Although DUET is only several months old, we never miss a chance to promote our existence, ambition, pilots and tools among stakeholders that can help us grow as a project. First opportunity came last year with ATC's participation in the BDVA Activity Group.
BDVA is a membership organisation whose mission is to develop a multi-actor ecosystem for driving AI-enabled digital transformation across Europe. At the Group's meeting, ATC together with other members discussed how Big Data and AI can help cities make better data driven decisions. Digital twins received a lot of interest due to their strong innovation potential. However, it was noticed that the concept, although widespread in the business community, has yet to gain momentum in the public sector. New case studies are needed to convince more public authorities to embed digital twins in their policy framework. In this context, the Group welcomed DUET's work in three pilot areas - Flanders, Pilsen, Athens - and expressed interest in receiving any updates that would strengthen BDVA's knowledge base in this field.
Then in January 2020 DUET attended the Connected Smart Cities & Communities Conference. Organised by the project partner OASC, it brings together hundreds of city representatives, companies, researchers and policy makers to discuss how we could make the digital economy and society more open, interoperable and sustainable.
During a special 'green track,' another project partner imec (represented by Tanguy Coenen) weighed in on the debate about climate-neutral smart cities. The main question was - how can we meet environmental targets set by the Paris Agreement and UN SDGs in the age of increasing urbanisation, industrialisation and digitisation?
Buildings account for around 40% of carbon emissions. Built environment is one of the sectors identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as a priority area for reducing global GHG levels. "Digital twin technology and other ICTs have the potential to revolutionise how we manage, interact and operate the buildings in our local communities," said Coenen. "The proliferation of real-time sensors, big data and cloud computing enables the creation of digital replicas of entire communities. We can simulate how things will look and interact under different scenarios. For example, we can find out what opportunities are available for using renewables or what savings could be achieved through a community-wide heating system.”
Tanguy Coenen sharing his thoughts with the audience at CSCC conference 2020
If you have a story about digital twins, we would love to hear from you. Alternatively, for more information on our pilots or to find out about our forthcoming events, don't hesitate to subscribe to the newsletter and follow DUET on social media (@DuetH2020).
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