The Australian Smart Communities Association (ASCA) has called for across the board local, state and federal government cooperation to ensure Australia becomes a world leader in the use of technology for the improvement of our cities and communities.
According to ASCA CEO Laurie Patton, the time has come for federal, state and local governments to work together on a national strategy, in order to create what he calls “Smart Cities”.
“We are well on the way, with Melbourne and Ipswich both named in a global top seven announced recently by the New York based Intelligent Communities Forum, yet there are many places where the work is yet to begin”, Patton says.
“ASCA recognises the importance of putting people first – and viewing things from a local perspective while also drawing on international experience”, Patton says, adding that, “It's about better using technology to make a community smarter while improving its residents’ quality of life".
“We need every level of government to embrace the smart use of technology to deal with increasing congestion, environmental issues and the many other constraints that are causing people to question the state of modern city living.”
“Smart lighting systems that reduce our power needs, smart parking systems, intelligent traffic monitoring, connected garbage bill that alert councils when they’re full. These are just some of the solutions already being deployed around the world”, he says.
