Poznan.pl, oficjalna strona Miasta Poznania

Conference Smart City Wielkopolska & Guests 2022 was held on 25 May in Poznan Congress Centre, on the premises of the Poznan International Fair. The event was divided into two parts, and each of them included speeches by experts and a debate, all in the context of smart cities.

Technologies for better future

The event was opened by the Deputy Mayor of Poznań Mariusz Wiśniewski. After the introductory words it was time for the main speech of the conference. Professor Aleksandra Przegalińska focused on responsible technologies for future cities. The participants were given an accelerated history lesson on the changes that have taken place over the years in the use of artificial intelligence. The professor also talked about current trends in digitalization and prospects for its development in the future, also addressing the issue of opportunities and threats associated with its introduction.

Cities in times of crisis

After a very engaging speech it was time for the first debate - about smart city in times of crisis. Professor Przegalińska was the moderator and the participants of the discussion were representatives of local authorities from Wielkopolska. Poznan was represented by Vice President Mariusz Wisniewski, Ostrów Wielkopolski by President Beata Klimek, Piła by President Piotr Głowski and Chodzież by Mayor Jacek Gursz. The speech on behalf of the Board of Directors of the Wielkopolska Region was taken by its member Paulina Stochniałek. In accordance with the topic of the debate, the main axis of the discussion concerned the experienced and forecasted problems in such issues as pandemics, war in Ukraine, as well as financial and energy policies.

This exchange of views can be summed up by the statement that once again the ability of local governments to solve problems at the local level, as well as those occurring on a much larger scale, was proven. Thanks to grassroots activities, local governments are able to react quickly and face challenges, which might be more difficult and time-consuming to solve on the central level.

Challenges - how to cope with them?

Another part of the conference were speeches by experts who deal with the implementation of smart city in everyday life. President Wojciech Stramski and IT Director Radosław Luboch from Beyond.pl talked about the functioning of the necessary IT infrastructure in times of crisis. They showed ways to cope with the problems, especially concerning the continuity of IT services important for local governments.

Eunika Lech from the Wspólny Ton association and Joanna Mitschke-Mazur from SORDO presented the challenge of providing access to information for deaf city dwellers - also in the context of the arrival of refugees from Ukraine. This part was a bit of a diversion for both ladies, as they were engaged in sign language interpreting of subsequent speeches and debates throughout the conference.

Bart Gorynski from Bee Smart City showed different approaches to the implementation of the smart city concept on the basis of examples of cities from all over the world. To the surprise of the conference participants, it was the first ever presentation by Mr. Gorynski, which he delivered entirely in Polish. The audience gave him a thunderous applause.

The voice of local governments

An important issue raised during the conference were practical examples of experience that local governments have had so far in implementing innovation and smart city models. At the beginning the Mayor of Śrem Adam Lewandowski delivered a speech. His speech was primarily devoted to the progressive digitalization in the public service sector, which brings tangible benefits not only to officials but most of all to citizens.

The City of Konin was represented by Pawel Adamow, Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs. He told the audience about the green transformation that Konin started in 2018. Thanks to it, the city, traditionally associated with coal-fired energy, now obtains a significant part of the electricity and heat it consumes from green sources - additionally generating profits for the budget.

At the very end, the Mayor of Piła, Dr. Piotr Głowski, talked about ways to ensure security of electricity supply and reduce the carbon footprint of the energy sector. He also presented the concept of a self-sufficient housing estate, which is to be a combination of the use of modern digital technologies, resident-friendly design and a system of obtaining energy from renewable sources.

Disinformation, theater and support

After the self-government segment, it was time for the speech of Marcin Zawada, a journalist cooperating with the Onet portal. His speech was devoted to the problem of communication and disinformation, to which we are particularly exposed these days. He presented this issue in a way that engaged the audience, who were put to the difficult task of distinguishing between true information and fake news.

Another speech concerned the construction of the new headquarters of Poznan Music Theatre. The director of the institution, Przemysław Kieliszewski, told the audience how it was possible, despite the crisis, to accept the investment project. It constitutes a bridge between the worlds of culture and modern technology. The project combines the best experiences of Polish and world music theaters. At the same time, it has been maintained in the spirit of innovation - instead of using ordinary photovoltaic installations, the theater will obtain electricity from modern perovskite cells. In addition, the space around the new theater is to be transformed into a recreational and educational area for residents of Poznan.

The last speaker of the conference was Anna Polishchuk, co-founder of the Ukrainian start-upLalafo. After the Russian invasion, the company and its employees were forced to evacuate. Although they were initially relocated to Warsaw, they eventually decided to move to Poznan. Here, in cooperation with the City Hall, Lalafo was provided with space on the MTP grounds, where a warehouse was set up. This is related to the noble goal the company has set for itself and its employees. Their entire activity in Poland is based on the distribution center, to which material aid for Ukrainian refugees is delivered. There, properly prepared and catalogued, it is placed on a special website. Through the website, people in need can receive free clothing or everyday necessities. Since the beginning of its operations in Poznań, the company has delivered tens of thousands of items to refugees located throughout the city.

Resilience - or just resilience?

The final stage of the conference was a debate conducted entirely in English. It was devoted to cities in times of crisis and the ability to adapt smart cities to the challenges of tomorrow. The role of discussion moderator was taken by Joe Appleton, a British writer and urban planner, involved in the work of the Bee Smart City team. The participants of the debate were Neil Pickett from the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Anna Polishchuk from Lalafo, the Plenipotentiary of the Mayor of Poznan for Smart City Michał Łakomski and Bart Gorynski - cooperating with Joe in Bee Smart City.

The discussion on issues relevant to the smart city model revolved around the English word resilience, which means not only resilience, but also flexibility in action and the ability to recover and strengthen despite the problems encountered. Neil Pickett and Anna Polishchuk presented examples of business involvement in helping Ukraine - both from the perspective of a person running such a business and from the perspective of a representative of the business sector in another country. If one had to summarize the debate in a few words, it would be a combination of the smart world - i.e. using modern technologies, with already existing institutions and social-business conditions. It is only by putting people and their needs in the first place that we are able to introduce the smart city concept in the spirit of our times.

Workshop - about the future of City Lab

After the conference there was a workshop conducted by Huge Thing - What the urban community wants, or CityLAB as a space for joint modeling of the future. Participants outlined a potential area for City Lab, from the residents' perspective. Additionally, ideas were generated about possible challenges that City Lab could work on in the future. The organizers want the results of the workshop to provide a basis for further work on the design of CityLab - the formula for its operation, the identification of existing and missing resources, or the individual steps leading to its creation.

Summary

Conference Smart City Wielkopolska & Guests 2022 was held for the first time in a stationary form. It turned out to be a success not only in terms of content, but also in terms of organization. Speeches of invited speakers in an interesting way addressed the challenges of introducing innovation and trends in the area of smart city concept. During the debates many interesting issues were raised and conclusions were drawn, which will positively affect the joint action of local governments of our province in creating modern cities open to the needs of the inhabitants.

The organizers would like to thank all conference participants for their participation in the event and already invite to the next edition, which will be held next year.

Smart City is like a marathon. This is a long road, which is worth traveling together to be able to say at the end with full confidence - we succeeded.

OD/KS