May 2009 Archives

The Summit is now history.  It was our largest and, in my view, most successful.  I look forward to viewing the Summit in a few days when it becomes available online.  

I am sitting in my apartment (a place where I have not spent much time lately), having a rare second cup of coffee and looking through the blogs, reports and email traffic from the Summit and activities around it.  I notice that Stockholm has already posted a photo, which includes its team along with my colleague Robert Bell on the stage at Steiner Film Studios.  

http://international.stockholm.se/-/News-from-the-City-of-Stockholm/News/Stockholm-the-most-IT-intelligent-city-in-the-world/
 

As we await our photos from  "Batman" (our nickname for ICF's official photographer) I am sorting through mental snapshots and impressions from the past three days. 

I am attempting to absorb the fact that Stockholm, Sweden is the 2009 Intelligent Community of the Year.  Gangnam, which did so much to honor the tradition, is now an important member of the Alumni and a nameplate on our new IC of the Year Trophy case.  I thanked Mayor Maeng of Gangnam for making the time to fly himself and his senior staff to New York for the event.  They were only able to spend 48 hours here, but came mainly in support of the Top Seven.  I realize that this was a sacrifice in time and money.  Having done the same trip last Fall, I know that it is taxing on the body.  But the mayor looked remarkably fresh, happily energized and relaxed as he spoke and presented the Top Seven awards on Thursday night.  I also think he was proud to have been surrounded by accolades and in a room filled with Samsung's newest and most innovative products!  Our Top Seven Reception was held in the famous Samsung Experience in Manhattan, the store that "sells nothing."

While he never said it in so many words, I believe it was symbolic that the Mayor, our 2008 recipient of the Intelligent Community of the Year honor, chose to appear at two events: the Alumni Dinner and the Top Seven Reception.  He had always said to me that in his view being named a Top Seven Community was his "true victory."  Of course, human nature being human nature, there is always the aspiration to be ICF's "number one."  On their third attempt the people of Gangnam achieved this honor.  Yet Maeng always was more of a team player than a standalone star, even after his community was named.   His address at the Time Warner Center, during the magnificent event hosted by Canadian Consul General Dan Sullivan and the Province of New Brunswick, confirmed this view.  Said the Mayor, in perfect English, "You have all won."  He then went on to say that having been a Top Seven three consecutive years pushed Gangnam to become more excellent.

My first reply after the envelope had been opened and Stockholm was named was to say, "MORE HARD NAMES TO PRONOUNCE!"  I look forward to attempting to learn some Swedish.  The Stockholm city website immediate posted the news:  www.stockholm.se

Another impression is of  Stockholm's Vice Mayor Ulf Kristersson coming to the stage with his group and seeming very surprised.  A few moments later, he said to the crowd that he was "shocked" to be standing there.  I had met the Vice Mayor in Stockholm earlier in the year during my site inspection.  I immediately liked his ability to engage; I also appreciate his intelligence, which is considerable, and a seriousness that he balances with a healthy sense of humor.  On stage, however, he seemed genuinely moved.  I noticed that the Swedish Consulate General from New York had come to the stage as well.  Ambassador Ulf Hjertonsson was literally on his day on the job in New York.  I did not know this until a few days ago.  He also seemed truly moved, perhaps coupling this event, which he described as a perfect present and his need to leave a city which he had evidently embraced.  I will remember that he hugged me and thanked ICF.  It was a fatherly and heartfelt exchange of gratitude, as I had only met him once before. 

Stockholm's reaction reminded me of Glasgow's in 2004.  Glasgow had not even prepared an acceptance speech because they were so certain that they would not be named.  However, as our evaluation team and international jury completed their work the results led them to name Stockholm.  I know that they will be a good representative for the intelligent community movement, as was Gangnam over the past 12 month.  I look forward to making our Smart21 2010 announcement in the "Capital of Scandinavia" in the Fall.

"Intelligent Community of the Year" week has begun.  We were pleased that Mayor Bloomberg sent us a note last week saluting our work and welcoming the Top Seven and the other invited guests to town.  It will be read by his Managing Director for the Division of International Business, Terry Jackson on Thursday morning to open the event.  

We are pleased that the Mayor, who truly "gets technology," recognizes the quality of the community leaders who will be here.  I am also pleased that Councilwoman Gale Brewer, who wins by over 80% of the vote each time she runs for the New York City Council, will for the fifth year welcome the Top Seven when they get to their reception in the Time Warner Center on Thursday night.  She is a passionate advocate of broadband in New York.  

So many impressions of the Top Seven, current and past, float into my mind.  One question we were asking last week was which of the seven would send the most people to the stage at Steiner Studios after they are named.  I believe the record is held by Mitaka, Japan (2005), which sent at least 10 or 11 of their delegation up to receive the award.  It was fitting and symbolic, since the added theme that year was "collaboration," and the city's Mayor, Keiko Kiyohara governed through a collaborative process of committees scattered throughout the community.  There was certainly no one in the delegation who put their ego first in New York.  It is a characteristic that is again and again surfacing when we look at places that are successful.

Looking at the stage from the photo of that event, I realize how we have gone more "Hollywood," from the past few years, thanks to our added support but mainly through the creation and work of our Summit Manager, Linda Kahn.  Now we are at a film studio with far more "operatic" effects!  We will also be filled to capacity and are getting concerned that we may not have enough shuttle buses to get people to the studios, which are located at the Brooklyn Navy Yards.  

I am looking forward to the week and seeing if we can connect some dots between the investment communities such as those in New Brunswick and Taoyuan County have made and the current economic crisis.  While I try not to enter with an preconceived notions, I do want to find out if the communities that continue to invest in infrastructure remain confident that they are creating communities that will not only "hang on," but begin to emerge prevalent after the financial winds blow through.  I also suspect that the wave that hit the USA, has not so dramatically impacted Taiwan, the Maritimes of Eastern Canada and the other parts of the world from which our communities will be coming.

To be honest, I am very pumped about this year's dialogue and events.  I am preparing for my conversations with the Top Seven and New Brunswick's Premier and cannot help thinking about the scene on that stage Friday afternoon.  How many?  Who?  What will the reaction be?  

It's my job every year to develop the program for our Building the Broadband Economy Summit and recruit the speakers and panelists.  I get invaluable advice and support from my colleagues, of course, but it's my baby.  And like any proud parent, I have favorites, though I am not supposed to admit it.  If you are attending BBE09 or taking advantage of our Online Option, which gives you 12 months of access to all the video coverage, here's my biased view of what to look for:

*  We will have two panels focusing on how local communities can grow in a global economic downturn.  "The Resilient Economy" at 11:00 on May 15 features the elected and administrative leaders of award-winning communities, while "Building Your Community's 'Economic Fitness''at 13:30 involves the audience in discussion with thought leaders from Europe, Canada and the US.

*  "Getting Ahead of the Curve: Communities Online vs. Online Communities" at 16:30 on the 15th will explore how communities leaders can deal with the negative impact on community dialogue of blogs, texting and other Web-based tools - while also taking advantage of their benefits.  Former CNN correspondent and Levin Institute president Garrick Utley will lead a discussion of community leaders from Europe and the US with Shirley Brady, Community Editor of BusinessWeek.

*  "The Top Seven Conversations" will put the elected or administrative leaders of our Top Seven Intelligent Communities on stage to explain why their communities made the 2009 list.  Mixing video and conversation, the Conversations take place throughout the two days of the Summit.

*  "Can This Community Be Saved?" on May 16 at 9:45 will focus on New York City.  The meltdown of the US financial sector had an impact around the planet but it also challenges New York to retool its economy and technology to make it less vulnerable to systemic shocks.  Polytechnic Institute's Mel Horwitch leads a panel of city officials and nonprofit executives.

And then there is our special address by the 2009 Visionary of the Year, Mayor Andre Santini of Issy-les-Moulineax, the opening keynote by my friend Dr. Norman Jacknis of Cicso, presentation of the Intelligent Community Awards on May 16...

Okay, I confess.  That's pretty much the whole program, which is why next week will be a very good week for me.  I hope you can join us in person or, after the fact, online.  

As we all know, ICF runs a wonderful Intelligent Community Awards program based on 5 key criteria. They include broadband deployment, skilled workforce, innovation, digital inclusion, and marketing and advocacy. But there are other considerations in fully future-proofing your communities to become and operate as intelligent and successful towns and cities and thereby creating and sustaining the highest quality of life imaginable for your citizens.

Over the next year, through a series of blogs, I hope to set out the case for these 12 key steps in future-proofing your communities.  They include:

• High quality infrastructure, including robust high-speed broadband deployment;
• Exceptional education - creating, attracting and sustaining skilled knowledge workers;
• Attracting and nurturing innovation and creativity;
• Superior and inspiring leadership and building on collaboration;
• Effective and stable governance;
• Excellence in the Physical Environment: architecture and urban design;
• Nurturing culture and diversity;
• Promoting digital inclusion in a Broadband Economy;
• Ensuring sustainability;
• Ability to attract risk capital and investment;
• Building a healthy and safe Community; and
• Effective marketing, branding and advocacy.

To begin this series, let's take a look at the topic of infrastructure. The history of our civilization follows closely the history of our advances in infrastructure. Roman trade was the engine that drove the economy of the Roman Empire 2,000 years ago and it is no different today. Without vast investments in public works and infrastructure, we would have great difficulty in enacting trade, commuting and achieving a great quality of life. Infrastructure is also one of the key elements in influencing investment decisions.

At the top of the list above is the requirement for high quality infrastructure - the basic structural foundation of our villages, towns, cities and regions - including the vast network of roads, highways, rail, bridges, sewers, transit, air services, hydroelectric and broadband cables, and wireless systems, but also our recreation centers, libraries and other hard and soft facilities that serve the diverse needs of growing populations.

As cities and regions grow they demand more and better infrastructure. Traditional infrastructure such as highways, as well as improvements to water and sewer systems will become key elements in any stimulus that governments provide for economic revitalization. In addition to traditional infrastructure, smart power grids with efficient wireless monitoring systems, high speed broadband and other forms of information related technologies that will allow us to expand our capabilities and become more efficient and innovative, must be part of the equation if these cities and regions are to attract and retain brains, investment and jobs in their backyard.

From an ICF perspective, we have always said that the discussion about Intelligent Communities is more than just about the "wires." But without the connections that "wires" (wireless and otherwise) offer, we couldn't even begin to discuss the other considerations in my list above. It is after-all the foundation, the infrastructure of our broadband economy. In order to even begin to play in this new game of globalization, these communities have had to ante up with their best offerings in robust broadband infrastructure.

But our needs for specific types of infrastructure around the world are changing. Many legacy systems haunt many communities and regions, while others have benefited from leapfrogging technologies, especially those in 3rd world countries who never had much in the way of wired communications in the first place. With sophisticated satellite communications, undersea cables that have circled the globe and new wireless applications such as WiFi and WiMax, these regions have leaped to another generation of infrastructure. In India, for instance, the impact of globalization through global outsourcing could never have occurred without the robust broadband undersea cables that were brought to its shore. This has had an enormous social, cultural, economic and political impact on the country. The fast lane for many in this country has been a direct result of the benefits and opportunities that broadband has brought to them.

But as communities, we need to also begin to discuss how we can begin to reshape our communities with these new advances in infrastructure, such as high speed broadband, smart grids and the like. We need to look at potentially reshaping our cities and regions and develop policies and initiatives that build a much better quality of life, which includes our transportation modes and infrastructure, our operations that discourage unnecessary travel and ways to reduce our carbon footprint.

Infrastructure in our communities is the backbone of the 12 steps to a successful intelligent community, but it is only the first step. I look forward to exploring the other 11 steps with you over the next several months.

Like you, I have been following closely the news coverage of the swine flu virus, or as we must now call it, Influenza A(H1N1).  Call it "Heinie" for short.  For the past week, Heinie has been - and I mean it literally - the perfect news story.

Why?  First, there are developments every few hours, which means there is always something for the global news business to report.  Second, there is only a small quantity of fact but enormous amounts of opinion, speculation and forecasting.  That generates a self-replicating series of news stories about people reacting to news stories.  And finally, it's about the most important thing in the world: my precious life and health, and that of the people I love.  As we say in New York, what's not to like?

Speaking of New York, if you are planning to come here for our Building the Broadband Economy summit May 13-15, you will be interested in a few facts:

1.  There are 49 suspected cases of Heinie in New York City, in a population of 8.3 million.  Do the math: Heinie is affecting 0.00006% (six one-hundred thousandths of a percent) of the population.  They are all associated with three schools in the borough of Queens and appear to stem from a spring break student trip to Mexico.

2.  According to our Health Commissioner, the symptoms are mild.  Nobody is in the hospital, though lots of frightened people are flocking to emergency rooms. In the words of Crain's New York Business, "None of the 49 suspected cases of the panic-inducing new influenza strain in New York City has produced anything worse than the symptoms of the plain old seasonal flu."

3.  One person in the United States has died of Heinie.  He was a 23-month-old Mexican visiting his relatives in the state of Texas.  It was devastating for his parents - but it hardly constitutes a public health threat.

Personally, I'm more worried about being struck by an asteroid than being laid low by Heinie.  Seriously.  Over 5,800 "near-Earth asteroids" cross the Earth's orbital path as it speeds around the sun, according to astronomers.  If you want to worry about something, worry about that.

The Heinie scare is interesting, however, for the way a real virus has become the subject of "viral marketing."  That's a term used by advertisers to describe how the Web can spread rumor and opinion about a product or service, create curiosity, build "buzz" until suddenly everybody is emailing, posting, commenting and tweeting about it.  In the round of news stories about news stories, I have heard public health officials being interviewed about how this viral marketing affects their efforts to communicate.  One said that he had learned the best approach is not to contradict bad information out there, because that breeds conspiracy theories, which rapidly take on a life of their own.  Instead, his organization focuses on constantly pushing out fact-based news, trying in his words to get ahead of the digital information virus.

At BBE09, former CNN commentator Garrick Utley will lead a discussion on exactly this topic: "Communities Online vs. Online Communities."  It explores how community leaders can deal with the "echo chamber" of email, blog, texts and tweets so as to promote thoughtful debate and decision-making over uncertainty, fear and hatred.  We'll be hearing from Dave Carter of Manchester UK, Andrew Cohill, a founder of Blacksburg Electronic Village, and Shirley Brady, Community Editor for BusinessWeek.  It should be fascinating.  Spread the word.