SMART CITIES
AN ARCHETYPE FOR INNOVATION
IN REGIONAL AUSTRALIA by Imogen Schifferle, Innovation and Regional Partnerships Coordinator, City of Albury Wodonga
As regional communities around Australia begin their journeys towards creating a smart and innovative environment for residents to live, work and play in, it’s important that they stop to consider exactly what being a “smart community” means in the regional context.
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June 2021 // Issue 19
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he most expansive and inclusive thing we can do for the community is build a digital foundation. However, there is a monumental challenge that lies in the implementation of the traditional layers of connectivity infrastructure. Regional towns and communities are inherently different to cities. Residents have different ways of working, living and moving around communities; and they have different values and thrive in a different cultural norm. The vision to digitally transform an entire region is bold. It’s the kind of collective deep dive that can only be pursued by grounding itself in the value systems that drive our regional communities. Taking this approach will ultimately deliver smart communities that reflect their diversity, their economies and the regional environment.
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