Curitiba, a Brazilian city, secured the prestigious Smart City award at this year’s Smart City Expo World Congress held in Barcelona. This recognition celebrates outstanding urban innovation initiatives from across the globe.
The jury highlighted Curitiba’s selection based on its innovative approach to urban planning, socioeconomic development, and commitment to environmental sustainability. The city’s strategy places a significant emphasis on improving the overall quality of life for its residents.
In the realm of mobility, the Konya Metropolitan Municipality in Turkey received the award for its project in Meram, where old streetcars were refurbished exclusively for cyclists, aiming to raise awareness about cycling and introduce a new transportation model.
Gangnam-gu in Korea secured the Safety and Resilience award for its policy supporting marginalized social groups, while Tampere, Finland, earned the Enabling Technologies accolade for its “urban-social digital twin” that leverages data from the city’s platform for decision-making.
Bordeaux, France, stood out in the Energy and Environment category for its tools designed to obtain reliable indicators on temperatures and residents’ experiences of urban heat. The US Mayor Roundtable initiative won the Governance and Economy category.
Saudi Aramco’s Dhahram Smart City platform was recognized in the Infrastructure and Building Category for its integration of IoT and AI to manage facilities and services. Breda, Netherlands, received the Living and Inclusion award for the Bereikbaar Breda Applicatie, an application facilitating accessibility for people with disabilities in the city.
The Innovation category celebrated two winners: the SPIRE initiative for revitalizing polluted urban soil in Baia Mare, Romania, and ECO-HEROES for contributions to vocational training in ecotourism in Marrakesh, Morocco.
A special Leadership award was presented to Anna Lisa Boni, former Deputy Mayor of Bologna and Secretary General of Eurocities (2014-2021), and Claudio Orrego, Governor of the Santiago de Chile Metropolitan Region.
The diverse jury, including representatives from the Barcelona City Council, UN-Habitat, the World Bank, EC Mission on Climate Neutral and Smart Cities, the World Economic Forum, SEGITTUR, and the Smart City Expo World Congress, played a crucial role in selecting the winners.
This year’s Smart City Expo World Congress, organized by Fira de Barcelona, took place alongside Tomorrow Mobility World Congress, Tomorrow Building, and Tomorrow Blue Economy, attracting over 25,300 attendees from 140 countries at Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Via venue over three days.
