a people centric perspective. Luke tells us about his background as a technologist and why he’s passionate about how technology can enable our businesses, communities and lives. We recorded this just as the COVID crisis was ramping up here in Australia and lockdowns were beginning, so that gives you a little bit of context for our conversation. We talk about how lockdowns are highlighting the opportunities and challenges of connectivity and the impacts of COVID responses on the digital divide, work-life flexibility, health prevention and treatments, as well as many aspects of our culture.
Luke and I discuss the robust conversations that are needed around privacy and data during and after this crisis, and the need for us to intentionally choose the ‘new normal’ g…
May 17, 2020
Sharing real stories and facilitating Smart Community conversations, with Charlie Hamer
In this episode I have a fascinating chat with Charlie Hamer, the CoFounder of Public Sector Network. Charlie tells us about his background in computer science, environment and events, and how he ended up starting the Public Sector Nector community platform. He has a passion for technology and the environment, and for facilitating connections so he tells us about why he started PSN and the reasons they expanded from Australia to the US, Canada, New Zealand and soon the UK as well. Charlie tells us what sparked his interest in the Smart Community space, and we discuss what the terms Smart City and Intelligent Community mean, as well as how the movement has been maturing over the last few years. We cover how Charlie sees Australia embracing Smart concepts, and what he’s seen in Canada as a result of the Smart City Challenge that was run by the Canadian government there. We discuss how to balance funding and marketing with the real substance of Smart Community projects, and the importan…
May 10, 2020
Data Governance and Digital Maturity in Smart Communities, with Jamie Leach
In this episode I had a fantastic chat with Jamie Leach, a Data Technologist and the the CEO and Founder of Open Data Australia. She has an extensive background in project management, finance, technology, and defence, as well as leading data and technology companies through capital-raising and global expansion. A reminder that like all our recent episodes this one was recorded before the global pandemic but I think it’s a fantastic and really relevant conversation all the same.
In this episode, Jamie and I discuss her passion for the transformative potential of data if it is leveraged and harnessed in a positive way. We talk about what sparked her interest in data and Smart Communities, and how making good use of data can help future proof businesses and organisations going forwards. We cover so much, including the challenges and opportunities of using and analysing data well, particularly for governments, and the different skillsets that are needed. Jamie tells us why it’s so imp…
May 3, 2020
Moving from Smart Cities to Smart Regions, with Jennifer Sanders
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast I have a great conversation with Jennifer Sanders, the Co-Founder and Executive Director at the Dallas Innovation Alliance or DIA as she refers to it a lot in this episode. Jennifer tells us about the DIA, how it came to be and the needs-based, neighbourhood-centric approach that they take. We cover the importance of educating and empowering citizens, especially young people and people from underserved neighbourhoods, on how they can engaged with their communities and Jennifer shares a great story about the benefits of giving kids a seat at the table when discussing solutions to community problems. We discuss how Dallas is embracing the Smart City concept and the real impacts and benefits of the openness, transparency and knowledge-sharing that goes on between individuals and organisations in the Smart City space. Jennifer tells us about the projects she’s working on with the DIA, including their focus on equity, digital inclusion and ha…
Apr 26, 2020
Trust, Empathy and Smart Community Engagement, with Melissa Dark
In this episode of the podcast I have a brilliant conversation with Melissa Dark, a communications and stakeholder engagement consultant. Melissa is the Chief Collaborator at Common Place Communication and the Co-Founder of Busting Silos, and she is passionate about how we involve people in the decisions that affect them. Now, like all the recent episodes on the podcast, this conversation was recorded before Covid-19 changed the world, however I think it’s fair to say that communications and stakeholder engagement has only gotten more important since then—as we say at the end of this interview, communication skills can be really undervalued until they’re really needed, and that’s exactly what we’re seeing play out in the world today.
If you are wanting more up to date pandemic related content, I am doing a series of interviews on YouTube with previous podcast guests that checks in with them to see how their organisations are changing or not during this time, and how the Smar…
Apr 19, 2020
Contributing to society through Smart Projects, with Alan Murphy
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I had a great conversation with Alan Murphy, the Smart Dublin Regional Lead. Please note: this episode was recorded before the Covid-19 pandemic. Smart Dublin is an initiative of the four Dublin Local Authorities to engage with smart technology providers, researchers and citizens to solve challenges and improve city life. In this episode Alan tells us about his background in IT consulting and his passion for new ways of doing things using technology. He tells us about what sparked his interest in this Smart space, including friend of the podcast, Jonathan Reichental who you may remember from episode 77. Alan and I then discuss what Smart Dublin actually is and some of the projects Alan’s been working on with Smart Dublin in the areas of mobility, environment, energy and citizen engagement. Alan shares with us how he sees Ireland embracing Smart concepts, and the maturing of the conversation around Smart Communities. We talk about integr…
Apr 12, 2020
Digital Transformation in Smart Communities, with Hyma Vulpala
In this episode I have a fascinating chat with Hyma Vulpala, the Deputy Director of Digital Workplace, Research and Academic Information Services at La Trobe University. Now, when we recorded this a few months back Hyma was Head of Digital and Data for Yarra Ranges Council in Victoria, so you'll hear us refer to that in this episode.
Hyma tells us about her background in IT and digital and her passion for the opportunities that the ever-changing digital space provides. She tells us some of the changes she’s seen in the space over the last 2 decades and how the rates of technological change are really increasing, especially in the last 5 years. We discuss why Smart City and Community concepts are so important and will continue to be into the future. Hyma and I talk about the different industries in Australia that are adopting Smart concepts, and the dangers of not embracing digital transformation, including not attracting and retaining the required skills sets.
We discuss some of th…
Apr 5, 2020
The power and peril of data in Smart Communities, with Debbie Reynolds
In this episode, I have a brilliant conversation with Debbie Reynolds, also known as The Data Diva. Debbie is a thought-leader and advisor to Multinational Corporations for handling global data privacy, cyber data breach planning and response, and complex cross-functional management of data-centric projects.
In this episode, Debbie and I talk about the divide she saw growing up between the opportunities available in big cities like Chicago compared to nearby small towns and suburbs, and how that sparked her interest in the Smart Community space. Debbie shares with us the trends and considerations she sees related to the digital divide, and how it plays out differently in the US compared to Europe and elsewhere, plus why it’s so important to inform citizens about data transparency, privacy and protection issues so that they can make informed decisions. We talk about the new data privacy laws in California that came into effect in January 2020 and the impacts Debbie expects, both at t…
Mar 29, 2020
Smart Mobility lessons from The Netherlands, with Marco Maréchal
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great conversation with Marco Maréchal, the Strategic Advisor of Communication and Innovation for Smart City and Smart Mobility to the Netherlands. He is also the author of the book “Mobility in the Future 2030: Finally the people have the say” so I felt he was a great guest to round out our month here focusing on #mobiliitymarch.
In this episode, Marco tells us about the project on cooperative vehicles that sparked his interest in Smart Communities 6 years ago and why Smart Communities with humans at the centre are so important to him. We talk about how the Netherlands have embraced Smart concepts, and the Mobility as a Service project Marco is working on reduce congestion and incentivise people to use alternatives to single-occupancy vehicles when commuting to work. Marco shares the biggest benefits he sees in Mobility as a Service and ways the business model of MaaS is still changing and evolving. We discuss ways to bett…
Mar 22, 2020
Shared Mobility in Smart Communities, with Ryan McManus
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a brilliant chat with Ryan McManus, the Founder and CEO of SHARE Mobility, a mobility company that helps organisations and cities solve big transportation problems with mobility-as-a-service. Ryan and I met on my trip recently to Columbus, Ohio, which was in January, 2020. I met Ryan at a meeting with Smart Columbus where I learned about the work they're doing. Now obviously, this episode was recorded before the corona virus became a pandemic. Currently SHARE is repurposing their shared transport network and customer support staff to serve the needs of the people who are staying at home.
On the topic of Covid-19, I just want to give you a little bit of an update of what our team is doing to respond. Our My Smart Community team was virtual already and will remain this way. We are following the health advice and following hygiene and social distancing precautions. For now, the podcast will continue as per usual while the situation c…
Mar 18, 2020
Smart Mobility that serves everybody, with Renee Autumn Ray
In this episode I have a fantastic conversation with Renee Autumn Ray. Renee is an urban planner who has worked in transportation planning, policy, operations, and data evaluation. She is currently the Strategy and Innovation Leader at Conduent Transportation, a technology company which includes payments and data analytics for transit, curb-side management, road user charging, and public safety. She also serves on the Transportation Research Board committees for Intelligent Transportation Systems and Innovative Public Transport Services and Technologies, and the Board of Directors for Georgia Bikes, so she’s another great guest in the #mobilitymarch series. Renee and I discuss the early career experiences that sparked her interest in Smart Community concepts and the power of bringing data, including qualitative data, into decision making. Renee tells us about some of the projects she’s been working on, including curating panels for conferences with a focus on mobility and accessibi…
Mar 15, 2020
Inclusivity and Accessibility in the Smart City, with Chad Ramage
In this episode I have a fascinating conversation with Chad Ramage, Founder of Accessibility in the City, an online mapping solution that helps support those with accessibility issues with navigation. As someone in a wheelchair himself who is actively working on an innovative solution to accessibility problems, I knew Chad was going to be an excellent guest for our #mobilitymarch series. In this episode Chad tells us about his background in information technology and his passion for accessibility, including his experiences being in a wheelchair that really sparked his interest in the Smart Community and Accessibility space. Chad and I discuss what a Smart Community is and why the concepts of accessibility and inclusion so important, plus the need for genuine consultation on accessibility solutions with the people who have accessibility problems. We talk about how data can help Chad with planning accessible journeys, and all about his platform to help others do just that. Chat explains…
Mar 8, 2020
Digital Equity and Engagement in Mobility, with Crissy Ditmore
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast I have a great chat with Crissy Ditmore, the Director of Strategy for Cubic Transportation Systems, where she is working on the expansion of Mobility as a Service across the globe. Crissy is also Chair of the Board or the TravelSpirit Foundation North America, Co Chair for the Mobility on Demand Alliance Public Policy Committee, is active with the Coalition for Smarter Transportation and a 2019 MaaS Transit Magazine Top 40 Under 40. It’s fair to say she was a perfect guest for our #mobilitymarch series.
In this episode, Crissy and I discuss her background of over 15 years in the mobility industry and why she’s so passionate about the opportunity for mobility to be an equaliser and reduce divides within our community. We talk about Digital Equity when it comes to mobility, especially Mobility as a Service, and the importance of real stakeholder engagement in this space. Crissy shares with us her perspective on the future of transport a…
Mar 1, 2020
Autonomous Vehicle Updates, with Michael Milford
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a brilliant chat with Michael Milford, a Professor of Robotics at Queensland University of Technology. You may remember Michael from an earlier episode, way back in Episode 22 when we were still called the Smart City Podcast, which was actually over 18 months ago now. So I wanted to have him back on the show to share what’s changed in the AV space in that time, and he’s the perfect guest to kick off our Mobility March series.
In this episode, Michael and I discuss some of the projects he’s been working on to do with infrastructure and road readiness for driverless cars, and the key problems with automating driving in complex urban environments versus highway driving. He tells us about the use of high resolution maps of the environment for the functioning of AVs, and how Cooperative Vehicles and Connected Vulnerable Road User fit into this space/framework.
We talk about the technology development in the driverless cars space…
Feb 23, 2020
The Power of Micro-Adventures, with Eleanor Carey
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a fascinating conversation with Eleanor Carey, a dual world record holding adventurer and successful entrepreneur. In June 2018, she spent 62 days crossing the Pacific Ocean by human power in a 25 foot ocean rowing boat, and prior to this cycled solo across Europe. In this episode she tells us about those two adventures, as well as her passion for getting people out into the outdoors and using physical adventures to improve people's lives. We discuss what a micro-adventure is and how it helps improve psychological fitness in the workplace, as well as creativity and productivity. Eleanor then tells us about the benefits of disconnecting from technology and connecting with nature, as well as her thoughts on the future of work. We talk about the decision making process Eleanor advocates for choosing what is right for you and how we can shift our mindset to overcome overwhelm and confusion, whether that be on an individual adventure or…
Feb 16, 2020
Resilience and Urban Regeneration in Developing Countries, with Zaheer Allam
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a brilliant chat with Zaheer Allam. Zaheer was the co-founder of the ‘Platform Citoyenne’, and NGO that successfully stopped the proliferation of coal fired plants in Mauritius. He is today an Urban Strategist for the Port Louis Development Initiative where he contributed to the drafting of a ‘National Regeneration Scheme’ aimed at economically incentivising urban regeneration. The scheme was successfully adopted by the Government of Mauritius in the National Budget of 2018-2019.
In this episode, we discuss Zaheer’s background as an Urban Strategist and his interest in looking at how to regenerate cities. Zaheer tells us how he thinks Mauritius is currently embracing Smart concepts and the unique way they are encouraging Urban Regeneration projects. We talk about the importance of democratising not only access to data but also knowledge of data to create more sustainable, more resilient Smart Cities, as well as the chall…
Feb 9, 2020
Active Citizenship and inclusive Smart Communities, with Andrew Funk
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great chat with Andrew Funk, international keynote speaker and Impact Activist for homeless people. Andrew believes that work and active citizenship will end homelessness for and with those willing to participate in the process, which is why he created a model to end homelessness that embraces the concept of Smart Cities becoming even Smarter. In this episode, Andrew and I discuss his background from teaching English through to a digital consultancy, and the very personal story of how he started Homeless Entrepreneur. Andrew tells us about the steps he took to get out of homelessness and why inclusive Smart Communities full of active citizens are so important. He tells us how he sees Spain embracing Smart concepts, and about the projects he’s working on included Homeless Entrepreneur and Afloat. We then discuss the importance of including people who are affected by the problems you’re trying to solve so as to avoid tokenistic…
Feb 2, 2020
Smart Community Standards & Future Government Planning, with Chris Rowlands
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I had a brilliant conversation with Chris Rowlands, the City Innovation Officer at the City of Greater Bendigo in Victoria. Chris and I discuss his background in Town Planning and why he’s so passionate about making liveable regions and communities. We talk about why Smart City standards are so powerful as principles that can be applied to communities of any size, and as a great platform to start the conversation with communities about what they want their city or town to be in the future. Chris also covers the importance of having many people involved in the conversation and especially of getting children and school students at the table, because it’s their future we’re planning.
Chris then tells us about the projects he’s been working on at Bendigo, including the Clever Weather IoT project which is a collaboration with La Trobe University. He also shares a great story about how transparent conversations help the City of Bendigo…
Jan 29, 2020
BONUS Building Intelligent Communities in Smart Regions, with Leanne Kemp
In this episode, I have a great chat with Leanne Kemp, the Founder and CEO of Everledger and Queensland Chief Entrepreneur. Leanne’s company Everledger uses Blockchain technology to track high-value assets such as diamonds, art and wine with the aim of increasing transparency and trust with technology. As the Queensland Chief Entrepreneur, her role is to develop the state’s startup ecosystem, attract investment and support job creation.
You may remember Leanne from Episode 33, way back when we were called the Smart City Podcast. In that episode I interviewed her together with Louise Mercer, then Head of Everledger Australia, New Zealand, now Chief Experience Officer of Everledger and spoke to them both about blockchain, how they use it and why it’s the next wave of the internet.
In this episode, I asked Leanne about what has happened since she was last on the podcast, and she shared a bit about her work as Queensland’s Chief Entrepreneur. We talked about the crucial differenc…
Jan 26, 2020
Working and Learning Together in Regional Communities Joy Taylor
In this episode I have a brilliant chat with Joy Taylor, the Co-Founder and Community Manager of Canvas Coworking Space here in Toowoomba, QLD. She is also a Startup Weekend Global Facilitator and has been recognised as an Advance Queensland Community Digital Champion for her work teaching kids to create with technology at CoderDojo Toowoomba. Joy tells us about her background in finance and agribusiness, and her journey from there to the coworking and startup space. We discuss the various programs and projects Joy works on to support Regional Communities here in Toowoomba and also across Australia, and the three main elements she focuses on when mentoring: skill development, behaviours and connection. We then dive deep into one of the Smart projects Joy champions, which is CoderDojo. You may remember back in Episode 122 Emily Royalle told us about the CoderDojo program and how it has benefited both the children involved and the city of San Antonio, Texas, US. Joy is one of the mentors…
Jan 19, 2020
Smart Health in Regional Areas, with Bruce Winzar
In this episode I had a really fascinating conversation with Bruce Winzar, the Executive Director of Innovation & Digital Services and Chief Information Officer responsible for Information Technology, Architectures and Applications, Innovation & Research at Bendigo Health. As part of our spotlight on the regions this month, I wanted to speak with Bruce specifically about his experiences fostering Smart Health initiatives in the Bendigo region of Victoria. In this episode, Bruce and I discuss how as visit to Amsterdam in 2007 sparked his interest in Smart Cities and Smart Community concepts, and why he believes it’s so important for the economic and community development in regional areas.
Bruce explains the power of the strengths-based approach to Smart Communities in regional areas, which for Bendigo means a focus on Smart Health initiatives. He shares a bit about the projects he’s working on, including the new Bendigo Hospital ICT and ePR project, with its focus on data and inno…
Jan 12, 2020
Resourcefulness and Resilience in Smart Regions, with Julia Spicer
In this episode I had a brilliant chat with Julia Spicer, Founder of two regional businesses based in Goondiwindi, Qld - Engage & Create Consulting and the Goondiwindi Business Hub. Julia and I met recently at the QRRRWN conference where I did a workshop, but actually we know each other from way back when I was living in Roma. Julia’s mission is to contribute to the vibrancy and viability of rural and regional Australia by helping businesses grow so she was an obvious choice to interview for our ‘Spotlight on the Regions’ series.
In this episode Julia tells us about her background in regional Queensland, what sparked her interest Smart concepts and how they can provide real opportunities for small communities in regional areas. We discuss the concepts of resourcefulness and resilience as objectives for Smart Regions, how the social fabric of a small town can be a blessing and a curse, and why it’s so important for communities to have a sense of control over their own destiny.…
Jan 8, 2020
BONUS | Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 7)
I’m back with another bonus episode of the podcast that brings together multiple guests answers to the question “Where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” And this time I’m sharing with you the answers from December guests, plus a number of our guests from earlier in 2019:
* Heath Raftery from Episode 113
* Vitor Pereira from Episode 106
* Cornelia Levy-Bencheton and MIke Barlow from Episodes 114 and 115
* Chad Renando from Episode 145
* James Peet from Episode 146
* Karen Corr from Episode 147
* Paolo Galelli from E148
* Nathaniel Mason from E149
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter
The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital.
Jan 5, 2020
Episode 150 Celebration: Ask Zoe Anything
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, host Zoe Eather is back in the hot seat! In celebration of this being episode 150, Zoe and producer Ellen Ronalds Keene sat down for a chat where she answers questions from you, the audience of the Smart Community Podcast.
We can’t believe we’re at 150 episode and it’s fitting that this celebratory episode is the first episode of 2020. 2019 was a whirlwind year and 2020 is shaping up to be just as exciting.
Zoe answers 3 questions today from the many that were sent through via LinkedIn and email. Thank you to those of you who submitted questions! We will be doing more ‘AZA’ episodes this year so we can answer more of your questions throughout the year.
As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect via LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook @SmartCommHQ
The Smart Community Podcast…
Dec 29, 2019
Information Sharing in Smart Communities, with Nathaniel Mason
In this episode I have a really great conversation with Nathaniel Mason, the Team Leader of Business Solutions at the City fo Tea Tree Gully in South Australia. This episode is personal opinion only and does not represent any government or agency. Nathaniel is a member of LGITSA, the Local Government IT Association of South Australia. Nathaniel and I met at the LGITSA conference in 2019 where I spoke about my Churchill Fellowship and shared learnings for local government.
In this episode, Nathaniel tells us about his varied background beginning in customer service and hospitality but ending up in IT and local government. He shares with us his passion for volunteering and why he believes getting involved in contribution and collaboration is so important to our Smart Communities. Nathaniel tells us what a Smart Community is to him and why he feels it is so important in this ever-changing world.
We discuss the impact of policy and the concept of Continuous Improvement, and how this is n…
Dec 22, 2019
Engaging Young People in Regional Communities, with Paolo Galelli
In this episode, I have a great chat with Paolo Galelli, Building Energy Efficiency Engineer at BuildTech s.r.l. and Research fellow at the University of Genoa in Italy. Paolo shares with us what sparked his interest in Smart Community concepts and why he feels they are so important, especially for engaging with young people. Paolo tells us about how he sees Italy embracing Smart concepts, and the reason he thinks his town, Sestri Levante, is a great example of a Smart Community. We then discuss the ways that proactive participatory approaches to engagement are even more important in small and regional towns than in metro areas. Paolo tells us about the app he is working on called Nassa that helps engage young people and how they’ve integrated across governments and disciplines. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trend of the different and often technologically-driven ways young people engage in community and civic life, and how Paolo and his team have used that to their adva…
Dec 15, 2019
Liveability, Resilience and Engagement in Regional Communities, with Karen Corr
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great chat with Karen Corr, a Community Engagement and Development Specialist and the Founder and Executive Director of Make a Change Australia. Karen and I met when we were on a panel together. We were talking about liveability at the Bendigo Invention and Innovation Festival earlier in 2019. In this episode, Karen shares with us her journey from being a Water Engineer to becoming passionate about culture change and how that led to her work with Make a Change Australia. We discuss the power of engaging with the “Smartness” of people that live in regional communities and harnessing their local knowledge for ownership of Smart solutions. Karen and I chat about why liveability is so important, and the need for equity of access to liveability, connectivity and accessibility solutions in small towns and regional areas. Karen tells us about the Ramp Up Resilience project that she’s been working on, and it is just a brilliant exa…
Dec 8, 2019
Using Smart Technology in Local Government, James Peet
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great chat with James Peet, the Chief Digital Officer at Moreton Bay Regional Council in South East Queensland. James tells us about his background in architecture and passion for using technology to help make things better, and how that has led him to his role in local government. James and I discuss what really sparked his interest in the Smart Community space and why he sees the concept as so important, firstly because digital disruption is happening and we need to keep up, but also because of the benefits and efficiencies it can provide in local council for things like asset maintenance. James then shares how he sees his region embracing these concepts, and a number of the projects he is currently working on. James and I then talk about the importance of having both an OT (operational technology) as well as an IT team, and why councils need to be planning for those skillsets now. We finish our chat discussing the big opportun…
Dec 1, 2019
Entrepreneur Ecosystems and Community Resilience, with Chad Renando
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a brilliant conversation with Chad Randando, director for the not for profit Startup Status, Managing Director Australia for the Global Entrepreneurship network, and current PhD researcher exploring the connection between entrepreneur ecosystems and community resilience. Chad and I discuss his varied background that spans the US Navy, manufacturing, innovation hubs and a stint as a radio DJ, and how some of those experiences sparked his interest in the Smart Regions and Smart Communities space. We talk about the different types of resilience that communities, especially regional communities, need in this ever changing world and the importance of asking the question ‘Who is not in the room?’ When it comes to Smart initiatives. Chad tells us how he sees Australia currently embracing Smart concepts, and the need for bottom up approaches driven by the regions rather than top down solutions handed to them. Chad shares with us a bit…
Nov 27, 2019
Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 6)
I’m back with another bonus episode of the podcast that brings together multiple guests answers to the question “Where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” And this time I’m sharing with you the answers from MOVE-ember guests, plus a number of our guests from earlier this year:
Scott Shepherd in Episode 139
Rachel De Sain in Episode 142
Samson Williams from way back in Episode 107
Kylie Nixon in Episode 97
Prugya Maini 109
And David Catalovski from Episode 140.
The theme of the month, MOVE-ember has been about moving from old ways of doing things to new, in healthcare, in local government, in transport and mobility and in human behaviour. The themes in this mix of guest answers are similar. Whether it’s in data governance and privacy, or investment in infrastructure and new frameworks and policies for government and how they interact with citizens and private companies, these guests agree that we need to be considering the opportunities and the dangers of this hyperc…
Nov 24, 2019
Churchill Fellowship Zoe's Smart Mobility Report Part 1
In this episode I share with you the overview of my findings from my Winston Churchill Fellowship, which I undertook earlier in 2019 by visiting 7 countries around the world to investigate the integration of Smart Mobility to enable more liveable Australian communities. This will be the first in a series of episodes about my findings. There’s so much to say so today is just the overview and I’ll be back diving a little deeper into some of the topics in another episode soon. If you can’t wait for that, then you can of course read my whole report, which you can find via the link in the show notes and the description of this episode.
Also, just a little update for you all - as you may know if you’ve been following us on the socials, My Smart Community has had a beautiful visual rebrand in the last month. We’ve got a new website that now combines my consulting work, which I used to do under the name Zemcon, with the podcast and the other things on offer at My Smart Community. So…
Nov 17, 2019
Digital Transformation for Smarter Healthcare, with Rachel De Sain
In this episode I have a brilliant conversation with Rachel De Sain, Founder and lead Advisor at Codesain. Rachel tells us about her background across a range of digital transformation and innovation disciplines, and her passion for using technology to make healthcare better. Rachel and I talk about what digital transformation really means—it’s not just making your paper forms into online forms!—and why it’s so important that we develop Smart concepts to really rethink how we deliver services to the community. Rachel shares with us some of the projects she’s currently working on, and why she moved out of Sydney to find more liveability regionally. We have a really great conversation about the impacts of commuting on health and wellbeing, and why we should be focusing more on this and not just on the problem of congestion. We discuss how technology can help us fail in safer, faster ways and why we need governments that are more risk-tolerant to allow this iterative approach. R…
Nov 13, 2019
Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 5)
I’m back with another bonus episode of the podcast that brings together multiple guests answers to the question “Where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” And this time I’m sharing with you the answers from a number of our guests from earlier this year:
E108 Abel Immaraj
E95 Natalie Malligan
E119 Aileen Gemma Smith
E92 Chris Cooper
E112 Flora Salim
E98 Jacob Baskin
E86 Joaquim Alvarez
There are a few main themes that come up over and over again in the podcast, and these are reflected here in the various guest answers. The three themes that Abel mentioned of trust, engagement and partnerships are common threads throughout these clips. I always ask guests how we can better integrate across disciplines, etc, and many of these guests mention the need to continue working together, communicating and breaking down silos in order to solve the problems our communities are facing.
The other interesting theme from this selection of clips is the idea of the interaction between h…
Nov 10, 2019
Positive Human Behaviour in Smart Communities, with David Catalovski
In this episode I have a really fascinating conversation with David Catalovski, co-founder of GreenBe, a company that provides a cloud-based platform and solutions for government and utilities to drive smart technology adoption and hard-to-reach user behaviours. David and I discuss his background as a lawyer and what sparked his interest in the Smart Community space, and why he believes a Smart City is more about serving residents than any technology solution. David tells us about some of the projects he’s working on, including the work GreenBe has done with the City of Blacktown and how their services uses gamification to shift human behaviour in cities for the triple bottom line benefit. We discuss why it’s so important for cities and government services to be benchmarking themselves against the service and engagement of private entities, plus the challenges of reinvention and keeping up with changing customer expectations. David and I touch on the future of work in local governm…
Nov 3, 2019
Looking past the hype in Smart Mobility trends, with Scott Shepard
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast I have a really great chat with Scott Shepard, the Chief Commercial Officer with mobility aggregator and service provider, Free2Move. Scott tells us about his background in urban planning and data analytics and how that led to his focus on transportation and new mobility in cities. We discuss why empowering citifies and improving community quality of life is really the whole point of the Smart Communities movement, and the real need for regional inclusiveness when it comes to tech, mobility and planning. Scott and I discuss the ways new technologies pose a risk for increasing divide and disadvantage within our communities, and also the importance of looking past the hype in order to see those [deeper problems/the real implications of the new tech on the most vulnerable in our communities. Having lived and worked in both places, Scott then tells us about Free2Move, and shares with us his perspective on the similarities and differences betwe…
Oct 30, 2019
Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 4)
I’m back with another bonus episode of the podcast that brings together multiple guests answers to the question “Where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” As the focus this month has been the future of work, this time I’m sharing with you the answers from our guests this month:
E133 Sally Illingworth
E134 Thea O’Connor
E135 Anuraj Gambhir
E136 was Andrew Grill, and I didn’t actually ask him this question specifically because the whole episode was really about what’s next!
E137 Colin Kinner
There are a couple of main themes in this episode. You’ll hear these guests talk a lot about the various stakeholders and humans at the centre of work, and the way technology is changing that, so how do we strike that balance between the technology and automation side of things, with the people, the jobs and most importantly the human brains and bodies and how they actually function best. Creativity and critical thinking is a key theme, as is the importance of keeping the fo…
Oct 27, 2019
The Future of Work: The role of startups and businesses in Smart Communities, with Colin Kinner
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great chat with Colin Dinner. Colin is a startup ecosystem specialist, company director with over twenty years' experience working with high-growth technology-based companies and a startup coach and trainer, so I knew he was the right person to speak to about the role of startups and small businesses in the future of work in Smart Communities. Colin shares a bit about his background in startups in lots of different contexts, and why it’s important that Australia gets better at building an economy based on high value, knowledge-intensive jobs rather than just resources and agriculture. We discuss how Smart Companies contribute to not only Smart Communities but economically prosperous ones too, and some examples from places like Singapore where investing in young people’s knowledge to build Smarter Cities. Colin tells us about Startup Onramp, and what he’s observed during the program about innovation in regional Australia and…
Oct 20, 2019
The Future of Work: Digital Footprints, Data Literacy and Informed Citizens, with Andrew Grill
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a brilliant conversation with Technologist, Engineer, Futurist and host of the Practical Futurist Podcast, Andrew Grill. You might remember Andrew Grill from Episode 38, way back when we were called the Smart City Podcast. Since we’re talking about the Future of Work this month, I knew it was the perfect time to have him back on the show. In this episode, Andrew and I discuss the skills to implement now to stay ahead of the curve in the future of work space, and why we should be designing offices for the future flexible workforce. Andrew tells us why he predicts the gig economy trend is going to reach C-suite and Executive level, and the three Ps of the future of work: people, place and purpose. We also cover the importance of the personal brand and how the notion of personal brands and digital footprints have changed over Andrew's career, plus the idea of employees renting their personal brands to employers. We discuss the need…
Oct 16, 2019
The Future of Work: Evolving Career Trajectories and Transdisciplinarity, with Anuraj Gambhir
In this episode I have a really interesting chat with Anuraj Gambhir, an innovation evangelist, business strategist and a philosopher as well. Anuraj tells us in this episode about his really varied career trajectory starting from the telecommunications and mobile technology industry, through to startups and entrepreneurship, and now the holistic Smart Cities space. Anuraj and I discuss the need for meaningful interaction with technology the power of what he calls ‘transdisciplinarity’ or the disruptive creativity that comes from integration across different disciplines and industries. Anuraj also explains his focus on where technology and spirituality meet, and the importance of keeping humanity at the centre of all the tech. Anuraj tells us about a couple of projects he’s been involved with that connect dots between industries and some real use cases of data and predictive analytics helping keep humans safe and well. We finish our chat talking about the emerging trends of neuro…
Oct 13, 2019
The Future of Work: the Importance of Body Intelligence in Workplace Culture and Design, with Thea O'Connor
In this episode, I had a wonderful chat with Thea O’Connor, a body advocate and Workplace Wellbeing and Productivity Advisor. Thea and I met last year at the Bellingen Ignite conference run but the RDA Mid-North Coast and it was great to chat again. In this episode Thea shares with us what sparked her interest in the link between technology and health, and the impacts of workplace culture on health and also productivity. She tells us why we need body intelligence in our personal lives and in our workplaces, as well as why we need more power naps! Thea shares with us some techniques that can improve the way we work into the future and cultivate Smarter workplaces now, as well as some tips and tricks to combat white collar fatigue. We also have a really interesting discussion about the opportunities and challenges in the uptake of designing workplaces to support human bodies and brains, and the dangers of the intense, hustle culture in the startup scene. We finish our chat discussing t…
Oct 6, 2019
The Future of Work: Personal Branding and Talent Retention in the Digital Age, with Sally Illingworth
In this episode, I have a truly fantastic conversation with Sally Illingworth, a strategic thinker and calculative action taker who thrives in fast-paced and complex-adaptive environments. Sally tells us about her really interesting background from starting in a pizza shop and working her way up the food retail industry, to moving into management consulting and the world of digital marketing. The theme on the podcast this month is the future of work and this is a brilliant interview to kick us off. Sally and I discuss how her career progressed and why she believes that hard work and a willingness to learn can help anyone make similar moves in their career. We cover the skills that are needed in the future of work, including the importance of creativity and curiosity, as well as the challenges and opportunities facing businesses and organisations trying to attract and retain talent in this digital age. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of the speed at which jobs are bein…
Sep 29, 2019
Using technology to make people happier and healthier, with Declan Edwards
In this episode I had a fascinating chat with Declan Edwards, Founder and CEO of BU Coaching and non-technical founder of the soon-to-be-launched PocketCoach App. Declan tells us how his background in physical health and wellbeing led to his passion for the mental and emotional health and wellbeing space, and how despite only hearing about the term Smart Cities and Smart Communities this year, he’s right on board with the concept. Declan and I discuss how Smart Cities can make people happier and healthier, and the importance of doing so in order to tap into the vast amounts of human potential that is unfulfilled right now. We talk about the cultural impact of Tall Poppy Syndrome on the willingness of Australia as a country and Australians as individuals to act on big ideas. Declan then tells us about his PocketCoach app, including how it was an advantage to be a non-tech founder and the way his team works remotely. We finish our chat talking about the emerging trend of measuring Gros…
Sep 25, 2019
Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 3)
I’m back with another bonus episode of the podcast that brings together multiple guests answers to the question “where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” As it’s #selfcareseptember to round out the theme of health and wellbeing, this time I’m sharing with you the answers from our guests this month.
You’ll hear from Katherine Flynn from Episode 127, Monica Olyslagers from Episode 128, Dr. Katherine Loflin from Episode 129, Sophia Arkinstall from Episode 130 and Declan Edwards from Episode 132, which will be out on Monday.
There are a couple of main themes in this episode. You’ll hear these guests talk a lot about using data for various aspects of health and safety within cities, and the privacy implications that come from that, so how do we strike that balance between protecting individual privacy but also using data to keep people safe and well and supported when they’re experiencing health or wellbeing challenges, and as Declan puts it, between Smart citizen…
Sep 22, 2019
Promoting Health in our Smart Communities, with Sophia Arkinstall
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with Sophia Arkinstall. Sophia is the Project Lead at Springfield City Group in the Health, Education and Smart City Division, and she’s also an MBA candidate at the University of Queensland. Sophia is passionate about creating healthier and happier cities through creativity, sustainability and design. In this episode, we discuss how we can bring that health aspect into the Smart City and why it’s so important to do so, as well as the lessons on this that Sophia has learned from visiting various countries and cities around the world, including France, Switzerland, Denmark and the United Arab Emirates. Sophia also tells us how she sees Australia embracing Smart Community concepts, and about the learning city projects she’s working on right now to help with the Smart People aspect of Smart Cities. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of the economic impact of sustainable practices, and the h…
Sep 15, 2019
Smart Communities that help people thrive, with Katherine Loflin
In this episode I had a brilliant chat with Dr. Katherine Loflin, an award-winning, internationally-recognized trailblazer in place science, earning her the moniker of The City Doctor. Katherine tells us about her background in social work and why that’s so powerful in the place making space. Katherine and I discuss the idea of Smart Community as a deliberate community, and why it’s important to be aware when there may be a tale of two cities happening, where one part of the community is thriving while others are just surviving. We explore how fundamental place is to human existence and wellbeing, and the interconnection between place and work. Katherine then tells us about some of the work she does as the Place Doctor, including with cities charting attachment to place, with corporations to help them attract and retain talent, and with Amazing Place Productions, which tells the stories of places. Katherine explains how work-life balance has become more of a focus for citizens and…
Sep 8, 2019
The connection between health outcomes and transport options in Smart Communities, with Monica Olyslagers
In this episode, I have a fascinating conversation with Monica Olyslagers, the Safe Cities Specialist at iRAP, the International Road Assessment Programme. Monica tells us how moving to Ho Chi Min City at the age of 12 sparked her interest in Cities, and why she is so passionate about cycling and the involvement of women in the transport sector. Monica explains a bit about the work IRAP does in assessing star ratings for road safety for different road user groups. For the past four years, Monica lived in Beijing, China at a time when the city experienced its very own "bicycle revolution" driven by new technologies and we discuss some of the projects she’s worked on there. Monica and I also cover the enormous challenge of improving road safety, and how improving health outcomes in the community is inextricably linked with improving transport options. We finish our conversation discussing the need to question emerging technology trends in light of what kind of world we actually want to…
Sep 1, 2019
Smart Strategies for Mental Health, with Katherine Flynn
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a really interesting conversation with mental health disruptor and innovator, Katherine Flynn. Katherine tells us about her background in mental health and PR, and why she’s so passionate about Smart Strategies for mental health. We talk about how learning about how data can be used in marketing is what sparked her interest in ways we could be using data and technology to support people’s mental health. Katherine shares with us how she sees Australia embracing Smart concepts in this space currently, and two projects she’s working on - Listen In and Cre8 Dance - that use music and dance, combined with mindfulness practices and technology to support people’s mental health. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of technology such as Apps being used in mental health prevention as well as crisis support. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at…
Aug 28, 2019
Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 2)
I’m back with another bonus episode of the podcast that brings together multiple guests answers to the question “where to next with Smart Cities and Communities?” As it’s ASCA August/to round out ASCA August, this time I’m sharing with you the answers from our guests this month.
You’ll hear from Emily Royall from Episode 122, Matt Schultz from Episode 123, Sean Audain from Episode 124 and Marissa Racolamera from Episode 125.
There are a couple of main themes in this episode. You’ll hear these guests talk about being community driven and taking the obligations of government towards their constituents very seriously, as well as issues of scalability and questions around ethics and social licence when it comes to emerging technology.
All the guests agree that we need to be engaging with these wicked problems and asking the hard-to-answer questions now, so that we can create a future that is more liveable for all in our communities going forwards.
This episode was brought…
Aug 25, 2019
Finding the WHY in Smart Communities, with Marissa Racomelara
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a really interesting chat with Marissa Racomelara, the Director for Transformation and Change at Georges River Council, and Board Secretary of the Australian Smart Communities Association. We talk about how Marissa’s background in criminology and designing spaces to prevent crime really sparked her interest in Smart Cities and Communities, and why she believes they’re so important. Marissa shares with us how she sees Australia embracing Smart concepts, as well as the necessary balance between professionals guiding Smart processes and intentional community engagement or feedback. Marissa then tells us about the Smart City projects she’s working on at George’s River Council and the work we’re doing at ASCA. We finish our conversation discussing the emerging trends of having a common purpose when collaborating, and focusing on the ‘why’ and real problem solving in Smart Communities rather than only thinking about the new…
Aug 18, 2019
Data-Sharing and Digital Twins in Smart Communities, with Sean Audain
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a great chat with Sean Audain, the City Innovation Lead at Wellington City Council in New Zealand. Sean and I discuss the way the public service role of government shapes how decisions are made, and that this comes with both opportunities and challenges for the government that can differ significantly from the responsibilities and operations of private companies. Sean then tells us how he sees New Zealand embracing Smart concepts, and a bit about the digital twin projects that he is working on in Wellington. We talk about the benefits of using digital twin technology and how it’s being used to build a new call centre and a new library. We finish our conversation discussing the need for indigenous voices in the Smart Cities discourse and the ways different worldviews shape our Smart Communities. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community…
Aug 11, 2019
The important role of local government in Smart Communities, Matthew Schultz
In this episode I had a great conversation with Matt Schultz, City Digital Officer at Ipswich City Council in Queensland and the National President of the Australia Smart Communities Association. Matt and I cover his wide and varied career in technology and local government, and why Matt is so passionate about helping people. We also discuss how important and complex the role of local government actually is, and why Smart Communities are so important. Matt tells us how he sees Australia embracing Smart concepts, as well as the many interesting projects Ipswich City Council is working on to make it an open and interoperable city moving forwards. Matt then explains how ASCA came to be, from its beginnings in 2009 as the Broadband Today Alliance, and how it developed into what it is today, helping with connecting and integrating across different disciplines and industries in Australia today. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of 5G, AI, ML, IOT and blockchain, and the oppor…
Aug 4, 2019
Advancing Equity in Smart Cities, with Emily Royall
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a really fascinating discussion with Emily Royall, the Smart City Coordinator of the City of San Antonio, Texas. Emily tells us about her passion for advancing equity in Smart Cities, and the Community Driven Smart City model that San Antonio is pursuing. We discuss the digital divide in San Antonio and the equity questions municipalities need to think about when being marketed to by the companies mediating Smart City data. Emily then tells us about a number of really interesting and innovative projects the City of San Antonio is working on, including how they’ve partnered with kids in the local CoderDojo coding program to get viable prototypes for their community. Emily and I finish our conversation discussing her thoughts on integrating across disciplines and the jobs of the future, as well as the emerging trends of digital justice and digital equity. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed mak…
Jul 31, 2019
What is ASCA August?
This is a quick episode to introduce our ASCA August special here on the Smart Community Podcast.
What is ASCA?
ASCA is the Australia Smart Communities Association of which Zoe is a volunteer board member.
In August, all episodes of the Smart Community Podcast will be brought to you by the Australian Smart Communities Association with a focus on the needs of ASCA members. So we’re bringing you conversations, stories and learnings from local government agencies around the world, as well as from the board members.
Connect with ASCA at www.australiansmartcommunities.org.au
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect via LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook @smartcommpod
Jul 28, 2019
Smart Initiatives and Using Resources in India, with Aditi Padhi
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a great conversation with Aditi Padhi, a Senior Associate in Planning and Smart City Initiative at infrastructure and urban development company, Surbana Jurong. Aditi tells us about her background in business and architecture, and her passion for Smart Community solutions, as well as why the concept is so important to her personally. She tells us how she sees India embracing Smart City initiatives, and we also talk in depth about two projects she’s worked on. We discuss how cities must carefully manage their resources, and the very real need to educate both citizens and local government administration and other professionals to be able to fully engage in and maintain Smart initiatives. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trends of disaster management and multi-use facilities within cities. As always I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.communit…
Jul 21, 2019
Using data to enable change and foster inclusivity, with Aileen Gemma Smith
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a fascinating conversation with Aileen Gemma Smith the CEO at Vizalytics Technology Incorporated. Aileen Gemma tells us a bit about her very varied background from English Literature to Allied Health to data analytics, and how she became interested in the Smart City and Community space. We discuss why it’s so important to understand the needs of all users so we can better deliver services to our community, and how data can help do us do this. Aileen Gemma also tells us how she sees Australia embracing Smart Concepts and some of the projects she’s working on right now, including with Transport NSW. We then discuss the power of having executive buy in and support to empower and enable teams to do things differently, and she uses the term ‘fluency’ to define the different and varied expertise and experiences we all have, and why we really need to be honouring and respecting our different expertise, experiences and fluencies wh…
Jul 14, 2019
Smart Mobility Lessons from Mexico City, with Pablo Lazo
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a great conversation on location in Mexico City with architect and city planner Pablo Lazo. I recorded this while I was away on my Churchill Fellowship visit to Mexico in March and I really enjoyed this conversation. If you want to hear my reflections on my visit to Mexico City, as well as the other places I visited while I was away, you should subscribe to my exclusive podcast about my Churchill Fellowship. It’s exclusively for supporters on Pozible, so head to Pozible.com today, search for My Smart Community, and hit support. There’s several episodes there already for you to get stuck into and hear about the various people, places and platforms I investigated as part of her Churchill Fellowship.
In this episode, Pablo and I discuss his passion for cities and his interest in Smart Mobility. We really focus in on Mexico City and the opportunities and challenges the city is facing in terms of transport, urban sprawl, population…
Jul 7, 2019
Nurturing Smart Regional Hubs, with Sofie Pringle
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a brilliant conversation with Sofie Pringle, a designer with a passion for creating cities and urban places that increase people’s happiness and mental well-being. She is currently completing a doctorate in urban planning and design at Queensland University of Technology, focusing on the positive and negative effects that design and planning features have on user happiness and well-being. In this episode Sofie tells us about her PhD and what sparked her interest in this space, as well as why she believes there is a gap in the Smart Community conversation around the concept of happiness in the city. We also discuss sustainable urbanisation and the compact city fallacy, and why nurturing our Smart Regional Hubs is so crucial. We finish the chat discussing the emerging trend of the neuroscience research into the impact urban environments have on human brains, and how we’re just not talking about that enough. As always, I hope you e…
Jun 30, 2019
Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities? (Part 1)
Zoe is back behind the mic after her Churchill Fellowship world tour so you’ll start hearing her voice again at the start of the regular podcast episodes. In this episode we’re doing things a little differently. Throughout this year, Zoe has asked each guests an extra question which was edited out of the regular interview: “Where to next for Smart Cities and Communities?” In this episode you are going to hear an amalgamation of a few of the answers from this year’s guests.
The loose theme of this episode is around the need for decision making and action on climate change: you’ll hear from Don McLean from episode 102, Mark Thomas from episode 111, Lisa McLean from episode 105, Ricardo Van Leunen from episode104 And finally Chunga Cha from episode 110.
All the guests agree that we need some urgent action and we need to think not just about what’s happening now, but more about the long term. We need to make decisions now that may not benefit people now, but will be benefic…
Jun 23, 2019
Citizenship, Democracy and Data in the Smart Community (Part 2), with Cornelia Levy-Bencheton and Mike Barlow
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, we hear part 2 of Zoe’s interview with Cornelia Levy-Bencheton and Mike Barlow. In Part 2, which is the previous episode, Zoe and Mike and Cornelia discussed the power of Smart Communities to engage citizens which can lead to a more effective and empowered democracy. They also shared how they see the US embracing the Smart City space and gave some great examples of some Smart concepts being implemented there. If you haven’t yet listened to Part 1 of this interview, go and do that before listening to this episode. In Part 2, Cornelia and Mike tell us about their book, “Smart Cities, Smart Futures: Showcasing Tomorrow.” And about some of the projects that they’re working on right now. They cover the future of work and the opportunities and challenges that come from the range of generations in the work force right now. Zoe, Mike and Cornelia also discuss blockchain and the concept of data as labour, and why Smart Cities and Smart C…
Jun 16, 2019
Citizenship, Democracy and Data in the Smart Community (Part 1), with Cornelia Levy-Bencheton and Mike Barlow
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has a fascinating and really great conversation with Cornelia Levy-Bencheton and Mike Barlow, the authors of the book “Smart Cities, Smart Futures: Showcasing Tomorrow.” Cornelia and Mike tell us about their backgrounds and how they became so passionate about the Smart City and Smart Community space. They share with us their desire to educate and inspire people about these concepts so that we can collectively be more engaged citizens, have a more effective and empowered democracy, and solve problems both big and small in our communities, cities, countries and the world.
Cornelia and Mike share examples of Smart Concepts being used in real places, why being engaged citizens is so important, and what they see as the six facets of a Smart City. This was a longer interview that usual, so we’ve split the conversation into two parts. You will hear Part 1 today and stay tuned for part 2. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this…
Jun 9, 2019
The power of local champions in Smart Regions, with Heath Raftery
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe speaks with Heath Raftery, Head of Technology at boutique electronic product consultancy, Newie Ventures. Heath tells us about his background in computing and electrical engineering, and why the strengths and weaknesses of engineers led him to study economics, communication and human behaviour. He explains how he became interested in Smart concepts thanks to initiatives of the City of Newcastle, and how he sees Australia embracing the Smart Community space. Heath shares some of the projects he’s currently working on, including the Smart Play initiative, which involves playful ways to capture, use and communicate Smart City data. Zoe and Heath then cover why integration really needs organisations being supportive of individuals being collaborative, and the emerging trend of making grass roots projects sustainable through financial as well as community support. A quick warning, the audio quality of this episode does diminish in the la…
May 30, 2019
Putting data in the hands of people, with Flora Salim
In this episode, Zoe had a fantastic chat to Dr. Flora Salim, Associate Professor at the School of Computer Science and Information Technology, RMIT University. She obtained her PhD in Computer Science from Monash University and her research areas are mobile and pervasive computing, urban computing, activity and behaviour recognition, and applied data mining and machine learning for ambient intelligence.
Flora shares with us how she sees Australia embracing Smart Community concepts, as well as some of the projects she's working on right now, including a foot traffic prediction app in Melbourne and a tool to help residents and tourists plan their BBQs in public parks. Zoe and Flora discuss change management and better integrating across disciplines, governments and industries.
They finish their conversation discussing the emerging trend of the good things happening because of AI, the need for choice and control when it comes to our data, and the concept of algorithmic governance. As a…
May 23, 2019
Smart Community Thinking Solving Wicked Problems, with Mark Thomas
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe chats with Mark Thomas, the Managing Director of Serviceworks group, an international Smart City Consultancy. Zoe and Mark discuss how council amalgamations sparked Mark’s interest in the Smart City space and led to a stint in local politics, as well as how he sees New Zealand currently embracing the Smart Community concepts. Mark shares numerous great examples of how Smart Community thinking can be used to solve wicked problems and engage and empower citizens at the same time. Zoe and Mark also discuss Smart Stadiums, what we can learn from Singapore’s approach to integration, and the emerging trends of Digital Twins, AI and blockchain being used in cities. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Mark on LinkedIn and on Twitter @markthomasnz or email him at Mark@serviceworks.co.nz
Connect with me via email: hello@mys…
May 22, 2019
Smarter and greener without overinvesting, with Chungha Cha
In this epsiode of the Smart Communtiy Podcast, Zoe has a fascinting conversation with Chunga Cha, the Co-founder and Chair of the Re-Imagining Cities Foundation. Zoe and Cha discuss his background in finance and how he became passionate about Smart Communities, plus some of the organisations he works with around the world. Cha tells us how he thinks Korea is currently embracing Smart concepts, projects he’s currently working on, and why accelerating Smart Communities is the most effective way to positively influence whole cities and regions. They discuss the gaps and the greenwashing that can exist between different disciplines, and some ideas for better integration. Zoe and Cha finish their chat discussing the emerging trend of overwhelm in the face of the urgent climate crisis, and why we need financial arguments, not just people- or planted-focused arguments, in order to achieve true sustainable solutions. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoy…
May 19, 2019
Evidence-based, adaptable and iterative approaches to planning and design, with Prugya Maini
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has a great chat with Prugya Maini, an urban ist with a background in planning and design. Prugya tells us how evidence-based planning frameworks, or lack thereof, sparked her interest in the Smart City space, and why we need more adaptability and iterative approaches. Zoe and Prugya discuss how Australia is embracing Smart concepts, as well as the need for upskilling and knowledge sharing to address the current skills gaps. Prugya shares how important it is to speak with and actually listen to people from other disciplines, as well as the power of open mindedness and high trust, high respect environments for sparking innovation and creating integration. They finish their conversation discussing trends of accountability, adaptability and the relationship between failure and innovation. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect wi…
May 12, 2019
Urban mining and the value of citizen thinking, with Abel Immaraj
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, Zoe has a fascinating conversation with Abel Immaraj, a consultant and hydraulic engineer with a background in natural resource management and national, state and local water reforms. In this episode, Zoe and Abel discuss the value of citizen thinking and the unintended consequences of individuals adopting technology without thinking of it as a community issue, as well as how he sees Australia embracing the Smart Community concepts. Abel tells us about the concept of urban mining and why the circular economy should always be in the same conversation as Smart Communities, as well as why the nexus of water, energy, waste and the land is so important. Zoe and Abel finish their conversation discussing the emerging trends of information poverty, the increasing complexity of the world, the bundling of service providers and how brokers are now becoming more common to help us navigate the increasing choices we have. As always, we hope you enjoy l…
May 9, 2019
Considering the impacts of emerging technologies on all members of a Smart Community, with Samson Williams
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has an interesting chat with Samson Williams, Principal Consultant at Axes and Eggs, a thinktank and digital advisor on emerging technologies. Samson shares a bit about his work at Axes and Eggs, and why his background in anthropology sparked his interest in Smart Communities. He also has a really interesting perspective on how the US is embracing Smart concepts, and shares about the problem of food deserts, financial deserts, and 3G being a luxury. Zoe and Samson finish their conversation discussing the emerging trends of the millennial generation becoming policy and decision makers, and the negative health impacts of technology making life more convenient.
You will hear that this episode was recorded before Zoe left on her Churchill Fellowship, and she is talking about her trip to the US in the future, but it’s now actually in the past, and you can hear Zoe’s wrap up of each stage of her trip on her special podcast about her Ch…
May 5, 2019
Hype, Substance, Technology and Humanity, with Victor Pereira
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe speaks with Vitor Pereira, the cofounder and Director of Zoom Smart Cities. Zoe and Vitor discuss his background in journalism and in interest in technology, and how being involved in tourism and events sparked his interest in the Smart Community space. Vitor explains why the ability to reflect and receive criticism is crucial for any Smart City, and gives the example of Amsterdam’s rebrand over the last 10 years. He goes on to tell us how Portugal is embracing Smart concepts and some of the projects he’s involved in, including Zoom Global Smart City Association. Vitor and Zoe then discuss the need to cut through the hype and find the substance in a noisy, saturated Smart City market as well as why we need to break down silos and foster integration in order to tackle the urgent and important decisions humanity is facing right now. They finish their conversation discussing the emerging trends of ethics and transparency when it come…
Apr 28, 2019
Next Generation Infrastructure and a Zero Carbon Future, with Lisa McLean
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has a really interesting chat with Lisa McLean, CEO of the Open Cities Alliance. Lisa covers her passion for Next Generation Infrastructure, what that is, and why Smart Community or Next Gen thinking is so important. Zoe and Lisa discuss how Lisa sees Australia embracing Smart Concepts and some of the projects Lisa is currently working on, as well as what Open Cities does. They then talk about the convergence of utilities like water, waste and energy that used to be separate but that are now becoming more interconnected, and the power of aggregating voices to move government policy, breakdown silos and improve integration. Zoe and Lisa finish their chat discussing the emerging trends of the new utility model and the circular economy, as well as “pro-sumers” and why we need new business models in the future. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mys…
Apr 21, 2019
When immediate needs drive Smart Community thinking, with Ricardo Van Loenen
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has a fascinating conversation with Ricardo Van Loenen, the CEO and co-Founder of B. Building Business in Amsterdam. As this episode goes live Zoe will be in Amsterdam as part of her Churchill Fellowship, and if you want to hear all about her trip, remember to head to Pozible.com to get access to her special podcast all about what she’s learning on her Fellowship. It’s available exclusively to supporters so head to Pozible.com now, search My Smart Community, and hit support to get access to those bonus podcast episodes.
In this episode, Ricardo tells us about B Building Business, the startup ecosystem turned Smart City Hub he has been a part of creating in Amsterdam and how it has really sparked his interest in the Smart Community Space. Zoe and Ricardo discuss how the Netherlands is embracing Smart concepts, and the power of having an immediate need driving innovation and investment. Ricardo shares some of the projects he’s be…
Apr 14, 2019
The role of education and ethics in the design of self-driving cars, with Vienna Harvey
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe brings you an interview she did on location in Silicon Valley as part of her Churchill Fellowship trip investigating Smart Mobility around the world. By the way, if you want to hear more from Zoe about her trip, you should subscribe to her exclusive podcast about her Churchill Fellowship. It’s exclusively for her supporters on Pozible, so head to Pozible.com today, search for My Smart Community, and hit support. There’s several episodes there already for you to get stuck into and hear Zoe’s insights from the various people, places and platforms she’s been exploring as part of her Churchill Fellowship.
In this episode, Zoe speaks with Vienna Harvey from online learning company, Udacity. Vienna is a Learning Technologist that specialises in the Self-Driving Car nano-degrees at Udacity. She also did a thesis project about the role of ethics in the design of self-driving cars, and she shares some really interesting findings from…
Apr 10, 2019
Climate change, energy efficiency and the built environment, with Don McLean
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has a fascinating conversation with Don McLean from IES. Don has been in the energy space for nearly 40 years, and is truly passionate about finding intelligent ways to improve energy efficiency as a way of combating climate change. Don shares why he believes aggregation and using the collective is imperative to making better decisions and being more efficient, as well as how he sees Scotland embracing Smart Concepts. He then tells us about his company IES, and how their ‘digital twin’ simulation technology helps in the design of energy efficient buildings, as well as some other technologies they are developing to support the creation of energy efficient groups of buildings, such as university campuses or city districts. Don then explains some of the barriers he sees to integrating across disciplines and really solving our energy problems in order to combat climate change. Zoe and Don finish their chat discussing the emerging tren…
Apr 7, 2019
User Experience at the Intersection of Digital & Physical Environments with Martin Tomitsch
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe speaks with Martin Tomitsch, Associate Professor in Design at the University of Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning, Chair of Design, and Research Director of the Design Lab – an interdisciplinary research group that investigates the role of design across a range of domains and contexts. Martin shares with Zoe the concepts of media architecture and hybrid infrastructure and how it can improve the lives of citizens in Smart Communities, as well as the importance of user experience design principles when designing Smart Cities. Martin tells us about his new book, “Making Cities Smarter, Designing Interactive Urban Applications” and some interesting projects designed to use emerging technologies to in one case reduce litter, and in another case make traffic lights not only fun, but safer. Zoe and Martin finish their conversation discussing the emerging trends of bio design, and cathedral thinking, and why we should b…
Apr 3, 2019
Episode 100 Celebration: Ask Zoe Anything!
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, host Zoe Eather is back in the hot seat! In celebration of this being episode 100, Zoe and Ellen sat down for a chat where she answers questions from you, the audience of the Smart Community Podcast. Fittingly, when this episode goes to air, as well as being episode 100, it’s also exactly one year since Zoe started her own Smart Community consultancy Zemcon. It’s been a whirlwind time and Zoe is currently on her round the world Smart Mobility investigation via her Churchill Fellowship. In this episode Zoe shares her thoughts and experiences in response to the questions some of the community has asked, but if you want her up to date news of her trip, head over to Pozible.com and search My Smart Community to get access to the exclusive podcast all about her Churchill Fellowship journey. In the meantime, enjoy this ‘ask me anything’ episode with Zoe, and as always we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed maki…
Mar 31, 2019
Solving Problems with Smart Concepts And Tools, with Alexis Hannah Smith
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe had a great conversation with Alexis Hannah Smith, the Founder and CEO of IMGeospatial. Alexis shares with us a bit about her background in business and how she stumbled into the Smart Community space because of her passion for helping people and make change for a better world. Zoe and Alexis talk about the gap between the ideal world and reality when it comes to sensors and data, some projects that are happening in the UK, including the Satellite Applications Catapult, plus some projects Alexis is currently working on. Alexis then shares what IMGeospatial and AI Holdings does, and why not being an engineer has been an advantage for her. They finish their chat discussing the emerging trend of branding and re-branding Smart City concepts. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Alexis on the website or Twitter: @imgeospatia…
Mar 27, 2019
Using Data to Manage City Curbs, with Jacob Baskin
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe speaks with computer programmer and transportation enthusiast, Jacob Baskin. Jacob is the CTO at Coord, New York-based tech company that helps government agencies, companies and professionals get the valuable data they need to build and regulate transportation infrastructure in the way that works best for everyone in the city. In this episode Jacob shares what sparked his interest in the Smart Communities space, and why he feels it’s important. Zoe and Jacob discuss how the US is currently embracing Smart City concepts, including cities taking the lead and putting communities back at the centre of decision making. Jacob also explains a bit about Coord, and why curb-side management is needed more and more in today’s world of ecommerce and ride-share platforms. They also discuss how open data is crucial for any kind of integration and why shared data standards are so important. Zoe and Jacob talking about the emerging trend of citie…
Mar 24, 2019
Integrating Active Transport and Infrastructure into Smart Mobility, with Kylie Nixon
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has an interesting conversation with traffic engineer and transport planner, Kylie Nixon. Kylie is the Vice President of PedBikeTrans - the Pedestrian and Bicycle Transport Institute of Australasia and an Associate in Transport Planning at Arup, and in this episode she shares her passion for active transport and integrating it into our Smart communities. Zoe and Kylie discuss what walking might look like in an autonomous vehicle world, and the need for planning, technology and infrastructure that facilitates accessibility and walkability. Kylie shares some of the projects she’s currently working on, including PedBikeTrans and Whole Journey Guide for Accessible Public Transport, and what she’s learned about integrating across disciplines, government and industry. They finish the chat discussing what all this transport technology means for our health and wellbeing, and why it’s an emerging trend we should be talking about more. As…
Mar 17, 2019
Public-Private Integration and Interoperability, with David Pickeral
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has an interesting discussion with entrepreneur and Smart Mobility advisor, David Pickeral. David shares his varied background from Naval Officer to practicing Law, to working with a variety of public and private organisations in the transit and technology arena. He tells us what sparked his interest in the Smart Mobility space, and how he sees the US embracing the Smart City and Community concepts. Zoe and David then cover the advantages of bottom-up, individualised approaches, and how integration and interoperability between government, industry and academia is key. They finish their chat discussing the emerging trend of public-private collaborations in the realm of Smart Mobility. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community
Connect with David via LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect via LinkedIn, Twitter…
Mar 13, 2019
How Uber Sees the Future of Transport, with Natalie Malligan
In this bonus #mobilitymarch episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe has a fascinating chat with Natalie Malligan, the Head of Cities for Australia and New Zealand at Uber. This is a short but jam packed episode, and it’s also a perfect follow up to our previous episode featuring Sampo Hietanen, all about Mobility as a Service, so if you haven’t listened to that episode yet, I’d recommend you go back and listen to it before this one, as Zoe and Natalie do talk about MaaS a bit here so Sampo’s episode will be useful for a bit more context in that regard. In this episode, Natalie shares a bit about how Uber sees the future of transport and some of their projects worldwide, including taking part in the Transport NSW Mobility as a Service Challenge, and integrating the public transport services into the Uber App in the City of Denver in the US. Zoe and Natalie discuss how Australian consumers and governments are embracing Smart concepts, and how this has changed over time, as w…
Mar 10, 2019
Mobility as a Service to rival private car ownership, with Sampo Hietanen
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, Zoe speaks with Sampo Hietanen, the Founder and CEO at Maas Global, the world’s first Mobility-as-a-Service company. Zoe and Sampo discuss his background in transport planning and what sparked his interest in the Smart Community space, as well as how Finland is embracing Smart Concepts, including working towards a life where citizens don’t actually NEED a car. Sampo explains what “Mobility as a Service” is, and how his company MaaS Global came to be. He also shares a bit about its success in a relatively short period of time in Finland, and the plans to go live in other cities in the world, including Sydney. Zoe and Sampo explore why Mobility as a Service can only work when there is integration across different suppliers and systems and the importance of building trust with both the end user and mobility providers in order to facilitate that integration. They finish the conversation talking about the question we really should be a…
Mar 3, 2019
Investigating Smart Mobility around the World, with Zoe Eather
In this episode, producer Ellen Ronalds Keene interviews host Zoe Eather. Zoe shares what #MobilityMarch is, why she’s created it and what to expect on the show this month. Zoe also discusses a range of different aspects of Smart Mobility and explains how mobility is different from transport.
Next, Zoe talks about her up-coming Churchill Fellowship project which will see her travel across the world investigating Smart Mobility. She tells us where she’s going, who she’s meeting with and what she’s hoping to get out of the investigation.
Find the full show notes as: www.mysmart.community
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect via LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook @smartcommpod
Feb 24, 2019
Smart Standards and Open Data, with Chris Cooper
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a fascinating chat with Chris Cooper, engineer, social scientist and CTO of KnowNow Information Ltd. Chris tells us about his background and how understanding the causes of things that happen can help create change. We discuss how Chris sees the UK embracing Smart concepts and why Smart Standards are key to collaboration and interoperability in Smart Communities, as well as how to stay flexible even while using standards. We finish our conversation talking about the emerging trend of making open data compelling for the everyday person so we can hold leaders to account to make evidence-based decisions, especially in the age of things like Brexit. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes as: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Chris on Twitter @MobilityCoopers or via email chris.cooper@kn-i.com
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect via Linked…
Feb 17, 2019
Actioning Alternative Fuels and Decarbonisation, with Larissa Rose
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a brilliant conversation with Larissa Rose, the Managing Director for the Queensland Renewable Fuels Association. We discuss Larissa’s background as an environmental consultant, her Masters degree in renewable fuels and advanced biofuels, and how this sparked her interest in the Smart Community Space. Larissa tells us about the importance of future proofing a city, and how that relates to Smart City concepts, as well as what biofuels actually are, and some examples of different types of low carbon fuels. We talk about what’s happening in Australia regarding transitions to global regulatory pressure to reduce emissions, and the often overlooked health aspects of creating Smart Cities and Smart Communities. Larissa makes a point about air quality that might make you rethink your morning jog through the city streets.
We then explore how low carbon fuels, electric vehicles and hydrogen powered vehicles all fit together and specific…
Feb 10, 2019
Starting with Smart Foundations, with Adam Davis
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I spoke with Adam Davis, the Director of TPL Connect, and a consultant in the design and delivery of Wired and Wireless Networks in Smart Cities, Data Centres, IoT, Telecommunications and Enterprise sectors. Adam shares with us his background as a cabling technician and project manager, and how working with local councils in ICT design and strategy really sparked his interest in the Smart City space. Adam tells us how he sees Australia currently embracing the Smart City or Smart Region concept, and some of the mistakes he’s seen Councils make when adopting new technology. We discuss the importance of having an overarching vision or roadmap when undertaking any kind of Smart City planning, and what some of the key components of such a framework are. Adam shares some of the projects he’s currently working on, primarily focusing on the foundation layer such as fibre infrastructure to support wireless and sensor networks, and the amount o…
Feb 3, 2019
Smart Lessons from New York City, with Dr Amen Ra Mashariki
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a really interesting conversation with Dr Amen Ra Mashariki, the head of Urban Analytics at global GIS company, Esri (pronounced Ez-ree). Amen has a really interesting background, ranging from computer science and being a software engineer at Motorola, to bioinformatics and Cancer Research Analytics, to being a Political Appointee in the Obama Administration and then the Chief Analytics Officer at the Mayors Office in New York City. He shares with us the personal story that sparked his interest in this Smart Community space and the key lessons he’s learned about developing Smart Communities over his career. We talk about what Urban Analytics is and why it’s so valuable in developing Smart thinking, and how Amen works with cities and operational officials in the areas of data science, analytics and location intelligence. Amen tells us about his visit to Australia to meet with some of those operational officials, as well as an int…
Jan 31, 2019
The future of public and private transit systems, with Matthew Booterbaugh
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I had a really great chat with Matthew Booterbaugh, the Vice President of Continuous Improvement at RATP Dev North America. We discuss Matthew’s background in IT, his interest in helping organisations build efficiencies in their processes, and how that has led him to the public transit industry. Matthew tells us what RATP Dev does, some of the projects he’s been working on in Europe and Asia, and what we can learn from those projects, including the electrification of bus fleets in France. We talk about why Smart Cities and in particular Smart Mobility is so important, as well as how Matthew sees the US embracing Smart Concepts. We cover the cost effectiveness of on-demand transit services compared with traditional services, and some ways to better integrate between the public and private sectors in the transit industry. Matthew also tells us about a project involving social media and news listening platforms being used to collect real…
Jan 28, 2019
Grassroots and Green Roofs, with Catherine Caruana-McManus
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast I had a really fascinating conversation with Catherine Caruana-McManus. Catherine is the Director of Meshed IoT, an Australian-based IoT Integrator, and the founder of the global community Giant Ideas for Smart Cities, and the co-founder of the IoT Alliance. Catherine recently won an IoT Ambassador Award for Australia and Smart Cities Industry Leader at the recent Smart Cities Council Awards. Catherine has been in the cities business her whole career and even though it wasn’t called Smart Cities, she shares how she’s been working in the space for 25 years. We discuss the economic imperative for cities to get Smarter and more sustainable, as well as a bit about the history and evolution of Smart Cities as a concept over the last 30 years from it being purely about urban development, to now being acted upon at the grassroots level. Catherine has some really interesting observations about how Australia is currently embracing Smart Concept…
Jan 20, 2019
Smart Citizens in Barcelona and Beyond, with Joaquim Alvarez
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a fascinating conversation with Smart City Speaker and Digital Business Strategist, Joaquim Alvarez. We discuss his technical background in telecommunications and engineering, as well as his career working on a range of big projects for governments, companies and other private organisations. Joaquim shares how working on Barcelona City’s Smart City Projects sparked his interest in the space, and why having Smart Citizens in the Smart Community is so important. We discuss his work with Barcelona City, including the four agents they look at when developing an ecosystem of integration within the Smart City. Joaquim also talks about his upcoming 5 city tour of Australia, brought to you by Delos Delta, where he will share more about his work with Barcelona City and teach his own methodology for developing digital projects. Finally, we talk about emerging trends and why it’s so hard to predict the future. As always, I hope you enjoy l…
Jan 13, 2019
Getting Smart about Flood Mapping with Juliette Murphy
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I speak with Juliette Murphy, the CEO and Cofounder of FloodMapp, a predictive flood mapping initiative that uses real time data and Smart alerts to deliver timely and location specific flood warnings. Juliette shares with me her background in environmental engineering in water resources and hydrology, and how the 2011 Queensland floods sparked her interest in the Smart Community space.
Juliette’s experiences of flooding, both personally and professionally, and nationally and internationally, as well as an app building hobby that started in her spare time, have combined in her work at FloodMapp. Juliette and I discuss the gaps in our communications during emergencies, and also the gaps in accessibility and understanding when citizens receive these communications. We cover the dual meanings of ‘connection’ in the Smart Community and why it’s so important, and well as how well Juliette sees Australia embracing Smart concepts. We di…
Jan 6, 2019
Smart Community Thinking from the Regional to the Precinct Level, with Pascal Perez
Happy New Year! Welcome back to the Smart Community Podcast for 2019. In the first episode for the new year I had a great conversation with Pascal Perez. But just before I tell you about that, I wanted to give a quick shout out to my first patrons! As you might know, I have started a Patreon page over at patreon.com/smartcommpod for fans of the podcast who want to support the show and get access to exclusive content. A big thank you to my first patrons for helping keep this show in your podcatchers week after week. If you’d like to support the show, head over to patreon.com/smartcommpod
Ok, on with the episode. Pascal Perez is the Director of the SMART Infrastructure Facility at the University of Wollongong. In this episode he tells us about his background in agricultural and environmental engineering around the world, and how he now applies that in the urban development/infrastructure space here in Australia. Pascal shares what sparked his interest in the Smart Community space and…
Dec 16, 2018
Spatial Literacy and Understanding Data, with Jack Barton
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a great chat with architect Jack Barton. Jack is an Associate at SGS Economics and Planning, and also Manager of Stakeholder Engagement and Business Development for the GeoSpatial Research Innovation and Development Lab at the University of NSW. He also runs his private practice JBDD. Jack and I have a great discussion about how his upbringing in a regional area, his interest in cities, and his love of digital technology all combined to spark his interest in the Smart space. We talk about why Smart Cities is a good buzz word, and the reasons connections and communication are important in Smart Communities. Jack shares his view on how Australia is embracing Smart concepts, and why long term vision is important, especially during this age of experimental pilot programs. We cover Smart City Standards and what they mean for people working in the space; the importance of digital and spatial literacy, and the need for more people to prope…
Dec 9, 2018
Bringing Science Fiction to Life, with Shara Evans
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a fascinating conversation with Shara Evans, Technologist, Futurist, Keynote Speaker and Self-Proclaimed Sci-Fi Geek. Shara and I discuss her background, how she transitioned from technologist to futurist, and what sparked her interest in the Smart Community space. We have a really interesting chat about all kinds of futuristic technologies and some great examples of Smart concepts, including self-repairing cities using fleets of autonomous robots and drones. Shara shares how this is already being implemented to various degrees today in a range of places around the world, and the future of this technology. We cover driverless cars, drones and hyper loops, and the opportunities and challenges these technologies pose to Australia, as well as how Shara sees Australia embracing Smart concepts. We also discuss the future of work and the new categories of jobs that we will see as our homes and cities become Smarter. We finish off talking…
Dec 6, 2018
Sharing Smart Stories, with Sarah Wray
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a great conversation with Sarah Wray, the editor at Smart Cities World, an online publication covering all the latest news and trends around Smart Cities and Smart Communities. Sarah and I discuss her background in writing for telecommunications and how that led her to this Smart space, as well as why she believes it’s important that the Smart concepts don’t get kept only in the cities but that small towns and regional communities can benefit from them too. We talk about how the UK is embracing the Smart concepts, and a number of really interesting projects that are happening both in the UK and globally. Sarah and I also talk about how to better integrate across disciplines, and the emerging trends of cybersecurity and of Smarts being visible, but not secret. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
You can now support the Smart Community Podcast via Patreon, at patreon.com/smartcomm…
Dec 2, 2018
Embracing future ways of working through intentional design, with Andrew Pettifer and Steve Coster
This episode of the Smart Community Podcast is brought to you by Arup, an independent firm of designers, planners, engineers, consultants and technical specialists, working across every aspect of today’s built environment. In this episode, I had a brilliant conversation with Andrew Pettifer, the NSW Region Leader of Arup, and Steve Coster, the Managing Director at international design practice, HASSELL. We have a fascinating discussion about the impact of technology, design and leadership on the way we work, and how this fits in the Smart Community arena.
Arup has just opened three new buildings for their workforce in Sydney, Melbourne and Singapore, and we talk about the guiding principals for these buildings, and why it is so important to have this forward thinking approach rather than just leasing an existing office building. I have visited both the Sydney and Melbourne sites and I must say, the intentional design really does make a difference.
Andrew and Steve explain the proce…
Nov 25, 2018
Smart Shared Mobility, with Alex Girard
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a really great conversation with Alex Girard, the CTO of Liftango. Alex tells us about his background and what he’s passionate about, and also what a Smart City means to him. We also talk about what’s happening in France and Australia in terms of transportation as a pillar for society, and the differences between the two. Alex then shares about what Liftango does, including carpooling and on-demand bus solutions. We then talk about how open data is a means of integrating across the different disciplines. We finish up talking about while the spotlight is on EVs and AVs, electric and autonomous vehicles, we need to start talking about how they fit into the shared mobility space. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes as: www.mysmart.community
Connect with Alex via LinkedIn or email him alex@liftango.com
Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community
C…
Nov 18, 2018
Smart Water Management, with Frank Burns
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a great conversation with Frank Burns, President and Co-Founder of Apana, a technology company that is currently applying its IoT and Prescriptive Analytics suites to solve problems with water use inside the built environment. Frank shares his background in waste water management, his passion for eliminating water waste and contamination in the commercial, industrial and institutional sector, and how it sparked his interest in the Smart Cities/Smart Communities space. We discuss the way Apana uses technology and data for Smart Water Management, and why it’s so important not only in individual companies but at the city level. Frank shares his thoughts on how this is currently happening in the US, the tug of war between the tech-focused approach and the bottom-up approach to Smart cities and why meaningful measurement is the key to integration and collaboration across sectors and disciplines. We finish our chat talking about water b…
Nov 11, 2018
The Power of Leadership and Technology in Smart Communities, with Jonathan Reichental
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I had a fascinating conversation with Jonathan Reichental, the Chief Information Officer for the City of Palo Alto, California. Jonathan shared a bit about his background in technology, why he loves the way technology can make positive things happen for individuals and the world. He talks about what it’s been like being, in his words, a bit of a maverick from the private sector, now being a public servant and working for local government. Jonathan shares how the City of Palo Alto is working on digitisation and the high degree of importance they place on collaboration with the community. We talk about what a Smart City or Smart Community means to Jonathan, why it’s so important and how being in the opening chapters of the Fourth Industrial Revolution is creating a lot of change for all of us. Jonathan also explains why cities or urban locations are the future, not only in terms of where most humans will live going forwards, but also in…
Nov 8, 2018
Smart Regions and Communities for the Next Generation, with Kerry Anderson
In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have an awesome conversation with Kerry Anderson, the founder of Operation NextGen and the author of Entrepreneurship: It’s everybody’s business. Kerry is passionate about sharing stories from rural and regional Australia.
Kerry tells us a little secret to start with, and also the importance of having new conversations with new people in new places. Kerry and I discuss the concept of Smart Towns and Smart Communities, and how these towns and communities have to embrace change and be willing to experiment.
Kerry then talks about the value of entrepreneurs in the region, and how complacency can affect the growth of a regional area. Kerry then shares about some of the regional conferences and events that are happening, shares some stories and tells us about Operation NextGen.
Kerry tells us about the research she completed overseas and the importance of collaboration and champions to better integrate across the different disciplines…
Nov 6, 2018
Mobility, Trust and Seamless Payments in the Smart Community, with Stephen Coulter
In this episode of the Smart Community podcast, I have a great chat with Stephen Coulter from Localift. Stephen tells us about his background in financial services, banking and later startups, and how the two have now combined in his interest in the Smart Mobility space. We talk about Smart Cities being made up of a series of hyper-local communities, and why it’s not just technology but also psychology that we need to be looking at when preparing for and encouraging the changes that are coming, whether they happen cooperatively or disruptively. Stephen then shares with us some of the projects he’s currently working on, including Local Lift, and why trust and seamless payment processes are so important in the Smart Mobility space. We discuss the concept of shared mobility and why it’s an emerging trend not being talked about enough, despite the fact that it’s an important part of the 21st Century solution to the 20th Century problem of congestion. As always, I hope you enjoy lis…
Nov 4, 2018
Startups, Coworking and Smart Tech, with Monica Wulff
Hello #smartfriends and welcome to the first interview episode of the Smart Community Podcast. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, go back and listen to yesterday’s episode which is all about why I’ve rebranded to expand the conversation away from just cities. As you probably know by now, the conversations always come back to the human beings at the centre anyway, so broadening the conversation to be about Smart Communities is important. Having said all of that, we will still be using the term Smart Cities, because it is a common industry term and because most people are quite familiar with it. This episode is no different, and although the first part of the conversation is very much around Smart Cities, you will see that we do shift focus to me more inclusive of the Smart Community focus about halfway.
So, in this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I interview Monica Wulff, Cofounder of Startup Muster, a data-focused company that measures and publishes the progress…
Nov 3, 2018
Welcome to the Smart Community Podcast
On The Smart City Podcast, what I've realised is, we're not actually talking Smart Cities per se, we're talking Smart Communities and Smart Regions. The term Smart City is not as inclusive as it could be, because we also want to talk to people, or talk about things that are happening in our regional areas and across borders.
I want to shift my language from Smart City to Smart Community, and under Smart Community, encompass Smart City, Smart Town and Smart Region. Then extending on that, Smart People, because we need Smart Citizens to know that they're Smart Citizens in order to enact their Smart Community and Smart Lives.
Find the full show notes as: www.mysmart.community
Email: hello@mysmart.community
Connect via LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook @smartcommpod
The Smart City Podcast is produced by Ellen Ronalds Keene.
Nov 1, 2018
The Empowerment of Smartivists, with Tom Mueller
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fascinating conversation with Tom Muller, an Economic Geographer and one of the cofounders of Bee Smart City. He shares with us how Bee Smart City came to be, what they do and a bit about their database connecting Smart City providers with people seeking their services. We also discuss the fact that Smart Cities really needs to be acknowledging that it’s not always about the big cities, but municipalities of any size, which you might have noticed is an increasingly common conversation on the podcast, so watch this space….
Tom also shares his perspective on how Germany is embracing Smart concepts and the opportunities and challenges of this new paradigm globally, as well as the emerging trend of bottom-up initiatives and empowering Smart Citizens, who Tom calls Smartivists. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Tom and B…
Oct 31, 2018
Sparking an interest in 3D printing, with Stephanie Piper
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interview Stephanie Piper, 3D printing enthusiast, and the Community Engagement Coordinator at the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba, where she runs their Maker Space. In this episode we discuss Steph’s journey from studying biomedicine and vaccine development, to being involved in the 3D printing space and why she’s so passionate about the possibilities and opportunities 3D printing technology provides for Smart Cities. Steph explains what 3D printing actually is, and what kind of people and projects are happening at her Maker Space, as well as some of the ways 3D printing can be used to help recycle and reuse plastics, and implications for the circular economy in these particular areas. Steph shares her passion for educating people about this technology, and her views about integrating across disciplines, governments and academia, as well as some of the emerging trends in the 3D printing and maker space arena. What we don…
Oct 30, 2018
Getting Data Sharing Right in the Smart Community, with Geof Heydon
In this episode of the Smart City podcast, I have a great chat with Geof Heyden, Associate at data-sharing company CreatorTech and Co-Founder of the IOT Alliance in Australia. Geof shares his background in the telecommunications industry, and how that sparked his interest in the Smart City space. He is passionate about helping all levels of government to really understand the importance of data and data sharing in a digital economy, and how we all need to be on the same page with protecting and sharing appropriately sometimes quite sensitive data. We also discuss the importance of councils and state governments, taking stock of what’s happening internally first in order to make Smart decisions about what Smart applications are needed, and the interesting evolution in thinking going on about what makes a liveable city or community. Geof shares his thoughts on the patchiness of Australia’s adoption of Smart concepts, and explains how the IoT Alliance came to be. We also discuss why c…
Oct 29, 2018
SCP E69: The importance of privacy protections in the Smart City, with Nicole Stephensen
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a really interesting conversation with Nicole Stephenson, a Privacy Consultant originally from Canada but now based in Ipswich, Queensland. Nicole shares why privacy is such an important part of the Smart City conversation, and one that currently isn’t being embraced enough across the board. We discuss how Australia is currently embracing the Smart City concept and how we could still have a data driven and tech-enabled community that balances the privacy and security of citizen data. Nicole explains some of the projects she’s currently working on, including her role with the Internet of Things Security Institute, an Australian Not-For-Profit organisation in the privacy space. We also talk about privacy legislation in Australia and across the world, such as GDPR — Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation, and what that means for the Smart City space here and abroad. Nicole explains the biggest mistakes a Smart City project or a…
Oct 28, 2018
SCP E68: Being Smart for the Local Community, with Khal Asfour - Mayor of the City of Canterbury Bankstown
Hello #smartfriends, welcome to Smart Cities Week! This week we are going to release one episode every day Monday to Friday to celebrate Smart Cities Week. This first episode of the Smart City Podcast this week is with Mayer Khal Asfour, who is the Mayor of City of Canterbury-Bankstown. I had a really great conversation with the mayor about what the Smart City concept means to him, which is about solving real problems for the community and also about making government processes more efficient and providing savings to the community. The mayor shares insights on the trip he recently took to the US to look at Smart Cities, and what he’s brought back to Australia, as well as the Canterbury-Bankstown roadmap that has just been released and the importance of having a strategy. We also talk about some of the other projects and initiatives the council is working on as well as emerging trends, including foundational processes and opening up the data. The mayor is also very keen to collaborate…
Oct 21, 2018
SCP E67: Smart Stakeholder and Community Engagement, with Amelia Loye
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with Amelia Loye. Amelia is a Community and Stakeholder Engagement Specialist who and the Founder of engage2, a public participation and stakeholder engagement consultancy. We begin by discussing the concept of Smart Government and Amelia explains why she’s so passionate about balancing the interests of different groups.
We also discuss the upcoming Smart Cities Week events in Sydney from the 29th of October to the 2nd of November, including the EngageTech Forum at the NSW State Library on the 1st of November which Amelia’s team have deliberately designed to provide a participatory experience and to facilitate connections and collaborations amongst attendees.
Amelia then dives into a favourite technique of hers to integrate across different disciplines, industries and governments and given this is her area of specialty, her answer digs right down, which is great. We finish by discussing the emerging trends…
Oct 14, 2018
SCP E66: Visionaries creating a new Smart narrative, Mateusz Jarosiewicz
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a really great conversation with Mateusz Jarosiewicz from Poland. He is the Program Coordinator for Smart City Polska. We talk about collaborating so we don’t have to reinvent the wheel, and he talks about how Smart City can be an ideology, a movement and a community. He also talks about making the Smart City concept more understandable for the greater audience, particularly starting in schools. Mat then shares some of the things he’s working on at the moment, including Road Map and Vision Poland, and Do Tanks rather than just thinking. He also talks about the importance of having visionaries and facilitators to integrate across the different disciplines, industries and government. The last thing we talk about is going from the internet to real places as an emerging trend. As always, I hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Mat on Link…
Oct 7, 2018
SCP E65: Convergence of Energy, Infrastructure and Transport, with Carola Jonas
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a really great conversation with Carola Jonas. Carola is the CEO and Co-Founder of Everty, who build software for electric vehicle charging. She has a background in logistics and freight, and has moved into green tech. She is very passionate about keeping our planet clean and green. We talk about some of the impacts of energy infrastructure and transport coming together in a digital sense, and Carola then talks about some of the leading initiatives happening in Australia. She shares what Everty does and what they are doing in the Smart City Space. She also shares some learnings from around the world, including how to increase uptake and also getting the infrastructure ready. We have a little bit of a chat about demand on the energy grid, and finish talking about connected and automated vehicles integrating into our public infrastructure, and then some examples of emerging trends from overseas. As always, I hope you enjoyed listening to t…
Oct 3, 2018
SCP E64: Bonus Episode | 21st Century Solutions to Current Day Problems, with Dean Madison
In this bonus episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a really great conversation with Dean Madison, the founder and CEO of T. D. Madison and Associates. Dean has a background in broadband and we first start talking bout IOT and the next generation of services, and how we need to start applying 21st century solutions to our current day problems. Dean is passionate about empowering cities to manage their own complex services and resources, and we also talk about the idea of buying back time and setting up the right foundational infrastructure for a Smart City. Dean shares some of the things he’s currently working on, which includes setting up this foundational infrastructure and he also talks about setting up a Smart City Ecosystem of open data to allow integration. We talk about some of the emerging trends, particularly the economic and environmental impacts of not implementing Smart city practices and finish talking about using technology instead of trying to build our way out of c…
Sep 30, 2018
SCP E63: Smart from the Start, with Merrick Spain
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with Merrick Spain, the Smart Cities Lead for Telstra. We discuss the importance of community and civic innovation in the Smart City space, and also the need to develop a data culture before we get too excited about the tech. We also explore some of the projects Merrick is working on, particularly in the realm of Smart Regions, and the emerging trend of genuine collaboration. Merrick’s favourite term is ‘Smart from the Start’ which I really enjoy. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
You can connect with Merrick on LinkedIn and via Twitter @MerrickSpain
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Sep 23, 2018
SCP E62: Underspent Smart Communities, with Rachel Smith
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast I had a fantastic conversation with Rachel Smith, the author of Decongestion and also Underspent. A transport planner by trade, Rachel tells us about the BMW Guggenheim Lab she participated in where she travelled the world with the theme ‘cities of the future.’ We talk about the idea of underspent cities and how Smart Cities is about the intentional use of resources. We discuss the sharing economy and Rachel’s experience of this overseas. She then shares the importance of people in the Smart City and the drivers of behavioural change. We finish on the emerging trend that people aren’t talking about enough, which is the changes in retail that are already happening. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Rachel via LinkedIn, her website www.cyclingrachelsmith.com or @cyclingrsmith on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram
Connect with m…
Sep 16, 2018
SCP E61: Interoperability and Power the Key to Smart Cities, with Robert Linsdell
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with Robert Linsdell, the Managing Director of Vertiv for Australia and New Zealand. He is passionate about technology; he grew up with it and has worked with it all of his life. We first talked about the different sectors of the Smart City and what is to come. We then talk about the importance of uninterrupted connectivity and power supply for a Smart City. Robert then talks about how important it is for interoperability to occur, to collaborate instead of compete. Robert shares was Vertiv does, particular with regards to data centres and UPS — uninterruptible power supply. We then talk about how unforgiving we are of technology and that we need to start talking about what to do if it fails. Finally, we discuss how important it is for government to keep up with technology when doing policy and planning. As always I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show not…
Sep 12, 2018
SCP E60: Bonus | Sustainability, Liveability and Making the World Better, with Will Davies
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interview the CEO of Car Next Door, Will Davies. Will starts with discussing how he started to follow his passion for reducing our carbon footprint, and then how to utilise our resources better and how that fits into the Smart City space. We take a bit of a deep dive into car sharing and public transport attitudes as well as equal access to mobility. He has an exciting idea about how every new human could make the world a better place. We talk a lot about what Car Next door actually does, and finish our conversation talking about impacts on infrastructure and costs of autonomous vehicles, public transport and car sharing. As always I hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with will via the website carnextdoor.com.au or email him at
will@carnextdoor.com.au
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smar…
Sep 9, 2018
SCP E59: Integrating Technologies and Embracing the Digital Age, with Emma Hendry
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with Emma Hendry. Emma is the CEO of Hendry Group and was also a member of the Future Leaders, Future Cities delegation to Japan. Emma and I discuss incorporating tech into everyday business and how to move into the digital age. We also discuss learnings from Japan, what Emma has been up to lately, and how we can better integrate across the different disciplines using technology. We also talk about some of the emerging trends, global conversations and how to deal with risk. As always I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
You can connect with Emma via the Contact page on the Hendry Group website, www.hendry.com.au or reach out to her on LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Sep 2, 2018
SCP E58: Smart Cities as a way of thinking, with David Batchelor
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with David Batchelor, a planner and history buff from Wellington, passionate about heritage and culture in our cities.
He is also a member of the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators and talks about Smart Cities being a way to create great connected spaces for the people in them, and about Smart Cities being a universal language, a level playing field where we can all communicate.
David tells us how New Zealand is currently embracing the Smart City concept and the importance of overall vision and strategy. He discusses some of the things that are happening in Wellington, particularly to do with resilience and tells us some really cool stuff about Smart heritage. We finish our conversation about public trust and the different types of feedback.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent any company or government agency.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com…
Aug 26, 2018
SCP E57: City Deals for Integrated Cities, with Michael Comninos
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a great chat with Michael Comninos, the Managing Director of Astrolabe Group. First he tells us about his background in mathematics and growth infrastructure planning, so how cities grow. He also talks about the Smart City being about people and place, and also the importance of governance reform and leadership. Michael also tells us about some of the things he's been working on, including City Deals, and how it's important for the government to shift their thinking from being a regulator to moving to a customer-centric approach. We also talk about some emerging trends and the fact that everyone is still learning. As always I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Michael via LinkedIn or on Twitter @astrolabe_au
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Aug 23, 2018
SCP E56: Bonus | Smart Chats - Governance with Danielle Storey
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast I have a great conversation with Danielle Storey. It’s the third time she’s been on the podcast (previously in Episodes 25 and 35) and this time we talk about Smart City Governance and the importance of frameworks in this space. I hope you enjoy listening to this bonus episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Chief Innovation Officer of Smarter Technology Solutions, a specialist Smart City Consulting and System Integration Company working with some of the leading Smart Cities in Australia.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Dani on LinkedIn or Smarter Technology Solutions at the website http://smartertechnologysolutions.com.au
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Aug 19, 2018
SCP E55: The Circular Economy, with Ashleigh Morris
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with Ashleigh Morris. Ashleigh is the cofounder and CEO fo the Circular Experiment, and also joined me on the Future Leaders, Future Cities delegation to Japan. Ashleigh and I discuss our observations from Japan, as well as how Smart Cities and the Circular Economy fit together. Ashleigh also explains what the Circular Economy is and what the Circular Experiment worked on. We also discuss emerging trends of connecting knowledge and genuine collaboration.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
The best place to connect with Ashleigh is LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Aug 12, 2018
SCP E54: Cybersecurity in the Smart City, with Vaughan Emery
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a really interesting chat with Vaughan Emery. Vaughan is the Founder and CEO of Atonomi, a company focused on security protocol for the internet of things. We talk a lot about the importance of cybersecurity as we get more connected, and how they’re using the Ethereum blockchain to do their business. We also have some really interesting conversation about the future of cryptocurrencies. I learnt so much talking to Vaughan so I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
You can find out more about Atonomi and their website Atonomi.io, connect with Vaughan via Twitter @vaughanemery or @atonomi or find Atonomi on Telegram
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Aug 5, 2018
SCP E53: Using technology to empower people to solve real problems, with Alvaro Maz
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a great conversation with Alvaro Maz from Code for Australia. This episode isn’t about coding, it’s about using technology to empower people to solve real problems, which is a concept that I love. We discuss a lot of things including the changing ways of work and the importance of creating exciting and interesting projects to attract the talent that you want and need in order to keep moving forward. Alvaro and I also talk about about solving some of those boring inefficiencies that happen in Government and organisations, which you know I’m so passionate about. So as always I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Alvaro on Twitter @alvaromaz
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Aug 1, 2018
SCP E52: Smart Local Councils and Communities (Part 2), with Bronwyn Voyce
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast we have part 2 of my conversation with Bronwyn Voice. In Part 1 we talk about the Future Leaders, Future Cities delegation, Bronwyn’s background, the sharing economy and karaoke. In this episode, we continue our conversation and start it by talking about Bronwyn’s observations of the Smart City space in Hong Kong and Japan. We also cover disaster resilience, which both countries are facing, in different aspects, and the future of mobility and emerging trends, and how there’s lots of challenges coming such as facial recognition technology.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Bronwyn on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn or Email bronwyn@bronwynvoyce.com.au
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jul 29, 2018
SCP E51: Smart Local Councils and Communities (Part 1), with Bronwyn Voyce
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast I had a great chat with a fellow member of the Future Leaders, Future Cities Delegation, Bronwyn Voyce. Currently a consultant at GWI, she has a wide and varied background which we dive deep into in this episode. We talk about the concept of Smart Councils and how Smart Cities are a way for us to reach our potential. We also cover the sharing economy, policy, data access and some of our reflections on the Smart City space in Japan and Hong Kong. This is a 2-part interview, so stay tuned for the rest of our conversation in Part 2 coming soon!
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Bronwyn on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn or Email bronwyn@bronwynvoyce.com.au
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jul 26, 2018
SCP E50: Bonus | Key themes from the Future Cities, Future Leaders delegation
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I cover some of the key themes from the recent Future Cities, Future Leaders delegation to Japan, led by the Minister of Tourism, Trade and Investment, Steven Ciobo. I share 11 of my insights from the trip, and talk a little bit about the Churchill Fellowship I’ve applied for as well.
I also share an anecdote of what happened just after the delegation when I got evacuated from Kyoto and how I realised I was alone in the world except for Siri and Google!
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jul 22, 2018
SCP E49: Urbanism, tech and meaningful Smart Cities, with Nicola Balch
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interview Nicola Balch. We had a great chat about urbanism and tech. Nicola is an associate at McGregor Coxall. We also talked about the intelligent use of data, including why we need to be thinking about the metrics: why we want to collect certain data and what it is we will use the data for. Nicola shared about a number of different projects across the world, which I found really interesting.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Nicola on LinkedIn or Twitter @NixBalch
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jul 15, 2018
SCP E48: Different approaches to Smart Cities, with Janice Lee
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast I interview Janice Lee. Janice is the Director of Infrastructure Advisory at EY and also recently joined me on the Future Leaders, Future Cities delegation to Japan. It was really great to hang out with Janice in person in Japan, and in this episode we discuss our observations; we talk about how Australia and Japan are approaching the Smart City space differently, but also how some things are exactly the same. We also discuss work that Janice is doing in the government advisory in the Smart City space, and the emerging trends that other people aren’t talking about in depth. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jul 8, 2018
SCP E47: The power of Smart concepts in regional areas, with Neil Glentworth
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had an awesome chat with Neil Glentworth. Neil is the Executive Chairman at GWI and he is passionate about the ethical use of data to make informed decisions. He is also passionate about Smart happening in the regions, which of course I love, so we had some great conversation about what the regions are doing in this space. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Neil through LinkedIn or on the GWI website.
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jul 5, 2018
SCP E46: BONUS | Smart Chats from the Future Leaders, Future Cities delegation in Japan
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast I come to you all the way from Japan. I’m here on an AusTrade delegation with the Honourable Steven Ciobo, the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, and we have had such an amazing time. First, each member of the delegation will introduce themselves and give you a short snippet of their companies. Then I get some reflections from 4 of the 13 delegates. As always, I really hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
The four delegates who give their reflections are Janice Lee, John O’Callaghan, Tim Lucas and Emma Hendry. The other delegates you hear from in the beginning are Brian Ashton, Ashleigh Morris, Bronwyn Voyce, Andy Roberts, Gabrielle Hall and Katherine Tobias as well as prior podcast guests Nick Kamols, Marika Svikas and Dan Barr.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find the ful…
Jul 1, 2018
SCP E45: Connectivity and Collaboration for Smart Communities, with Daniel Fletcher
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had some great discussions with Daniel Fletcher. Daniel is the General Manager of Communities for the Central Highlands Regional Council in Queensland. He is very passionate about supporting and nourishing regional communities. As you know, I am also very passionate about the regional areas, so Daniel and I had some great conversations about this. Daniel also shares about what Central Highlands Regional Council is doing in the Smart City space, and how he is trying to close the technology gap for the community.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Daniel on LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 24, 2018
SCP E44: Holistically Smart Cities, with Dan Barr
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a great conversation with Dan Barr. Dan is the director of the Better Cities Group and is passionate about making cities more liveable. Dan has a wide and varied background, and most recently embedded Smart City concepts into the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. Dan and I also discovered that we’ll both be going to Japan in early July on the Future Leaders, Future Cities mission, which is super exciting. Dan also covers some of the emerging trends that he thinks are important but aren’t being talked about enough.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Dan on LinkedIn or via the Better Cities Group Website
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 21, 2018
SCP E43: Changing the World One Podcast at a Time, with Zoe Eather
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, you'll hear from me again. I was reminded by an avid listener that I didn't share about how this podcast has change my life. So here it is...
Find the show notes for this and other episodes at www.thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com, Twitter or Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 17, 2018
SCP E42: Top 5 Themes from the Smart City Podcast so far, with Zoe Eather
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, you'll hear from me about some of things I've learnt so far from having some amazing conversations with really awesome Smart City people. Here's what I covered: change is coming, the Human Smart City Movement, using tech for Good, the fact that collaboration is Key and doing Things Intentionally and Designing your own Life/City/Work. Plus, I share two bonus points about my Smart City Podcast experience, and what's coming up in the next few months of the podcast.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 14, 2018
SCP E41: Engaging people with Smart Cities, with Oliver Lock
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed fellow member of the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators, Oliver Lock. Oli and I had a lot to discuss and had a great conversation about what Smart Cities means to him, what he’s doing in the space (including a PhD) and where we’re moving forward in the tech and data space. With a background in architecture, Oliver has cross pollinated with programming and all things tech and data, which we dive deep into. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Oliver on LinkedIn.
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 12, 2018
SCP E40: (Part 2) Education and Life Design for Smart Citizens, with Ellen Ronalds Keene
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I finish off my conversation with teacher turned entrepreneur, Ellen Ronalds Keene. Part 1 of our chat is in episode 39, where you’ll hear about what Ellen’s passionate about and why she thinks the Smart City Concept is so important. In this episode (Part 2), Ellen shares a really interesting perspective on integrating across the different disciplines. We also have an insightful discussion around being the CEO of your own life and how this fits into the Smart City Space. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Ellen via email: ellen@ellenronaldskeene.com or via Facebook @ellenronaldskeene or @selfcareforteachers
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 10, 2018
SCP E39: (Part 1) Education and Life Design for Smart Citizens, with Ellen Ronalds Keene
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed teacher turned entrepreneur, Ellen Ronalds Keene. Ellen is passionate about education, health and wellbeing, and podcasts, and we had so much to talk about. This episode is split into two parts, so you’ll be able to hear the rest of our conversation in Episode 40. In Part 1 we talk about what Ellen has learnt about the Smart City concept, and why she thinks it’s important, as well as how she herself is embracing the Smart City concept from non built environment, planning or engineering background. She’s coming at Smart Cities from a different angle, so I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Ellen via email: ellen@ellenronaldskeene.com or via Facebook @ellenronaldskeene or @selfcareforteachers
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 7, 2018
SCP E38: The Practical Future of Smart Cities, with Andrew Grill
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed the Practical Futurist, Andrew Grill. We discussed a number of interesting topics that fit into the Smart City space. We talk about the future of work, and how it’s not all about the millennials — much to my disgust! We also discussed what digital diversity is and why it is important on our decision making boards, and also why the new GDPR, or General Data Protection Regulation, should actually empower us to use our data how we want to, and to our advantage. I really enjoyed this futuristic yet practical chat.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Andrew on Twitter @andrewgrill, via LinkedIn or on his blog www.LondonCalling.co
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 5, 2018
SCP E37: The Heart of a Smart City, with Zubin Pratap
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed serial entrepreneur and Founder of Whooshka.me Zubin Pratap. Zubin tells us more about Whooshka and solving urban congestion and shares his true passion of bringing people back to the heart of a Smart City. We also discuss the importance of standardising data to create boundary-less experiences and breaking down silos by asking why. We have a great discussion about how everyone has a place in the Smart City space and encourage people to get involved no matter their background.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Zubin on LinkedIn, Twitter and email zubin@whooshka.me
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Jun 3, 2018
SCP E36: Smart Holistic Solutions, with David Klingberg
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed David Klingberg who is the Director and Principal at Smart Planning and Design. David and I had a great chat about thinking holistically about delivering solutions and using technology to enable this delivery. We also discussed the Smart City funding that is currently on offer and more that needs to be done in this space to maximise the potential of the Smart City concept and expanding to our regions. I really enjoyed this strategic Smart City conversation.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with David on LinkedIn and email davidk@smartplanninganddesign.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 31, 2018
SCP E35: Being a Guiding Hand in Technology, Danielle Storey
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed the Chief Innovation Officer of Smarter Technology Solutions Danielle Storey. Dani and I follow on from our conversation from ASCA's Australian Smart Communities Conference. We talk about using technology to solve problems and some of the projects that Smarter Technology Solutions is working on across Australia. Dani also explains how Smarter Technology Solutions came to be, which I loved hearing about. She also speaks about immersing in Smart Cities globally and how we can think of integration as a waltz in order to get the balance right. As well this Dani shares some insights into the emerging trends that she thinks will impact that ways we do things as we move forward in the Smart City Space.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Dani on LinkedIn or Smarter Technology Solutions at the website http://smartertechnologysolutions.com.au
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Conne…
May 29, 2018
SCP E34: The Smart Connection of Physical and Digital, with Thibault Van der Auwermeulen
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed Thibault Van De Auwermeulen who is the Founder of 4Instance and Co-founder of ExpoPolis, the Smart City Virtual Expo. Thibault shares his background in the public sector and his passion for connecting the government and industry. We also discuss ExpoPolis and The Smart City Virtual Expo as well as the importance of both virtual and physical expos. I also really enjoyed talking about how some Smart City project might be the disconnection from technology and bringing people together.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Thibault via LinkedIn or at ExpoPolis
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 27, 2018
SCP E33: Riding the Next Wave of the Internet, with Louise Mercer and Leanne Kemp
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, a podcast first, I interviewed two amazing people at the same time: Louise Mercer who is the Head of Everledger for Australia, New Zealand and Singapore and Leanne Kemp who is the Founder and CEO of Everledger. You'll hear from both Louise and Leanne on how Everledger is a company concerned about prominence - so the origin and life cycle of high value things. Louise and Leanne dive deep into explaining blockchain, how it works and what this has to do with diamonds and insurance. We also discuss some of the other Smart tech they are exploring. Leanne shares her deep belief that blockchain is the next generation of the internet and Louise talks about the importance of preparing our future workforces for this new wave of technology.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Everledger on Twitter @everlegderio
Connect with Louise via email louise@everledger.io or LinkedIn
Connect with Leanne via email leanne@everledger.i…
May 24, 2018
SCP EP32: Bringing Data to Life, with Brian Ashton
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed the Director of Harvest Digital Planning Brian Ashton. Brian is passionate about creating and geospatial technology and combining these to things to help government to better engage with the community. Brian and I discuss many things mainly focused around using digital and spatial technology to better engage and integrate across all disciplines, government and community. Brian has some really big and great ideas in this space, some of these include breaking down data silos for better integration, Google Knowledge Graph for planning, testing Smart Tech in real places and thick data to bring social meaning to big data.
Find the full show notes and links at www.thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Brian via LinkedIn or Harvest website
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com, Twitter or Facebook @smartcitypod
May 22, 2018
SCP E31: A Tailored Approach to Tech, with Michael Cybulski
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed Founder and CEO of Retina Visions Michael Cybulski. Michael is passionate about pushing the boundaries when it comes to technology and focuses on implementing technology on a local scale. Michael and I discuss some of things his company Retina Visions is working on as well as how we can better integrate across the disciplines and change the way we think about risk. We also talk about Brisbane, as well as Smart Tech in rural areas and the emerging and important topic of security as we all become data platforms.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Michael via email michael@retinavisions.com and LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 20, 2018
SCP E30: Being a Catalyst for Change, with Zanthea Chulio
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed Brisbane lover and fellow founding member of SCCei.This chat with Zanthea was great and I felt a real theme of being a catalyst for change, which I loved! Zanthea is passionate about connecting people in the Smart City space and has some great ideas of where to pilot Smart Tech. You'll hear about Zanthea's love for Brisbane and how we can put Brisbane on the Smart City map. Zanthea and I also discuss the importance of face-to-face connections as we get more and more invested in tech.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Zanthea email: zanthea.chulio@gmail.com and LinkedIn
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 17, 2018
SCP E29: Hacking a Smart Future, with Angela Bee Chan
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed serial hacker and fellow Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovator Angela Bee Chan. Angela is the CEO and Founder of Hackathons Australia and she tells us all about Hackathons and how they are connected with Smart Cities, which I really loved hearing about. We also have great chats about piloting technology in regional areas and the importance of bringing back connections to Australia to boost our eco-system. Angela also shares some insights into linking Smart Cities with educating the future workforce and sustainability.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Angela via LinkedIn, Twitter and Hackathons Australia
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 15, 2018
SCP E28: Create, Break, Learn, Repeat (Part 2), with Tim Rastall
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, you'll hear Part 2 of my conversation with Tim Rastall. If you missed Part 1, it's Episode 27 and we covered Tim's background and projects he is working on, as well as where NZ is at when it comes to Smart Cities. In this episode, Part 2, we discuss the Agile approach to building relationships and collaborating across disciplines as well as being okay with failure. For those of you who don't know Agile is a project methodology that started off in the software development world but now is utilised more widely. Agile is about being able to work easily and quickly and in an ever-changing environment and has set tools and processes that are used to allow for a iterative approach. Enough on Agile, I'll put a link in the show notes of an article that explains it pretty well. Tim and I talk about the importance of communication in being Smart and using data to improve efficiency. Tim also has some interesting and exciting ideas about emerging trends.…
May 13, 2018
SCP E27: Create, Break, Learn, Repeat (Part 1), with Tim Rastall
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed technologist and creator Tim Rastall. I've broken this episode into two parts as we had so much to talk about. In this episode, Part 1, we talk about some of the exciting work that Tim has been doing and continues to do. Tim now has his own consulting practice ISE Consulting which focuses on IoT, machine learning and mixed realities. Tim and I discuss a number of different technologies and the emerging uses of these such as using audio technology for environmental research, we also discuss the pros and cons of NZ in the Smart City space. Part 2 of Tim's episode will be the next episode out where you'll hear the rest of our conversation about integrating across industry, government and academia, the importance of communication and some cool technologies that are emerging.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Tim via email tim.rastall@ise.nz, LinkedIn, Twitter @timrastall
Connect with me via email: zo…
May 10, 2018
SCP E26: The Connected Soldier, with Richard Kidd
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I had a really fascinating conversation with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the US Army, Strategic Integration Mr Richard Kidd. Richard tells us about how the Smart City concept is being utilised in army installation across the US and also the sheer scale of the army's footprint (for the Aussie listeners, this is about 1.5 times the area of South East Queensland). He also gives us an overview of his presentation at the IEEE GreenTech Conference and how the army is pioneering with Smart Technology with the "connected solider", autonomous vehicles and building management. He also talks about changing our focus from fixed sensors to moving ones that are already available, and importantly always keeping privacy and security front of mind. This was such an interesting conversion, so as always I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email:…
May 10, 2018
SCP E25: BONUS Episode | Smart Chats at ASCA's Australian Smart Communities Conference
In this bonus episode of the Smart City Podcast, Zoe comes to you live from the ASCA Smart Communities Conference. Zoe speaks with Sergio A Fernandez de Cordova of P3SmartCity about why they are agnostic when it comes to technology. They also discuss the emerging trends of social electricity, blockchain for data management and the idea of apps for cities. Next, Zoe speaks with Danielle Storey, Chief Innovation Officer with Smarter Technology Solutions. They discuss why there’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to Smart Cities and how life will change for citizens with more sustainable and efficient cities in the future. Finally, Zoe speaks with Dale Rankine, CEO of IOT integration platform, Reekoh, about the changing and amorphous concept of security and why emerging markets are in some cases more motivated to build Smart Communities.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @sm…
May 8, 2018
SCP E24: Let's Talk about Terms, with Zoe Eather
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I tell you what I've been up to and what's coming up. And then I also go through some of the terms we've been using which hopefully is useful for your understanding. One that I forgot to mention was BIM which is basically 3D modelling but with so much more detail about the components of the structure or infrastructure that can be utilised in asset management, quality assurance, community consultation and the full life cycle of that product, amongst many other things. So you can use BIM in combination with VR and AR which I'll talk about a bit in this episode. Also, I mention Colin Wright's episode on blockchain but actually it's on Bitcoin which is still useful to understand. Enjoy!
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 6, 2018
SCP E23: Being Nimble and of Service, with Chelsea Collier
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I had an awesome conversation with Chelsea Collier. Chelsea shares some really interesting insights from her Eisenhower Fellowship where she explored Smart Cities across America and China. This led to her to launching Digi.City so that she could share what she was learning in real-time. Digi.City is now a platform for the exploration of Smart City technology and Policy. Chelsea talks about why she kept Digi.City as a brand and didn't "expand" it to a full-blown company, which was super interesting for me as I'm going through some of the same thinking right now with this podcast. Chelsea and I also have some great conversations about tech, collaboration and how Smart Cities have to be a long term investment.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Chelsea via Digi.City or Twitter @digi_city
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 3, 2018
SCP E22: Bringing Together Talented Humans, Robots and Automation, with Michael Milford
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast I spoke with robotics and artificial intelligence guru, Michael Milford. Michael is a professor at QUT and has his own start up, Math Thrills. We talk about some of the cool stuff that he's working on at the moment and different aspects of autonomous vehicles and AI (artificial intelligence.) We also have a great discussion about keeping and attracting local talent, and a pleasantly unexpected conversation about the importance of diversity in the tech space. I really enjoyed this Friday afternoon chat and I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Connect with Michael through QUT, via email michael.milford@qut.edu.au or Twitter @maththrillsFind the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
May 1, 2018
SCP EP21: Making Construction Smarter, with Brittanie Campbell-Turner
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed fellow podcaster and construction professional and enthusiast Brittanie Campbell-Turner. Brittanie hosts the Constructrr podcast and is currently in her second season which is talking about Blockchain in Construction. Brittanie and I deep dive into how technology can be used to improve processes within the construction industry but also how important it is to not lose sight of how the people involved can be affected. We talk about blockchain, 3D manufacturing, virtual and augmented reality and Building Information Modelling (BIM). BIM for those who don't know is basically 3D modelling but with so much more detail about the components of the structure or infrastructure that can be utilised in asset management, quality assurance, community consultation and the full life cycle of that product, amongst many other things. It was so great to talk with Brittanie and I look forward to collaborating in the future.
Find the full show note…
Apr 29, 2018
SCP EP20: Using the Resources of Today to Build a Better Future Tomorrow, with Roxann Griffith
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed Roxann Griffith. Roxann loves to help people which makes her perfect for her role as the Regional Veterans’ Employment Coordinator with the US Department of Labor. Roxann talks passionately about the apprenticeship program she is involved in and how it fits into the smart city space. We also talk about the importance of workforce diversity and the future of work. Roxann presented at the IEEE GreenTech conference in early April so we talk a bit about that as well. It was really great to talk to Roxann as it she brought a difference perspective to the Smart Cities space.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
You can connect with Roxann via LinkedIn and on email Griffith.Roxann.S@dol.gov
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Apr 26, 2018
SCP E19: Designing for the Socio-Technical, with Laura Forlano
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed social scientist and design researcher Laura Forlano. Laura and I had a really great discussion about the socio-technical aspects of design and how humans and machines come together. Laura talks about a number of her projects ranging from driverless technology to reimagining work and going back in history to think about technology. She is also very passionate about the active engagement of citizens and rethinking that way we do this engagement through design. We also discuss about the differences in the imagined futures of technology verses the reality.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Laura at lauraforano.org or via Twitter @laura4lano
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Apr 24, 2018
SCP EP18: Building Responsive Cities, with Julia Hamilton
In the episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed the New Zealand Co-ordinator of SCCei and community focused advocate Julia Hamilton. Julia is a Strategic Projects Advisor for Wellington City Council in NZ and is doing some really exciting stuff. I’ll start by saying that everything we discuss is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or is not associated with the companies in any way. Julia is particularly interested in using technology to support and enhance social outcomes. She talks about some of the projects she is working on and how Smart City tech can be used in planning non-ticketed events and is being used to in emergency response situation to achieve better outcomes. NZ is part of the Digital 5 (I think now is the Digital 7) which is a network of leading digital governments focused on improving the digital economy. Julia also shares insight into the value of collaboration, responsive cities and breaking down accessibility barrier to al…
Apr 22, 2018
SCP EP17: Changing the structure of society, with Colin Wright
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I had a fantastic conversation with minimalist, writer, podcast host, blogger, speaker and full time traveller Colin Wright. We discussed the linkages between minimalism and Smart Cities and how people-scale cities make for happier places and reduce under-utilised time. We also discussed a number of different technologies and dive deep into using science fiction as a means to think about the possible societal impacts some technologies. This was a supposed to be a bit of a different episode for you, mixing it up because Smart Cities really touches on so many aspects so I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
Connect with Colin via email or Twitter, Instagram, Facebook @colinismyname and listen to his podcast, Let's Know Things.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Apr 19, 2018
SCP EP 16: Breaking down traditional ways of thinking, with Marika Svikis
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed NSW coordinator of the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators (SCCei) and people focused planner Marika Svikis. I’ll start by saying that everything we discuss is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or is not associated with the companies in any way. Marika is very interested in harnessing big data to better inform design and using how people feel in a city as a metric of success. For example how happy people feel rather than just how efficiently things are running. We also discussed how the SCCei came to be and the importance of getting young professionals involved. Marika believes that leadership in this space starts with education and that we can’t keep using traditional ways of thinking and working to deliver effective smart cities. She flips the emerging trends questions around on me so you’ll get to hear what I think.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and…
Apr 17, 2018
SCP EP15 The Human Smart Cities Movement, with Kylie Legge
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I had a great chat with Place Maker Kylie Legge. Kylie is the founder of Place Score, we discuss how Place Score aims to positively change the way engagement with the community happens and change the way data is collected and stored in order to be used effectively used across multiple projects. Kylie and I discuss the need to think more holistically about assets and sharing the space we have, as well as how young people show up in the data and the smart city space. Kylie offers some great insights into thinking about how smart cities should focus on health and wellbeing and a systems approach to community making. We also touch on the importance of awareness into the impacts technology can have on a place so we can shape the outcomes positively.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.…
Apr 15, 2018
SCP E14: Addressing energy inequality in remote communities, with Nick Kamols
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed Town Planner and Smart City Entrepreneur, Nick Kamols. Nick was calling up from Indonesia, where he spent a month with his startup, PowerWells. PowerWells aim is to provide basic access to electricity to remote areas in Indonesia, and is using e-waste to set up small-scale energy supply systems. Thanks to a Kickstarter campaign, PowerWells will be able to install 120 of these units in a sustainable way. Nick is a fellow member of the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators, and is doing some really cool stuff in this space. In this episode, we also talk a little bit about drones and powering on with innovation.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with Nick via email: nick@kamols.com
Connect with the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators on Twitt…
Apr 12, 2018
SCP E13: Using Technology to Accelerate Sustainability, with Chris Castro
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had an early start to have a great discussion with the Director of Sustainability of the City of Orlando, Chris Castro. Chris and I really just scratched the surface on a number of projects that the city of Orlando is currently undertaking ranging from floating solar, connected and automated vehicles, solid waste and public safety. We also talk about Orlando culture of innovation and how the city is pioneering in the smart city space. Chris is particularly interested in how technology can play a role in accelerating a more sustainable future.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
You can connect with Chris on LinkedIn
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Apr 10, 2018
SCP E12: Asking who the Smart City is for, with Katharine Willis
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a really thought-provoking conversation with Katharine Willis about who the Smart City is for. Katharine is an architect and Associate Professor at Plymouth University and initially was reluctant to get involved in the Smart City space. She continues to challenge commercially driven initiatives and focus on what the people actually think about so-called Smart Cities. We discussed Plymouth’s new Masters in Smart Urban Futures, and also a number of projects that Katharine researched about who was included and actively excluded in Smart City planning and implementation around the world. We also talked about how some fo the Smartest places in the world are in the regional and rural areas.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Get in touch with Katharine on Twitter @trolleytweet or visit plymouth.ac.uk to find more about th…
Apr 8, 2018
SCP E11: Using data to make Smart decisions, with Claire Daniel
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed another self-confessed data addict and fellow member of the Smart City Council Emerging Innovators, Claire Daniel. Claire is a town-planner at heart and loves exploring exciting ways to use data to make our lives better. She studied a Master’s degree in Smart Cities and Urban Analytics at the University College, London. This is where she learnt to code, amongst many other things. Claire thinks cross-disciplinary learning is so important to make Smart decisions, as well as using data to monitor the outcomes of these decisions to enable us to make even better decisions in the future. She is keen to see what innovations will come from having more time to do more exciting tasks when administrative tasks are taken over by automation.
You can connect with Claire on Linked in.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find…
Apr 5, 2018
SCP E10: Creating a Digital Democracy, with Brook Dixon
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interview Brook Dixon, the Managing Director of Delos Delta, the go-to consultant for all things Smart Cities. Brook is also the newly elected President of the Australian Smart Communities Association (ASCA) and a Churchill Fellow, which allowed him to travel the world and explore Smart Cities. He is passionate about creating a digital democracy, and including the community in decision making. In this episode, we dive deep into some of the things Brook witnessed overseas, as well as the exciting things Australia is doing.
“The world around us is changing. We’re in the middle of a digital revolution. If we cannot apply digital technology to the modernisation, the evolution and the progress of our democracy, then I don’t think we’re trying hard enough.”
Watch Brook's TEDxCanberra talk, and connect with him on Twitter @dibrookie or at delosdelta.com
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via email: zo…
Apr 4, 2018
SCP E09: The key to resilience is human, with Mike Legatt
In this episode of The Smart City Podcast, I interviewed the CEO of Resilient Grid Mike Leggat. Mike is passionate about focusing on the human when it comes to the resilience of critical infrastructure. I really enjoyed this discussion particularly around the Smart Citizen and how descisions of individuals together can impact a Smart City. We talked about some of the projects Resilient Grid is working on as well why it’s so important to give humans a purpose in an ever increasing automated world.
Mike will be presenting at the IEEE GreenTech 2018 of Smart City conference in Austin Texas this Friday 6th of April you can check out ieeegreentech.org for more information. As always I hope you enjoyed listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it.
For full show notes, go to thesmartcitypodcast.com
Apr 3, 2018
SCP E08: The Agency of Citizens in Smart Cities, with Irina Anastasiu
In this episode I interviewed Irina Anastasiu, who describes herself as a perpetual chameleon. She has a wide and varied background, which is perfect for the Smart City space, and a genuine interest in citizen co-creation, so much so that she has created a framework to nurture this collaborative approach. This approach helps people see people as people and not just the organisations that they work for. Irina believes Smart Cities should include an integration of the small-scale projects with the larger ones, and build a shared vision that involves everyone. She has interesting views about how Australia’s societal norms are refreshing and could help shape Australia’s leadership in this space. As always, I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed making it!
Disclaimer: Everything discussed in personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find the full show notes: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Con…
Apr 2, 2018
SCP E07: Where we've been and what's to come!
In this episode, Zoe shares a bit more about her background, the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators Group and why she is so passionate about the Smart City space. She explains where the podcast has been for the last month and what's to come in April! There are interviews with people from all different areas, from world-travelling bloggers to academics to people using Blockchain as the basis for their company. There is so much coming your way. As always, it isn't just about the tech but about the people in the cities and how we can use technology to make places more liveable. Enjoy!
Please note, this episode is marked explicit, due to one piece of strong language. Just in case you're listening with kiddies around!
Connect with me via email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook: @smartcitypod
Mar 4, 2018
SCP E06: The power of open data, with Adam Dennett
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed self-confessed data addict, Adam Dennett. Adam is the Senior Lecturer of Smart Cities and Urban Analytics at the University College, London (ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/casa). According to Adam, the Smart City space expands from brewing beer to the social impacts of new technology, with a foundation of open data and education. We discussed a large range of interesting topics, including UCL's Smart Cities Masters Degree and where the UK ranks when it comes to Smart Cities. There were some technical difficulties with this episode, so the sound quality isn't as clear as usual. This episode is also a bit longer than usual, but I hope you can listen to the end when we discuss the social implications and the power storage opportunities of autonomous and electric vehicles.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed in personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find the full s…
Feb 27, 2018
SCP E05: Technology that makes the human experience richer, with Janine Betz
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I had a great conversation with a fellow member of the Smart Cities Council Emerging Innovators Group, Janine Betz. Janine is a passionate advocate for sustainability and using Smart techniques to help fight against climate change. Western Australia is really lucky to benefit from Janine’s background, as she brings the European approach to sustainability and moulds it to suit the Australian conditions and environment. We discussed the challenges and opportunities building a 6-star Green Star Rating project, and how Smart Cities is about the integration between sustainability and innovation. Janine also talks passionately about Western Australia finding its feet in terms of culture, growth and identity, and how WA is well on their way to leading certain aspects of Smart Cities.
Disclaimer: Everything discussed is personal opinion only and does not represent the companies we work for or associated in any way with these companies.
Find the f…
Feb 25, 2018
SCP E04: The nexus of people, place and technology, with Marcus Foth
In this episode of the Smart City Podcast, I interviewed founder and director of the Urban Informatics Research Lab at QUT in Brisbane, Marcus Foth. Although the term ‘Smart City’ wasn’t around, Marcus has been involved in this space for over 10 years, and worked in computer science before the internet became ubiquitous. He is passionate about bringing together people, places and technology in a user centric approach. We discussed a lot of exciting topics, including using technology to make a difference, how Australia is moving up in the Smart City ranks, and how climate change and sustainability need to be at the heart of a Smart City. We also discussed the next generation of personalised journey planners that would see me bumping into or avoiding my Facebook friends on my daily commute depending on how social I’m feeling that day. As well as this, Marcus introduces a number of global networks in the Smart City space that you, as the Smart City Collective, can check out and ge…
Feb 20, 2018
SCP E03 Using technology as an enabler for social justice, with Nancy Odendaal
In this episode, I had a delightful conversation with Nancy Odendaal, an Urban Planner, an Associate Professor in City planning at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. She has been in the Smart City game for well over a decade now and is really interested in how technologies affect power dynamics between people. Nancy has a number of projects on the go at the moment, one of which is researching the use of drones to enable humanitarian aid.
Nancy and I discuss many things, including using technology as an enabler for social justice, and how technology can enhance the sense of place of a city. As well as this, Nancy talked about some of the things South Africa and Africa as a whole is doing in the Smart City space, and the impact simple technology is having on transport, mobility and street traders. This is a longer episode than usual but I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it.
Connect with Nancy via http://uct.academia.edu/NancyOdendaal
Find the full show notes…
Feb 20, 2018
SCP E02 Preparing for Australia's Smart future, with Darren Wren
In this episode, I interview the Managing Director of IFC Collective, Darren Wren. Darren is a Civil Engineer with a diverse and expansive career. He’s excited about Smart City technology and exploring the space further both in the cities and in the regional communities. We discussed a number of exciting areas of smart tech, including electric and automated vehicles, changing supply chains and revenue models, and how Australia can become Smart City leaders.
Connect with Darren via LinkedIn or Email darren.wren@ifccollective.com
Find the full show notes for this episode: thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect with me via Email: zoe@thesmartcitypodcast.com
Connect via Twitter and Facebook @smartcitypod
Feb 20, 2018
Introduction to the Smart City Podcast
A taste of what's to come on the Smart City Podcast.
I'm your host, Zoe. I'm an engineer and a millennial with a passion for Smart City technology — and not specifically just in the big cities, but using Smart technology in any shape or form that makes things more efficient and effective and in turn makes people’s lives better. I went searching for a hub where other people interested in this space hung out, and I couldn’t really find one, so I decided to create my own.
The Smart City Podcast is where experts come together and share their experiences and expertise. Here I will interview exciting people from all around the world, about all things Smart City, including concepts, technology and anything that makes a place more liveable. I created this space mainly because I want to hang out with these exciting people, surround myself with them and build a Smart City Collective.
Each episode—other than this short intro one—will run between 30 minutes and 1 hour. You can listen on…