San Antonio’s Smarter Together Initiative Named Award Finalist
Published on February 26, 2024
SAN ANTONIO (February 26, 2024) – The City of San Antonio is being recognized for its progress in executing Smart Cities projects, as well as provide a forum for sharing best practices to help accelerate Smart City development in the region. Today, San Antonio was named a finalist in the IDC Government Insights’ seventh annual Smart Cities North America Awards (SCNAA) in the Administration category for the Smarter Together Initiative.
As a next step in the nomination process, IDC invites the public to vote on the named finalists through Survey Monkey. Voting will remain open through Friday, March 8th. Winners will be announced March 27th and honored at Smart Cities Connect being held May 7-10 in Raleigh, NC. Finalists in the SCNAA illustrate best practice examples of how forward-thinking municipalities are effectively leveraging technology and innovation to offer new services and economic opportunities and to meet the needs and expectations of citizens and residents
“Our thoughtful and collaborative approach to implementing a smart cities program in the City of San Antonio has been a process of prototype, learn, and pivot,” Chief Innovation Officer Brian Dillard said. “That also applies to how we work with residents and staff intended to benefit from our efforts. Our Smarter Together Initiative formalizes that and exemplifies the community-driven framework that we established from the beginning.”
San Antonio’s Smarter Together Initiative was recognized for unprecedented progress in creating and sustaining smart city projects in the Administration category. The Smarter Together Initiative launched by the City’s Office of Innovation is comprised of a community-driven framework, the “Smart Cities Roadmap,” a smart city testbed, the “Smarter Together Testbed,” and a governance model called “Smart Cities as a Service” that streamlines a process for prototyping emerging technologies. Since its launch in June 2023, the initiative has launched prototype projects including “Talkin’ Broadway”and “Magical Parks” and has been featured in more than 20 articles and publications. More information is available at SmarterTogetherSA.com.
“Now in our seventh year, we continue to be impressed with the creativity and sophistication of Smart City initiatives successfully implemented across North America and congratulate the finalists on their dedication to employing modern technology to improve the day to day lives of residents,” said Ruthbea Yesner, Vice President, IDC Government Insights and Smart Cities. “We are thrilled to showcase the innovation and ingenuity being applied in the public sector and help to increase public awareness of initiatives as well as build a community ecosystem.”
To learn more about the Smart Cities Connect event being held May 7-10 in Raleigh, NC, please visit the event website.