HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht and partners will launch the Smart Sustainable Cities Centre of Expertise in May 2014.

Smart Sustainable Cities will be a platform where people from the business world and from institutes of knowledge can join HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht in developing innovative products and services that will bring smart, sustainable and healthy cities a step closer. The Centre will offer current and future professionals the opportunity to learn about the latest developments and insights into smart, sustainable cities through regular education courses or continuing education programmes.

The Centre will establish a regional network of companies and organizations that are involved in innovative research, developing new business through innovation and ensuring that current and future professionals are better trained for the job market. Three substantive themes are key in this regard: ‘Energy-neutral urban areas’, ‘Healthy building in healthy areas’ and ‘Sustaina-ble behaviour: people and organization’. Students, companies, lecturers and researchers will work together in collaborative, educational and research projects to link new knowledge and insights and to translate these into real-world applications, often of a highly innovative nature.

Centre of expertise smart sustainable Cities

Why is the Smart Sustainable Cities Centre of Expertise unique? The power of Smart Sustainable Cities is derived from its ability to make abstract, multidisciplinary theory tangible by applying it in everyday urban practice. Making this happen requires an approach that does justice to the city as a complex system of interrelated modules, functions and processes. A systems approach is therefore needed to create smart, sustainable cities, both now and in the future. Research, innovation and education projects initiated by the Centre will have a cross-sectoral design and be implemented by interdisciplinary teams with the aim of creating smart, sustainable cities.

Goal: to create smart, sustainable and healthy cities By engaging in innovative research and education, the Centre’s aim is to bring the creation of (replicable) smart, sustainable cities a step closer. Smart, sustainable cities are cities of the (near) future where people will want to live and work. These cities will have a healthy indoor and outdoor environment; they will be alive with industry and social activities; and they will be energy-neutral. The residents of smart, sustainable cities will use technologies, materials and

expertise to make economically and environmentally sustainable choices. Smart, sustainable cities will remain appealing for future generations, and they will be affordable in the long term.

Strategy: pioneer, prove and build The Smart Sustainable Cities Centre of Expertise will grow and take shape substantively, organizationally and financially over the coming eighteen months. After this period, the Centre and its partners in the Programme Council will officially decide how the Centre is to evolve into a self- sufficient organization that can continue to function sustainably. In the near future the Centre will produce tangible results that will clearly demonstrate what the Centre’s unique approach can mean for its partners.

The Centre will have a lean-and-mean organizational structure. It will have a director of applied research (Ivo Opstelten) and a general manager (Nadia Verdeyen) from the very beginning. They will be supported by HU professors, a Business Developer, and staff from the Finance & Control and Marketing & Communications departments.

The Smart Sustainable Cities Centre of Expertise’s activities will focus on three themes.

Theme 1 Energy-neutral urban areas Smart Sustainable Cities will carry out projects and conduct research that will bring the creation of energy-neutral urban areas a step closer. The Centre will work in the existing built environment on topics that require a broad contextual approach to issues of sustainability: energy consumption will be approached from both the building and district level; the potential for sustainable energy generation will be harnessed and integrated in building and district systems; and the capacity of urban areas to adapt to technological innovations will be enhanced.

Theme 2 Healthy building in healthy areas The Smart Sustainable Cities Centre of Expertise will develop projects and conduct research at the cutting edge of construction, the built environment and health. A healthy indoor and outdoor environment is a prerequisite for healthy living and working. There are real challenges to be faced in big-city developments such as the increase of noise and particulate matter, and in optimizing logistics processes during construction projects. People’s perception of health is an important research topic in this regard.

Theme 3 Sustainable behaviour: people and organization Many sustainable innovations are based on a technological approach, which means they will only be successful if people truly want them and are able to make use of them. The Smart Sustainable Cities Centre of Expertise approaches the theme of ‘Sustainable behaviour: people and organization’ from two angles: 1) By conducting applied research, the Centre will gain insight into the motivations of individuals and organizations when it comes to making energy-conscious and environmentally friendly choices (participation), and into the barriers that need to be removed in order to implement sustainability measures (inclusion). 2) By developing technological innovations that are in line with consumers’ conscious and unconscious wishes.

programme struCture

www.smartsustainableCities.hu.nl