Paloma Lecheta’s Post

Dialogue and rebuilding #trust was vital to turning the neighbourhood’s fortunes around, says José Antonio Torre Medina-Mora, Director of the Center for the Future of Cities at Tecnológico de Monterrey. A World Economic Forum report, Improving Social Outcomes in Urban Development: A Playbook for Practitioners, outlines 6 key principles that can help urban #regeneration projects benefit local #communities: https://ow.ly/t5o850UuT4i #Cities #UrbanTransformation #Monterrey #Mexico

https://lnkd.in/egCycMkh Miami’s ranking as #77 out of 250 “future-ready” cities is a wake-up call, especially as challenges like traffic, income inequality, and climate change weigh heavily on our potential. However, programs like MIT’s Regional Entrepreneurship Accelerator Program (REAP) provide a critical blueprint for accelerating our innovation-driven economy and addressing these systemic hurdles. Through REAP, Miami is better positioned to foster collaboration between academia, government, businesses, and community leaders—building the kind of resilient and inclusive ecosystem needed to future proof Miami. The road ahead demands a sharper focus on leveraging emerging technologies (like AI and IoT) and creating sustainable, citizen-centered solutions. Addressing challenges like traffic congestion doesn’t just require funding but bold thinking, cross-sector collaboration, and a commitment to equity. The future belongs to cities that integrate innovation into their DNA. Let’s make sure Miami is one of them. #InnovationEconomy #FutureReadyCities #MITREAP #MiamiInnovation #UrbanTransformation MIT REAP - Regional Entrepreneurship Acceleration Program, Ethan James A., Jason Saltzman

Great cities attract ambitious people. "The city sends you a message: you could do more, you should try harder," said Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, in his essay. Recently, I visited Prague and Budapest. They are not about business life; they are about great architecture. They sent me a message: think about what humanity can achieve. But how about Warsaw? It is actually more about business. Suddenly and rapidly, it has become a business hub. It has potential, which means I have great potential as well, that's why I am here. And what message does your city send you? https://lnkd.in/d6-pt4sJ

Hello, 2025. Welcome to this world. Your predecessor, 2024, was a bit unruly - not least on the global level, where geopolitical and environmental storm clouds are forming... But - New Year is a time for constructive assessments, so here are some principles from 2024 that I will carry into 2025 for guidance: EMBARKING ON NOVEL ADVENTURES: Moderating a panel debate in Poland as part of the Danish King's official visit in January was not on my bingo card a few years ago! Neither was giving a speech in Belgrade for various government representatives about creative ecosystems. But acting outside your comfort zone is both inspiring and productive, and this is where you grow new perspectives professionally. Be open and confident about new challenges in 2025. LEARNING FROM THE BEST: Discussing 'superblocks' with Barcelona's city architect, being guided through Milan's urban regeneration projects by Hines, and talking to leading city officials in Paris about their impressive achievements on sustainable mobility etc. - I feel blessed to have had access to top knowledge during 2024, and to networks of resourceful people such as the Urban Land Institute and WRLDCTY - and not least for working with my highly skilled colleagues at BLOXHUB. Being inspired by other people is the best outset for innovation, and I will mobilize even more expertise from BLOXHUB's innovative member organizations in 2025 - you hold the key solve some of the pressing urban challenges around the World! FORMING STRONG BONDS: Creating new connections is exiting, but cementing those connections into alliances is meaningful. After having built relationships with frontrunner Japanese organizations for the last 2+ years, a solid bridgehead across our continents has now been developed, and real impact in the Japanese building industry is becoming feasible. Actual change takes sustained involvement, but when you see those gears in the big machine starting to turn, it's more than worth it. MAKING YOUR VOICE COUNT: It's always nice when people want to hear what you have to say. So I am grateful to the audiences who have heard my message about creating more sustainable cities throughout the year. Not just the many international delegations who have visited us in collaboration with #meetcopenhagencity to learn, but also for my invitations to speak at conferences, seminars and lectures - and the interviews for television, newspaper articles, podcasts and books. The privilege of a platform comes with a responsibility to make it count - I will focus on inspiring real, meaningful change in 2025. A happy new year to all.

Bringing the Power of DePIN to the City of Porto (Câmara Municipal do Porto) - For More Inclusion Through Community Collaboration! 🤝 Grid Collective is partnering with the city of Porto to pilot Accessibility Mapping for people with reduced mobility - leveraging the mapping technology of Proto (de_plan proto), a proven Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network. Most cities rely on outdated maps that overlook critical accessibility details, like wheelchair-inaccessible narrow sidewalks, often seen in Portuguese cities, or curb cuts altered by ongoing construction. What if instead of relying on centralized hired labor, we collaborate directly with local communities to provide us with this crucial data? 📱Locals collect accessibility data using their smartphone cameras. 🤖AI-verified contributions (with reliability scores) are securely and privacy-preservingly added to the city map. 💰Transparent rewards incentivize engagements, fostering trust and accountability. The result? ✅ Crowdsourced insights that are fast, cost-efficient, and scalable. At Grid Collective, we’re filling the data gaps cities struggle with - turning communities into collaborators and building smarter, more inclusive urban spaces - all designed compliance first!  🌱 Interested? Let’s talk! Reach out if you have a project in mind we can support you with - whether it’s about recycling, public health, or energy! A big thank you to the CommuniCity and Porto Digital team (Adeeb Sidani, Joana Moreira, Joana Cecília Silva) for providing a seamless link to the municipality. Special thanks as well to Elisabete Roldão and Jaime Ribeiro from aTOPlab - Assistive Technology and Occupational Performance Laboratory for supporting us in creating relevant impact on the ground. It takes a village... ___ This collaboration is part of the EU-funded CommuniCity initiative - co-creating inclusive, community-driven digital solutions to tackle urban challenges and build smarter, more accessible cities.

Over the next few months, we de_plan protowill be working with Grid Collective and Câmara Municipal do Porto to support Data Collection for Accessibility. Excited to see Proto's data collection capabilities support in building better cities.

⭐ Torino and Braga lead the way in urban innovation! Torino takes the top prize for its transformative urban strategies, while Braga excels as a rising star of inclusive innovation. ⭐ Read more about the 2024-25 iCapital Awards via the link below. #Europeofcities

Focused on uplifting its citizens’ lives, especially the vulnerable communities, Mexico City (Gobierno de la Ciudad de México) is an inspiring story of how it overcame its complex challenges with transformative changes that have enhanced people’s quality of life in the last five years, leaving no one behind. One of its cornerstone efforts is its network of 294 PILARES community centres, which have not only provided beautiful safe havens for young and old to learn and play together but have also revitalised its streets and neighbourhoods. Its digitalisation initiatives are also impressive. It has made it easier for people to renew their driver’s licenses and carry out other government transactions online, streamlining and reducing government transactions from 2,100 to 500. People can also access its 31,000 free WIFI hotspots across the city, a record-breaking feat. Winning the Prize has been emotional for Eduardo Clark, Head of the city’s Digital Agency for Public Innovation, who received the award on behalf of the city government at the recent World Cities Summit. He shared: “All of our cities are at different stages in our journeys to become better. The value of the Prize is that it focuses on cities’ journeys and not just the final outcomes. The Prize also inspires us to reflect on how far we have come, to be proud of what we have achieved and to keep learning and improving.” Learn more on 2024 Prize Laureate Mexico City’s commitment to inclusivity and sustainable transformation for its nine million residents 👉 https://lnkd.in/esqUxZ_R Video Credit: Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore (URA)  

If parachuted into Tallinn’s chocolate box old town, you too might fail to guess that Estonia is at the forefront of the Baltic (in many ways European) foray into deep tech, AI, climate tech Tastesful spires, blue skies of May, charming alleys amidst thick walls, & wafts of money-can’t-buy-me-love from a guitar hide the sophisticated lead Unsurprisingly, a new #DeepTech report features Estonia in pole position https://lnkd.in/gvTJ3izp — Its recipe: 1. Government in e-services, e-Residency, digital ID cards, online voting systems. Read foundational tech fostering digital culture & infra for tech startups to thrive https://lnkd.in/gmV7Tp9B 2. Push to STEM, talent spurt after ProgeTiiger, coding to students from an early age, universities & research collaborating with industry 3. Startup ecosystem per capita, Skype, Wise & Bolt, creating a virtuous cycle, Startup Estonia 4. Climate-tech. Estonian Green Investment Scheme attacking greenhouse gas emissions, promoting energy efficiency The spires, the skyline & its haunting legends seem unlikely overseers to cutting-edge deep tech But they are… Hard to miss is the Old Town Hall built in 1322. The ceilings have treasures such as a Gothic bench with carvings of the story of Tristan & Isolde. Climb its tower, find a wind vane in the shape of an old man in a hat & carrying a spear. This is Thomas, who as a young boy, who shot down a wooden parrot from the top of a high pole during Tallinn’s annual medieval archery contest. He was subsequently made an apprentice guard & became a soldier; the city made the metal statue so that he continued to protect the city Another spire is St Olav’s. The tallest, this 12th-c. church was hit by lightning a dozen times & rebuilt thrice. Its tower – accessed by a narrow & vertiginous flight of circular stairs that lead out onto a viewing platform – afford breath-taking views. When it was being built the construction kept failing. A stranger said he would get the job done if the townsfolk either paid him lavishly in gold or could guess his name. Spies kicked in & one day, just as the stranger was putting the finishing touches, men began to shout: “Be careful Olav, the cross is not straight” – whereupon the man, shocked at hearing his name, fell from the tower, & died! A wall carving in the Chapel of Our Lady has a snake & a toad crawling out of Olav’s mouth, all three subsequently turned to stone The 4m-thick city wall carries equally enigmatic tales. Constructed in the late-14th c. to fend off invaders, by the 16th c., Tallinn was one of the most fortified cities in world & these walls were raised to 16m high. 26 remain, helping solidify Tallinn’s status in the Unesco World Heritage List. A famous artillery structure Kiek in de Kok. Its sore-sounding name, derived from German, means “Peep in the Kitchen” (The German translation for "Peek into AI" would be Einblick in KI 🫡) Image, video: Archive

Positive deviance spotlights individuals or communities that achieve remarkable success or exhibit highly effective behaviors despite facing the same constraints as their peers. With a long history of use in international development, the concept is now gaining traction among city leaders as a source of solutions to stubborn urban challenges.  We spoke to Ravi Gurumurthy, CEO of the global innovation foundation Nesta, to take a closer look at what it’s about, and how it’s already being used to uplift promising approaches in cities. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eyfukY-K