Half of humanity
3.5 billion people currently live in cities and by 2055 an estimated
75% of the world's population will live in urban areas. Cities occupy
just 2% of the Earth's land, but account for over 70% of both energy
consumption and carbon emissions.
However, cities present
the world's population with the best chance of reducing our ecological
footprint. Urban areas are uniquely positioned to lead the greening
of the global economy through improvements in transport, energy, buildings,
technology, water and waste systems, as well as producing a wide range
of economic and social benefits.
To achieve this, existing
and new-build cities will have to adopt sustainable development strategies,
including efficiency gains, innovative infrastructures and technological
advancements in order to meet the demands of this rapidly growing urban
population.-
Sustainable Cities is being launched in June 2012 at Rio+20 the
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development
Join us at the
future of Urban Energy
- Thursday, 28 June!
.... interested in knowing
more and sharing thoughts and ideas .... email us!
The European Union
is leading the global fight against climate change, and has
made it its top priority. The EU committed itself to reducing
its overall emissions to at least 20 % below 1990 levels by
2020. Local authorities play a key role in the achievement of
the EUs energy and climate objectives. The Covenant of
Mayors is a European initiative by which towns, cities and regions
voluntarily commit to reducing their CO2 emissions beyond this
20 % target. This formal commitment is to be achieved through
the implementation of Sustainable Energy Action Plans (SEAPs).
This Initiative
will support cities and regions in taking ambitious and pioneering
measures to progress by 2020 towards a 40% reduction of greenhouse
gas emissions through sustainable use and production of energy.
This will require systemic approaches and organisational innovation,
encompassing energy efficiency, low carbon technologies and
the smart management of supply and demand. In particular, measures
on buildings, local energy networks and transport would be the
main components of the Initiative.
The Intelligent
Energy Europe (IEE) programme is giving a boost to clean
and sustainable solutions. It supports their use and dissemination
and the Europe-wide exchange of related knowledge and know-how.
Targeted
funding is provided for creative projects putting this idea
into practice
Every year hundreds
of organisations and individuals in over 30 countries take part
in EU Sustainable Energy week by hosting Energy Day events and
activities that promote energy efficiency and renewable energy
sources.
The most highly
industrialized countries have become aware of the challenges
involved in energy and environmental efficiency in the construction
sector. According to the International Energy Agency, this sector
represents two-thirds of the solution for reducing greenhouse
gases by a factor of four by 2050.
The BP Urban Energy
Systems project at Imperial will identify the benefits of a
systematic, integrated approach to the design and operation
of urban energy systems, with a view to identify large reductions
in the energy intensity of cities.
The Veolia Observatory
of Urban Lifestyles sheds some light on the environmental issues
facing the world's large cities.
Research carried out for Veolia Environnement by TNS Sofres.
By Alcatel-Lucent
Telecommunications service providers are not playing a primary
role in smart city projects. Their involvement remains limited,
which means they run the risk of having to compete with utilities,
cable companies, and other types of service providers, to provide
information and communications technology (ICT) services. But
by leveraging their assets in a proactive way and partnering
with the key players in a smart city project, service providers
can change their role from that of facilitators of other industry
objectives, to that of strategic partners of the key industries
and governments involved in each project.
A handbook for
cities and towns in developing countries
By UN-HABITAT and UNEP.
The main purpose of this handbook is to assist people who are
working in or with local government to develop sustainable energy
and climate action plans and implementation programmes. There
can be no single recipe for all cities so it is up to
each local government to develop its own innovative and appropriate
plans based on local resources and needs.
June
28, 2012, 18:30 - 21:15
Option: Guided Tour 17:00
Location:
Van Eesterenmuseum, Burgemeester De Vlugtlaan 125,
1063 BJ Amsterdam
Supported
by the
Van
Eesterenmuseum
The speakers and topics are: Laurens
Tait,
Associate Civil Engineer, Arup Adapting to a changing energy landscape Kim
Taylor,
Marketing Manager, The New Motion
Attitudes towards mobility and the potential of EV's in energy
supply
Pauline
Westendorp, Co-founder, Wij krijgen
Kippen Amsterdam Zuid lives, works and moves on clean local energy
before 2020! and our
moderator Paul
Hughes, Ten
Meters of Thinking
.A
nose for the future
The International
Fragrance Association (IFRA)
was founded in 1973 in Geneva to represent the collective interests
of the fragrance industry. Its main purpose is to promote the
safe enjoyment of fragrances worldwide. As a global network IFRA
acts as the representative of the fragrance industry, encouraging
dialogue whilst promoting the safety and benefits of the fragrance
industrys products.
Together with the industrys scientific centre, RIFM (the
Research Institute for Fragrance Materials), the IFRA team makes
sure that the establishment of usage standards for fragrance materials
is put into practice according to the available scientific recommendation,
and that member companies comply with those standards. Self-regulation
enables the IFRA standards to be adopted very rapidly by fragrance
houses worldwide and by the industry as a whole.
All of RIFMs
scientific findings are evaluated by an independent, scientific
Expert Panel - an international group of dermatologists, pathologists,
toxicologists and environmental scientists with absolutely no
ties to the fragrance industry.
The IFRA Code of
Practice applies to the manufacture and handling of all fragrance
materials, for all types of applications and contains the full
set of IFRA Standards. Abiding by the IFRA Code of Practice is
a prerequisite for all fragrance supplier companies that are members
of IFRA (through their national or regional associations). Currently
IFRA members supply 90% of the global market for fragrance compounds.
A 32-page exploration of the sense of smell that includes an overview
of the anatomy and physiology of smell, the multi-faceted role
of aroma in our daily lives and its positive effect on well-being,
a brief history of the sense of smell and a comprehensive glossary
of olfactory terminology.
The
Future of Retirement: Why family matters
HSBC's The Future of Retirement programme is a world-leading
independent study into global retirement trends. It provides
authoritative insights into the key issues associated with ageing
populations and increasing life expectancy around the world.
Since The Future of Retirement programme began in 2005, more
than 110,000 people worldwide have been surveyed.
Global
Cleantech Innovation Index report 2012 Cleantech Group and The World Wide Fund
for Nature (WWF) reveal a report on innovative cleantech countries
of 2012. Which countries are producing cleantech
innovation today? Which countries should we watch in the future?
Unique insight into the sources of cleantech innovation around
the world. What can countries do to promote cleantech innovation
in their economies?
.Jane
McGonigal: Truths & Myths in Gaming
Video game designer Jane McGonigal argues that games are not a
waste of time. In fact, she argues, "we need to look at what
games are doing for gamers, the skills that we're developing,
the relationships that we're forming, the heroic qualities that
we get to practice every time we play, like resilience, like perseverance,
and grit, and determination, like having epic ambitions and the
ability to work with other players, sometimes thousands of other
players at the same time."
As global demand for energy grows and prices rise, a city's energy
consumption becomes increasingly tied to its economic viability,
warns the author of The Very Hungry City. Austin Troy, a
seasoned expert in urban environmental management, explains for
general readers how a city with a high "urban energy metabolism"
- that is, a city that needs large amounts of energy in order to
function - will be at a competitive disadvantage in the future.
He explores why cities have different energy metabolisms and discusses
an array of innovative approaches to the problems of expensive energy
consumption.
Troy looks at dozens
of cities and suburbs in Europe and the United States - from Los
Angeles to Copenhagen, Denver to the Swedish urban redevelopment
project Hammarby Sjöstad - to understand the diverse factors
that affect their energy use: behavior, climate, water supply,
building quality, transportation, and others. He then assesses
some of the most imaginative solutions that cities have proposed,
among them green building, energy-efficient neighborhoods, symbiotic
infrastructure, congestion pricing, transit-oriented development,
and water conservation. To conclude, the author addresses planning
and policy approaches that can bring about change and transform
the best ideas into real solutions.
.The
Global Information Technology Report 2012
By INSEAD and the World Economic Forum
Living in a Hyperconnected World
INSEAD: "This is the third consecutive year Singapore has
come in second in the Global Information Technology Report's
benchmark Network Readiness Index. The nation-state has its
eye on the number one spot - occupied for as many years by Sweden
- so much so that Singapore's Infocom, Development Authority
actually sent a delegation to Sweden last year to observe its
best practices in ICT, and found that high broadband penetration
in Sweden is a key component to that country's success. Broadband
penetration levels in Singapore are around 80 percent."
Brian David Johnson,
Futurist and Director, Future Casting and Experience Research,
Intel Corporation
The future is Brian
David Johnson's business. As a futurist at Intel Corporation,
his charter is to develop an actionable vision for computing in
2020. His work is called "future casting" - using ethnographic
field studies, technology research, trend data, and even science
fiction to provide Intel with a pragmatic vision of consumers
and computing. Along with reinventing TV, Johnson has been pioneering
development in artificial intelligence, robotics, and using science
fiction as a design tool. He speaks and writes extensively about
future technologies in articles and scientific papers as well
as science fiction short stories and novels (Fake Plastic Love,
Nebulous Mechanisms: The Dr. Simon Egerton Stories and This Is
Planet Earth). He has directed two feature films and is an illustrator
and commissioned painter.
Brian David Johnson:
People are frightened about things that they dont
have a lot of information about. I want to start a cultural conversation
about what we should be afraid of and what we shouldnt.
I want to avoid any new boogeymen. We have to look
at not only the future we want, but the future we dont want
and work as hard as we can to avoid it. (Forbes)
The Tomorrow Project and Futurism at Intel
Intel Futurist, Brian David Johnson has a general conversation
with innovator/pioneer, Alan Kay and Intel CTO, Justin Rattner
about their role in inventing the future.
.Agenda
Season
Events 2011/2012
NEXT
Event:
June
28, 2012
the
future of Urban Energy June 28, 2012, 18:30 -
21:15
Option: Guided Tour 17:00
Location:
Van Eesterenmuseum, Burgemeester
De Vlugtlaan 125,
1063 BJ Amsterdam
Supported
by the
Van
Eesterenmuseum