Cities in focus – Valencia’s growing tech scene

Valencia is now making a name for itself as a growing tech ecosystem. With its excellent living standard, Mediterranean climate, affordable housing, and healthcare, Spain’s third-largest city is gaining more and more international attention.

Valencia came first in last year’s InternNations Expat City, ranking the best cities for expats to live in and first in the Quality of Urban Life Index.

With a population of just under a 1 million, Valencia has all the ingredients of a metropolis, yet it also appeals to those looking for a less crowded yet vibrant city.

Valencia’s tech community is interconnected, inviting and entrepreneurial.

The place for who’s next – Singapore

Singapore is no longer only the place for who is who in tech but for who is next. The country has one of the most developed tech ecosystems in the world, is a leader in smart city technology and is the second most innovative economy according to Bloomberg’s 2021 Innovation Index.

The reasons behind Singapore’s success? – private-public sector collaboration, a pro-business regulatory environment, strong digital infrastructure and cross-sector co-creation opportunities.

Is London going hybrid, remote or back to the office?

As lockdown restrictions ease on the 19th of July, we will likely no longer be asked to work from home. Many businesses are welcoming this reopening, while others have found that remote-working or hybrid work models work well for them.

To find out whether London is going back to the office, remote or hybrid, we spoke to Tushar Agarwal, Co-founder & CEO of Hubble.

Thank you Tushar, we really appreciate you finding the time to speak with us!

Why place is important in innovation

Place-based economic development approaches have been gradually spreading across different areas of policy-making and governments levels around the world.
Although place-based thinking is not new in regional and urban economic development, regulators and scholars were more focused on developing aggregate macroeconomic policies and frameworks during the first few decades of the post-war era.
It wasn’t until the 90’s that place-based theories gained more momentum. Cities were recognised for providing the links between trade and economic growth, while local economic activity clusters were seen as a vital force driving national economies.
Although the theories that emerged differed, they all found that knowledge exchange, spillovers and diffusion were important driving forces of economic growth.
Around this time, globalisation, the process that would forever change global economic development, began.

7 SMEs making US cities smarter and greener

We are all working towards a shared future in which our cities are greener, smarter and more inclusive. Some are helping us move across cities; others are improving our quality of life by detecting air pollution. Others are helping protect the environment by supplying clean and renewable energy.

Every month we will share companies with inspiring missions that are making city life better.

Today’s focus is on 7 ambitious US-based companies creating urban planning, air pollution, mobility and clean energy solutions.

Economic development in secondary cities

More than 56.2% of the global population now lives in cities. By 2050 68% of us will live in cities. We are moving towards what Shlomo Angelo described as the “Planet of Cities” – a global system of cities becoming more and more intricately connected.

Today, 40% of the world’s population lives in what we call secondary cities. As the population grows, so will the number of people living in those cities.

Secondary cities are rapidly growing urban areas in developing countries that are experiencing unexpected growth and development. They are defined by their population, size, function and economic status, and neighbouring and distant cities. City population can generally range from 200,000 to 2.5 million; however, the size of cities is largely dependent on a country’s population and that of its capital or biggest city. For instance, secondary cities in China have populations well over 5 million, whereas, in Ethiopia, they are less than 200,000.

Cities in focus – Copenhagen

Denmark is the second happiest place in the world, the easiest country to do business in and one of the most digitised economies and societies in the EU.

The country’s small and integrated population is quick to adopt new technologies, making Denmark an ideal location for companies looking to develop and test new technologies before expanding internationally.

85% of Denmark’s population is online and actively using digital services. Less than 2% have never used the internet, and only 3 out of 10 lack digital skills. Denmark’s tech-savviness and robust IT infrastructure provide the country with a solid foundation for becoming a leading tech ecosystem.

Denmark has a global footprint in software development. Some of the most used programming languages like C++, TurboPascal and Visual Prolog have been developed by Danish researchers. In addition, many global software companies like Skype, Tradeshift and Unity have been created in Denmark.

5 mobility companies transforming Europe’s cities

By 2030 more than 750 million people will live in megacities. City populations worldwide are growing, and so is the need for stable, sustainable transport systems.

Unreliable mobility ecosystems pose a risk to health and safety and exacerbate social inequality by limiting access to jobs, healthcare, and education.

For cities to become greener, smarter and more inclusive, pressing mobility challenges such as congestion, pollution and accessibility need to be addressed. To do so in a sustainable manner, city officials, innovators, entrepreneurs, corporations and SMEs need to come together and co-develop innovative solutions and policies.

Nitrous joins Global Innovation Collaborative to speed economic recovery

June 1, 2021 – Today, the Global Innovation Collaborative (GIC) announced the launch of its Creative Cities Challenge to speed economic recovery in the cultural and creative sectors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The GIC is a partnership between the Cities of Berlin, London, New York City and Paris, along with Bloomberg Associates, Nitrous and Microsoft. The GIC is looking for long-term, sustainable and equitable solutions that will support these critical sectors rebound from the pandemic.

How can cities reignite their creative and cultural industries?

“The creative industries are critical to the sustainable development agenda. They stimulate innovation and diversification, are an important factor in the burgeoning services sector, support entrepreneurship, and contribute to cultural diversity,” says Isabelle Durant, Deputy Secretary-General at UNCTAD.

Cultural and creative industries are instrumental in mediating global digital transformation, driving inward investment and enriching the lives of individuals and communities.

Without these industries, cultural, economic development, equality and poverty alleviation SDG’s targets are unlikely to be met.

Last November, the UN declared 2021 the “International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development”.