The national workshop on the SMACITE project in Bulgaria took place during the BASSCOM autumn retreat in the city of Stara Zagora between October 27-29. It was organized by BASSCOM and ESI Center Eastern Europe, which are the Bulgarian partners in the project.The event was attended by the leaders of over 70 BASSCOM member companies, as well as representatives from educational institutions, NGOs - regional partners of two Bulgarian organizations in Stara Zagora and officials from Stara Zagora municipality.The SMACITE project was presented as an opportunity for those looking to go deeper into...

The first national workshop of the SMACITE project in Spain took place at Politeknika Txorierri on October 5th. Representatives from companies, H/VET providers and students got to know the latest news about SMACITE project: the partnership, the project objectives and expected results. Moreover, a representative from Bilbao Ekintza, the Bilbao City Council, joined the workshop and shared with the participants information about the evolution of Bilbao, specifically their plans to transform the island of Zorrozaurre from an old industrial peninsula to a smart innovative urban district. In the...

Following the national workshops on Spain & Bulgaria, the Greek workshop under the title: "Cities and communities ready for the future: Smart growth through new skills for Smart Cities engineers and technicians" is coming up on Thursday the 23rd of November at the University of Patras, Greece. With the kind contribution of experts and engineers in the smart cities field, it aims to present best practices of Greek Smart Cities of Trikala, Kalamata and Patras as well as the SMACITE's project training opportunities to boost the technical and non-technical skills and competences of Smart City...

The SMACITE project had a new face-to face meeting in Madrid (Spain). On October 18th and 19th we held a new face-to-face project meeting in Madrid (Spain). In this meeting we gathered all the partners of the project to follow up the main activities and commitments of the actions since the last face to face project meeting in Sofia. The main topics addressed were related to the methodology for the certification of the learners’ knowledge and skills and the learning resources for the upskilling and reskilling of Smart Cities technicians and engineers. The trainer handbook to be used in the...

València, with a population of almost 800,000 inhabitants, and one of the first Spanish cities to plan and deploy a smart city platform in 2013, VLCi, has recently been selected to host one of the three applied Artificial Intelligence superhubs to smart cities of the CitCom project. The experience gained along the way has enabled the city to obtain the ISO 37120 (Sustainable development of communities – Indicators of urban services and quality of life) certification at Platinum level, the highest possible, and ITU – U4SSC (Key Performance Indicators related to smart and sustainable cities to...

The field of online training has witnessed a remarkable transformation in recent years, with the advent of Virtual Worlds. Virtual worlds are computer-simulated environments where users can interact with each other and the environment. These digital landscapes can range from realistic, high-fidelity simulations to fantastical, imaginative realms. Virtual worlds offer a unique blend of interactivity, engagement, and experiential learning, making them a potent tool for online training across various industries. The key benefits of Virtual Worlds for online training include: Immersive Learning...

SMACITE’s first workshop Smart Development: Unleashing Skills for Future-Ready Cities & Communities held online on September 20th was a success! The event, organized by the project partner DIGITAL SME, gathered more than 60 stakeholders in the smart cities sector. Representatives of EU institutions, education providers, VET, public authorities and businesses (solutions' providers) joined the event and participated in the breakout sessions to facilitate connections among peers around Europe. SMACITE project's findings on technical and soft skills for smart cities engineers and technicians...

In the complex and interconnected world of Smart Cities, smart contracts are emerging as a groundbreaking solution. These digital agreements, built upon blockchain technology, offer enhanced security, transparency, and trust, all while eliminating the need for intermediaries and excessive paperwork, and allowing the automation for various processes in the Smart City environment. Smart Contracts 101 Smart contracts are computer-coded agreements between parties that are stored in the blockchain, making them immutable and their transactions irreversible. Their main purpose is to automate the...

During the first half of September 2023, members of the UniWA group of SMACITE had a round of communications with the Greek Computer Society (GCS/ΕΠΥ) related to the skills and competences required in the context of Smart Cities education.  GCS is well known to play an important role in the promotion and dissemination of the principals of Computer Science and Engineering across all age groups and genders in Greece.   GCS is closely watching the evolution of the work carried out by the SMACITE team regarding, among others, the educational material being developed for Smart Engineers and Smart...