AsianScientist (Jun 25, 2014) – With many tech companies tapping on the availability of big data and the increasing attention to issues such as global warming, resource scarcity and energy efficiency, it is perhaps unsurprising that these buzzwords featured prominently at a meeting of global leaders discussing how to achieve sustainable growth. But how can governments move beyond the hype and make smart technologies actually work for cities?
Earlier this month, some 20,000 delegates from all over the world convened at the World Cities Summit 2014 (WCS) to address this question. Held between June 1 and 5 at the Marina Bay Sands Convention in Singapore, this year’s instalment of WCS included a thematic track and sharing session exploring the role played by science and technology in innovating solutions for cities. Entitled “Smart Technologies and Collaborative Thinking for Innovative R&D Solutions,” the session was chaired by Dr. Peter Edwards, Professor of Plant Ecology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) and Director of the Singapore-ETH Center.
Ms. Liu Shyh-Fang, Deputy Mayor of Kaohsiung City Government, led the session by sharing several technology-based initiatives put forth by her home city to answer to the needs of its residents. In one project–a 24-hour telephone line termed “1999”–city residents were enabled to request information or services directly from the government, simply by dialing the number. In another project, an intelligent system was set up based on infocomm technology to provide consumers “real-time information on activity in traffic, business and shopping.”
“We [want to use] advanced technology to meet the needs of traffic, environment, energy, health, education and so on,” summarized Ms Liu.
Housing goes green
Apart from infocomm technology, green housing is another big area where technology can make a positive impact on cities, shared Dr. Er. Johnny Wong, Group Director at the Housing & Development Board (HDB) of Singapore. Faced with rising average global temperatures and sea levels due to high carbon emissions, HDB launched Greenprint, a framework of goals and strategies to integrate technology into greener town development. These included a pilot project to be launched at a neighborhood that would feature rooftop greening, vertical greening and pneumatic waste collection systems. Pneumatic systems consist of pipes and containers that utilize pneumatic engineering to collect waste more cost- and space-efficiently.
Despite these benefits, paying for such technologies and parting with gigantic sums of money is a major hurdle to the implementation of green housing. Nonetheless, Dr. Wong believes that governments can be convinced to undertake green housing projects, once they have been convinced that they are in fact cost-effective.
“We have worked with [our industry partner] to develop a complex system model, a decision-making model, which tells us, if we invest on this, what is the outcome you are going to receive, so that you can optimize the solutions that you bring to the estate. It lists down how effective each solution can be, and how much it costs,” Dr. Wong explained.
Unlocking the potential of the underground
Green solutions tap on engineering and ecological insights to reduce carbon emissions that threaten the sustainability of cities. What about the problem of space, which rapid urbanization continues to deplete in many cities?
“As we face increasing land constraints in land-scarce Singapore, we are also facing increasing competition for land. Our response is really to strengthen our competitiveness and to catalyze the growth and cultivation of industries and enterprises in Singapore. And one way to do so is to develop land, space and infrastructure,” shared Mr. David Tan, Assistant CEO of JTC Corporation of Singapore.
One approach taken by JTC was to venture underground. By collaborating with scientists and architects, JTC conceptualized an Underground Science City at Kent Ridge, where the National University Hospital and the National University of Singapore are located. In another project, called Jurong Rock Caverns (JRC), a liquid hydrocarbon storage facility was built 130 m beneath Banyan Basin on Jurong Island. Presently, JRC stores oil and provides infrastructural support to manufacturing companies based in Jurong Island.
As Mr. Tan highlighted, the benefits of underground amenities include greater cost-efficiency, and lower energy consumption and wastage from reduced levels of material transportation.
“In addition, we are also looking into how we can develop spaces above roads,” said Mr. Tan. “We want to enhance connectivity and also make use of the space above the roads.”
Collaboration over competition
Although Kaohsiung’s and Singapore’s successes might suggest a stroke of luck, they are no doubt attributable to careful collaboration between the scientific community and other stakeholders. This was the view of Professor Brian Collins, Director of the Center of Engineering Policy at University College London, who sees engineering policy for cities as a complex framework requiring a collaborative approach. For Prof. Collins, it is through making clear the roles played by each stakeholder that technology and research are translated into effective solutions.
A key feature of Prof. Collins’ framework was the consideration of collaboration versus competition, which he suggested “depends upon a sustainable mixture of greed and altruism.” Whereas competition tends to produce localized benefits, collaboration often leads to wider gains. When this wisdom is applied to cities, Prof. Collins explained, questions arise that challenge our notions of effective solutions. How do we convert society from competition/consumption to collaboration/conservation? How should we value legacy systems such as historical landmarks in the face of modernization?
Although there might not be easy answers to these challenging questions, the panellists nonetheless felt that technology could make a significant contribution to making life in cities better.
“There are constantly issues that pertain to the future. [Each] technology has implications for the future; new challenges and questions of resilience can come up and so one must be prepared. But on the whole I take an optimistic view that these new technologies offer an enormous amount of policy plans not just in new cities but also [in other] cities where they can be constantly integrated,” concluded Prof. Edwards.
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Copyright: Asian Scientist Magazine; Photo: World Cities Summit.
Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of AsianScientist or its staff.
