The American think tank Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) included Astana in the latest iteration of the list of innovative and smart communities, QazMonitor reports.
Each of the cities in the list has applied the six principles of the ICF’s acceleration strategy – broader digital connectivity, worker-centric labor, innovation, sustainable practices, knowledge access, and civic and business engagement. The principles are conceptualized as a way for growing societies to build inclusive economic prosperity and promote social health and cultural richness.
The following cities are presented in this year’s list:
– Assaí County, Paraná, Brazil
– Astana, Kazakhstan
– Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
– Binh Duong Smart City, Vietnam
– Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada
– Coral Gables, Florida, USA
– Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
– Defiance, Ohio, USA
– Doral, Florida, USA
– Durham Region, Ontario, Canada
– Estevan, Saskatchewan, Canada
– Fairfield/Jefferson County, Iowa, USA
– Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
– Greater Geelong, Victoria, Australia
– Grey County, Ontario, Canada
– Hilliard, Ohio, USA
– Pickering, Ontario, Canada
– Ponta Grossa, Paraná, Brazil
– Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
– Townsville, Queensland, Australia
– Whanganui, New Zealand
Astana entered the Smart21 Communities list for the third time, having been added in 2015 and 2017.
As ICF analysts note, 2023 featured the most diverse group of cities distributed across eight countries. This year reinforced the trend of municipalities and counties taking a regional approach to economic growth and development.
