Smart Cities

We are at the forefront of deploying digital infrastructure and technologies that help cities reduce emissions, improve energy efficiency, and create more inclusive urban environments. Cities are not only a key focus of dedicated projects within GeSI but also a critical aspect of our wider portfolio, reflecting their central role in tackling today’s sustainability challenges. Ranging from our close partnership with the Global Covenant of Mayors, through to our work in Digital with Purpose, the European Green Digital Coalition and the United Nations Innovation Hub, smart cities are key to the future – and technology in turn is the key turning cities smart and green.

Objectives

GeSI’s Smart Cities program is centred around the following principles:

• Support the deployment of digital solutions: Harness the potential of ICT to drive energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and foster smarter, more sustainable urban infrastructures.
• Collaborate with global city networks: Provide access and opportunity for GeSI members by partnering with key organizations like the Global Covenant of Mayors and Urban Transitions Mission to scale up solutions that meet the specific needs of cities worldwide.
• Enable inclusive urban transformation: Promote the inclusion of underserved populations in the digital revolution, ensuring that all city residents benefit from smarter city technologies.

Our Work in Smarter Cities

GeSI’s Smarter Cities portfolio is multifaceted, with various programs and partnerships aimed at modernizing urban environments using cutting-edge digital technologies. Working closely with city leadership, we focus on featuring the enabling role of digital solutions that improve sustainability and inclusiveness in cities. Through initiatives like the UN Global Innovation Hub and the European Green Digital Coalition, we are creating collaboration opportunities to feature digital solutions with city planners and administrators as well as the financial community and scientists. This holistic approach ensures that urban transformation is not only smart but also sustainable, resilient, and inclusive.

In addition to mitigation efforts, GeSI is also advancing the role of digital in climate adaptation. We have a signed MOU with the UNFCCC Climate Adaptation Director to establish an initiative focused on the use of frontier technology, especially ICT, in supporting transformative resilience action in seven critical locations around the world.