City of Rochester
News Release
(Friday, Nov. 2, 2018) – The City of Rochester is being
recognized by the Intelligent Community Forum, an international non-profit, for
its efforts to become a “Smart City” by leveraging technology and data to
create and improve access to jobs and keep pace with the digital age, Mayor
Lovely A. Warren announced today. Rochester is one of 21 cities across the
globe – and four in the United States – to receive the “Smart21” designation.
“Smart Cities are the wave of the future and I am proud
that Rochester is leading the way,” Mayor Warren said. “Initiatives like Kiva
Rochester, the Climate Action Plan and the Youth Employment Services office are
helping us create more jobs, safer and more vibrant neighborhoods and better
educational opportunities. I would like to thank the Intelligent Community
Forum for recognizing our work.”
The Intelligent Community Forum is a think tank that
helps communities use information technology to tackle their most pressing
challenges and enrich their quality of life.
The “Smart21” list includes communities in Australia,
Brazil, Canada, France, India, Kenya, Russia, Taiwan and Vietnam. Cities were
selected by a team of independent analysts, who looked for the best models of
economic, social and cultural development in the digital age.
For more about the “Smart21” designation, visit www.intelligentcommunity.org.
The following initiatives helped Rochester receive the
designation:
• The
Youth Employment Services office, which provides soft skills employment
readiness training and employment opportunities to more than 400 Rochester
youth each year.
• Kiva
Rochester, a partnership between the City of Rochester and Kiva U.S., helps
small business owners gain access to capital through zero-interest,
crowdfunded, microloans.
• Owner
Worker Network (OWN) Rochester, in collaboration with several anchor
institutions like Wegmans and the University of Rochester, is developing
worker-owned co-op companies and supports small and startup businesses with an
emphasis on building community wealth in disadvantaged neighborhoods.
• Rochester
2034, the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Rochester, will lay out a course
of action for the future social, physical and economic development of the
community.
• The
community-wide Climate Action Plan, as part of the New York State Energy
Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) Cleaner Greener Communities
initiative, to reduce the impact of greenhouse gases and protect the city’s natural
resources.
The next stage of the competition will narrow the Top 21
list to a Top 7 list, to be announced in February, 2019. More analysis and site
inspection tours of the Top 7 will then take place and culminate at the ICF
Global Summit in New York City in June, 2019, where a new Intelligent Community
of the Year will be announced.
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News media: For more information contact Press Officer
Jessica Alaimo at 428-7135.