The European Urban Initiative (EUI) is a strategic program launched by the European Union to support sustainable urban development and foster innovation in cities across Europe. Its primary goal is to strengthen the capacity of cities to implement innovative and sustainable urban policies. The initiative focuses on key areas such as: Sustainable Urban Development: Encouraging cities to adopt environmentally friendly policies and infrastructure projects that align with the EU's Green Deal. Social Inclusion: Promoting initiatives that reduce inequality and improve access to essential...

As the SMACITE project comes to an end, it is essential to create synergies with other projects and proposals to ensure its sustainability. A new project, SMARCO, under the Blueprint European Action (101186291), is now starting, with its Kick-Off Meeting (KOM) taking place in Brussels on February 19-20. This project will focus on Smart Communities, expanding the Smart Cities concept to other environments that can also benefit from SMACITE’s results, such as rural areas and other types of human communities. SMARCO aims to address two key challenges: The lack of focus on developing...

The SMACITE project is approaching its final phase with the successful completion of pilots and the final refinement of MOOC. https://mooc.smacite.eu remains fully operational to meet the learning needs of engineers and technicians in the #SmartCities Domain. The platform includes the Smart Cities Diagnostic Tool, designed to assess learners' training needs and guide learners in selecting appropriate learning pathways, twenty digital courses, and eight horizontal digital courses. The learners who successfully complete the course receive a certificate for completion with a unique verifiable...

We are excited to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the SMACITE project (smacite.eu) and the CHAISE project (chaise-blockchainskills.eu). This partnership marks a significant step toward advancing digital skills and innovation across Europe.  SMACITE: Enhancing skills for smart city techThe project aims to address the skills gap of Smart Cities technicians and engineers, by designing and testing a vocational education and training program that combines digital skills on Smart Cities enabling technologies, with soft, entrepreneurship and green skills. CHAISE:...

Turin has been awarded a prestigious international recognition, being proclaimed the "European Capital of Smart Tourism" for 2025, while the title of Green Pioneer, designed to recognize and award smaller destinations, has been assigned to Benidorm (Spain). But what exactly does Smart Tourism mean and why is it important for cities? Smart tourism is an innovative approach to the tourism sector that relies on the use of digital technologies and sustainability. The goal is to create a more personalized, efficient, and environmentally friendly tourist experience, involving both visitors and...

The SMACITE Project National Workshop, hosted by Bulgarian Association of Software Companies and ESI Center Eastern Europe, took place in Pamporovo, Bulgaria, on November 15-17, 2024, during the BASSCOM Autumn Retreat. The event brought together over 65 key stakeholders from the Bulgarian IT ecosystem, including industry leaders, academics, and public sector representatives. The workshop focused on sharing SMACITE Project achievements, discussing lessons learned, and gathering valuable feedback from the target groups of the project: IT professionals, students, and public sector...

We had the opportunity to present SMACITE on the 6th International Conference of Development and Economy (ICODECON) in Kalamata, Greece, held from October 11-13, 2024. It was an honor to share our insights and engage in meaningful discussions with experts, academics, and policy-makers on boosting the technical and non-technical skills and competences of smart cities technicians and engineers Thank you ICODECON for providing this fantastic opportunity to showcase how SMACITE aims to address the skills gap of Smart Cities technicians and engineers, by designing and testing a vocational...

Discover how the success of smart cities in Europe is closely tied to the availability of professionals. This study highlights the crucial role of technical expertise in ensuring the sustainability of urban innovations, examining skill and knowledge needed for smart city projects. Our work has also determined which existing ESCO occupations are similar to the two reference profiles, so they are better adapted to Smart Cities projects. The training activities of SMACITE have also suggested the amount of training expected for a varied sample of candidates who want to be qualified for Smart...

We are finally back from a well deserved summer vacation and it is a good moment to analyze the evolution of the SMACITE project in the last months. As you may know the SMACITE project is a 3-year project (01/06/2022 – 31/05/2025) coordinated by the University of Patras (Greece) and co-funded by the European Union promoting the development, curriculum and competencies of smart cities in the participating countries. During the last summer many students participating in the initiative had the time to learn and develop projects in the different courses that are part of the SMACITE...