Spain bet to transform their cities to make them smart cities. The RECI (Spanish Network of Smart Cities) is one of the organizations that since 2001, works with an eye to this transformation. Today, not only Madrid and Barcelona, but 63 other localities became a case study internationally. One that underwent a successful evolution is Santander. Infobae spoke to the Mayor, Iñigo de la Serna, who is in turn the president of the RECI.
What things make a city is smart?
First of all, a smart city is the one that knows how to leverage technology to its fullest to create better urban services and to improve the quality of life of neighbors thanks to the efficiency that can bring innovation.
When one speaks of technological innovation should not be forgotten that it is in reality of social policies
There’s different aspects that must be brought together to be a “Smart City”. How manage to combine all these factors?
Precisely the ultimate goal is not technology. Technology is only the means. The end is the citizen, is able to focus all toward them and enhance them urban services. When one speaks of technology should not forget that what is involved is social policy, social innovation, tools giving technological innovation, for example, make services more accessible to any neighbor.
what governments should do is create the conditions for entrepreneurs to work
Here there is a huge field for entrepreneurs, to let him devise solutions that change the lives of several cities. Would you open the game?
Absolutely. This is a key point. not us we have to develop mobile applications really, or we have to innovate, because that’s what the companies and entrepreneurs. In addition they do much better. Today a developer makes an application in 48 hours when leads us 6 months or a year to develop it.
What we have to do? Create conditions for them to work well.
-We see here that there are a lot of public-private collaboration. How the model generated work?
Here the state has drawn a line called “Program Smart Cities”, which incidentally, just communicate that has grown from 50 million to over 100 and we are happy because it is directly for cities to use in Smart cities projects. But of course it is not the essential part. There is another item that comes from the European Commission. We have about 15 projects with an investment volume of 60 million euros.
Also here is required to be accompanied by other cities, educational institutions such as the universities and private sector, but it is impossible for you to fund the European Commission.
there has to be, or yes, a public-private collaboration. Then the modalities are different. One is in the private and has a clear business model. For example, we are now going to replace the entire street lighting LED technology, remote point to point and some sensors to detect people who regulate light intensity. The investment – almost 15 million euros makes private. The agreement is that it keeps the energy savings to recover the investment. That is, for the same rate, the savings to be generated, is partly for that company to recover the investment. There are many other bilateral agreements that we have to receive support from companies, although these entrepreneurs have to always think that here, this urban laboratory that is Santander, create a prototype for which there must be a “sinking fund”. But if your product or service works well, it becomes a successful model exported to another site where there will get the economic return.
“modernize helped us create something very important that is” the pride of city “that makes us feel a participant in a project collective “
Q: What are the benefits for Santander to walk the path towards a smart city?
If we want to improve our productive sector in general, we must attract more tourists and investors. It is essential that we know. Smart Cities policy, for example, has given us a terrific strategic positioning internationally, that we had not given any other area of the city. This is one, but there are many more: improving efficiency, the opportunity to get investment as we are doing with European projects, improving services – for example, neighbors now know what their water consumption at home , know when the bus arrives at the stop, a few bikes available- common there. All contribute to something important that is “city pride”. The city pride is ultimately feel part of a collective project, and that is very important for the involvement and citizen participation, not only in technology projects, but in many other projects.
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