Enabling change makers in cities to work with entrepreneurs and technologists, and to open up access to new investment is the goal of the Connected Smart Cities Conference, to be held in Brussels on January 21, 2016. The one-day conference, immediately following the EUROCITIES Knowledge Society Forum, is being organized by the Connected Smart Cities Network and the OASC secretariat and Task Force, in collaboration with: European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL), FIWARE, OrganiCity, SELECT for Cities, the European Commission, Committee of the Regions and EUROCITIES.

The event is aimed at both city and government representatives and the private sector and aims to encourage the emerging wave of social entrepreneurs and investors to partner with academics, NGOs, and government authorities to adopt emerging de-facto standards for smart cities like those integrated in the FIWARE platform.

Those interested in attending can register for free at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/connected-smart-cities-conference-2016-tickets-19964547499

FIWARE is an open platform of technologies available to developers through APIs and generic enablers that allow the creation of apps that combine sensor data, mobile devices, data systems, and legacy technologies so that a new generation of smart city applications can be built that focus on solving real problems facing cities around the world.

The Open and Agile Smart Cities Initiative (OASC) is a network of cities around the globe that are seeking to work collaboratively to enable a new generation of smart city technologies to emerge in a way that they can be easily standardized and shared across regions. 75 cities are currently participating from across Europe and the UK, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific.

“The Connected Smart Cities Conference will take participants through the full journey of civic technology and is an ideal event for those both new to smart cities looking to participate, and those who want to solve their current challenges by speaking and working with experts in the field,” said Juanjo Hierro, Chief Architect of FIWARE. “The day walks through the policy and business environment that will enable smart cities technologies to flourish, and then parallel sessions dig deep into our technology platform, current examples of success, opportunities for innovation and the emerging role of standards in helping us scale new initiatives.”

“This is also the ideal forum for investors, policy actors, startups and enterprise to forge new links and start collaborating on projects that will take off in 2016,” said Hierro.