Dive Brief: - Microsoft is negligent for allowing a low-level hum that isn’t detected by dBA monitors to affect the quality of life in the neighborhood surrounding one of its data centers in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, and owes millions to residents as compensation, a lawsuit filed in a federal district court claims. - The proposed class action is the latest of several filed this year that targets a data center’s operations rather than its development. - These lawsuits are “early entrants in what is likely to become a substantial and creative field of litigation,” attorneys at Wilmer Hale say in a client alert. Dive Insight: At least half a dozen noise-related lawsuits against data centers have been filed this year. In June, residents in a widely followed case filed a lawsuit seeking damages from artificial intelligence company xAI for the noise, vibration and air pollution coming from dozens of gas turbines the company is operating to support the energy supply at its Southaven, Mississippi, data center. “xAI has made no meaningful effort to halt the harm,” attorneys at Weitz & Luxenberg, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of residents, said in a blog post. Similar lawsuits have been filed in Vineland, New Jersey, Dowagiac, Michigan, North Tonawanda, New York, and Hood County, Texas, according to the Wilmer Hale alert. The lawsuits are relying on nuisance and negligence claims to stop what plaintiffs say are factors the data centers could have controlled. “These causes of action are well established,” the Wilmer Hale attorneys say. What’s new is the target. “Data center operators as the defendants in such lawsuits is new.” The lawsuit against Microsoft for its Fairwater data center in Mount Pleasant could pose a problem for facilities managers if it settles or is decided in favor of plaintiffs because the
Sep 1, 2026 · via smartcitiesdive.com
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Sep 1, 2026 · via post-gazette.com
According to DataIntelo, the global IoT services market is projected to grow from $285.0 billion in 2025 to $1,417.2 billion by 2034, a compound annual growth rate of 19.5%. The pace suggests that companies are no longer testing IoT within their operations; in many cases, they have already built it into how they run. For most of the past decade, IoT services were treated as an emerging opportunity, something businesses were still “exploring.” That framing increasingly looks outdated. Across the PaaS, IaaS, and SaaS layers that make up the IoT services market, a $285 billion base has already been established, and DataIntelo expects it to grow nearly fivefold over the next nine years. That scale points less to a wave of fresh innovation than to a deepening reliance on the technology: connectivity services, device management platforms, and analytics tools have become infrastructure that manufacturers, energy companies, healthcare organizations, and municipalities now depend on to run daily operations. What is worth watching closely is not simply how fast the market is growing, but why, and what could get in the way. From connectivity pilots to operating infrastructure The shift is visible in the services mix. IaaS — the layer covering managed cellular connectivity, device fleets, and gateway infrastructure — is forecast to grow slightly faster than PaaS (19.8% versus 18.8% CAGR), even though PaaS still holds the largest revenue share, at roughly 38.5%. Enterprises are not simply building more IoT applications; increasingly, they are paying to have large, distributed device estates operated on their behalf, with provisioning, firmware updates, security policy enforcement, and lifecycle management delivered as a managed service rather than built in-house. Broader connectivity data points in the same direction. Berg Insight’s most recent figures put global cellular IoT connections at 4.2 billion at the end of 2025, up
Sep 1, 2026 · via iotbusinessnews.com
[category] [title] Canberra is the smartest city in Oz, even cracking the global top ten Turns out, Australia has both beauty and brains. The annual IMD Smart City Index has just named the “smartest” cities in the world for 2026, and four Aussie capitals made the cut – including one in the top ten. To clear things up: when we talk about a “smart” city, we’re not talking about how many geniuses live there. The Smart City Index evaluates 148 cities based on how effectively they use technology and infrastructure to improve quality of life for their residents while addressing urban challenges like housing, traffic and sustainability. Scores are heavily based on citizen perceptions, with every city receiving an overall rating ranging from AAA right down to D. Topping the class in Australia was Canberra, which landed eighth on the global list behind Zurich, Oslo, Geneva, London, Copenhagen, Dubai and Lausanne. Our nation’s capital scored well above the global average for overall health and safety, traffic flow, job opportunities and green spaces. However, residents flagged affordable housing (89 per cent) as the city’s key priority to address, followed by health services, public transport, security and fulfilling employment. The most-improved award goes to Sydney, which leapt to 22nd place globally – up ten spots since 2025. While above the global average, the Harbour City fell behind Canberra when it came to traffic congestion, public safety, air pollution and making minority groups feel welcome. On the flip side, Sydney outshone the capital for tech that boosts personal safety, tools for starting a business and widespread free public Wi-Fi. Rounding out the local leaderboard, Brisbane was ranked the third-smartest city in Australia, placing 57th globally. Meanwhile, Melbourne was the final Aussie entry in 60th place – a 16-spot drop from 2025. You can
Sep 1, 2026 · via timeout.com
HKUST Charts a Roadmap for Agentic 7G AI-Powered Wireless Networks Reasoning-Empowered Communication Framework Enables AI Agents to Collaborate at Scale A research team from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) proposed a new Reasoning-Empowered Task-Oriented Communication (TOC) framework that enables AI agents to determine what information to share, when communication is necessary, and why a communicate should occur. The research could pave the way for collective intelligence in future 7G wireless networks. Led by Prof. Khaled B. LETAIEF, New Bright Professor of Engineering and Chair Professor of Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering (ECE) at HKUST, the team includes XIE Songjie and LI Hongru, both PhD candidates in HKUST’s ECE; Dr. WANG Zixin, Research Assistant Professor of ECE; Prof. SONG Shenghui, Associate Professor of ECE and the Division of Integrative Systems and Design; and Prof. ZHANG Jun, Professor of ECE. The research, titled “Towards Reasoning-Empowered Task-Oriented Communication for Agent Networks”, was published in the prestigious academic journal npj Wireless Technology. This research presents a roadmap for how communication and reasoning may converge in the coming decades, helping shape the evolution of wireless networks beyond 6G. It offers an early vision for the development of future 7G wireless systems capable of supporting large populations of autonomous AI agents capable that can reason, collaborate and make collective decisions. Today’s communication systems are engineered to deliver data as accurately and reliably as possible. However, future smart cities, autonomous vehicles, healthcare platforms and industrial systems may involve millions of intelligent agents simultaneously exchanging information. Simply scaling today’s communication architectures may not be enough. Without new approaches, communication itself could become a bottleneck that limits the collective intelligence of future AI ecosystems. To address this challenge, the HKUST team’s Reasoning-Empowered TOC framework integrates reasoning into the communication process. Before transmitting, an AI
Sep 1, 2026 · via hkust.edu.hk
A Dynamic Engine of Innovation and Digital Transformation Portugal's Information, Communication and Electronics Technologies (ICTE) sector has become one of the country's strongest engines of innovation, digital transformation and economic growth. Supported by a competitive business environment and strong integration into international value chains, the sector is positioning Portugal as one of Europe's leading destinations for technology investment, digital services and innovation. Over the past decade, the Portuguese ICT sector has experienced sustained expansion, becoming one of the country's most dynamic economic sectors. Portuguese companies increasingly develop technologies for global markets, while multinational corporations continue to expand research, engineering, innovation and shared services operations across the country. The sector's international orientation is particularly noteworthy: 73% of Portuguese technology companies export their services, reflecting the ecosystem's maturity, competitiveness, and international reach. Today, the sector comprises more than 32,000 companies, employs over 204,000 professionals and generates an annual turnover of approximately €31 billion. Its contribution to exports and value creation continues to grow, reinforcing Portugal's position as an attractive destination for technology investment. According to the Portugal ICT Study 2026–2030, developed by the German Outsourcing Association (Deutscher Outsourcing Verband e.V.) in partnership with 99x, the ICT sector already represents around 10% of Portugal's GDP and is expected to continue its strong growth, driven by increasing international demand for digital services and Portugal's growing role as a nearshore technology hub. Key sector indicators - 32,300 companies - 204,400 employees - €30.7 billion turnover - €13.4 billion gross value added - €6.5 billion in ICT services exports - More than 85% of employees with higher education qualifications These figures reflect a sector that combines technical excellence, innovation capacity, and strong international competitiveness. A highly qualified ICT workforce Portugal's ICT ecosystem is supported by more than 200,000 ICT professionals. Each year, Portuguese higher education institutions
Sep 1, 2026 · via portugalglobal.pt
The success of ideas for solving local problems depends more on accurately identifying on-site issues and verifying them in a usable form than on the flashiness of technology. Local youth personally selected the challenges facing Busan, such as safety in child protection zones, waste shell disposal, algae recycling, and tourism congestion. Seven teams designed solutions using a living lab approach and produced minimum viable products to verify their commercialization potential. The iGuard team, which combined intelligent CCTV with airbag-type safety facilities, received the highest evaluation and was awarded the Mayor of Busan Award. Busan Metropolitan City and the Busan Center for Creative Economy and Innovation held the 'Campus Living Lab Local Problem Solving Idea Contest Final Evaluation Meeting' at Hanwha Resort Haeundae on the 27th. This contest was organized as part of the '2026 Smart City Living Lab Operation Activation Project.' It supported university and graduate students and prospective entrepreneurs in the Busan region to identify local problems experienced in their daily lives and to develop solution ideas and business models using the Living Lab. A living lab is a method in which local residents, users, and experts identify problems and experiment with solutions in real-life spaces. Participating teams moved beyond the stage of proposing ideas to reflect user and on-site needs, and tested feasibility by creating a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). Seven teams selected through preliminary rounds participated in the final evaluation. Each team presented the causes of local problems, solutions, technology configurations, expected users, and commercialization plans, and introduced the prototypes and service models they had developed. iGuard, selected as the best team, proposed the 'Intelligent CCTV-linked School Zone Airbag Fence.' It is a solution that protects pedestrians from the risk of vehicle accidents by connecting intelligent CCTVs in child protection zones with airbag-type safety facilities. Existing school
Aug 31, 2026 · via venturesquare.net
Dive Brief: - After more than a year of research and public meetings, a task force established by the Portland, Maine, City Council recommended the city move forward with creating a social housing program. - The program would establish a social housing revolving fund and follow commitments to public ownership and accountable governance, permanent housing affordability and mixed-income rental housing, according to the task force report. The City Council is scheduled to discuss the recommendation in September. - Portland City Councilor Kate Sykes described the initiative as an addition to “tools that we already have” to address housing affordability. “It asks how the city can use its borrowing capacity and public assets to build mixed-income housing, retain public ownership and invest the value that we create into additional housing,” Sykes said at an Aug. 24 special council meeting. Dive Insight: As cities across the country face a dearth of affordable housing options, some are turning to social housing programs, which can help maintain majority city or nonprofit control over housing developments to keep them affordable. Chicago last year began laying the groundwork for a social housing model through a new nonprofit developer using city financing, and Seattle purchased its first building under a new mixed-income social housing program this past spring. The Portland Social Housing Task Force recommended two pilot programs for the city of about 70,000 residents. One would involve operating a city-owned, mixed-income housing development, and the other would oversee city-financed, city-owned additive rental units within an established Portland Housing Authority or Portland Housing Development Corporation as an immediate case study. Sykes, co-chair of the task force, said it hosted 18 public meetings and educational sessions, examined other social housing models and looked closely at financing and city-owned land.
Aug 31, 2026 · via smartcitiesdive.com
Dive Brief: - North Miami Beach revamped its transit system in partnership with ProKel Mobility, a multimodal transportation provider. Launched in July, the system now includes three community shuttle bus routes and two electric vehicles for on-demand service. - The transit system connects with Miami-Dade Transit, Tri-Rail commuter trains and Metrorail’s elevated transit system through a ProKel app. - “We started looking at where the transit world is going, and we started seeing first-mile, last-mile, on-demand” service, ProKel Mobility CEO Kelly Gonzalez Jr. told Smart Cities Dive. “There's a big shift now going to that service.” Dive Insight: ProKel began working with North Miami Beach in 2021, according to Gonzalez, at a time when about 4,000 riders a month used the city’s transit system. Ridership is now up to 10,000 per month, he said. The company redesigned the city’s transit network and purchased three new vehicles, with a fourth to come, according to a ProKel spokesperson. The company’s investment is anticipated to save the city over $1.5 million over the life of its contract with ProKel, the spokesperson said in an email. “We looked at the system, we studied the data and then we redid the routes that made more sense for the city,” Gonzalez said. The revision reduced wait times on some routes. ProKel works with about 17 cities and counties throughout the U.S., including Orlando and Jacksonville, Florida; Palm Beach County, Florida; and Columbus, Ohio, Gonzalez said. Gonzalez said the company would announce an autonomous bus later this year but didn’t give any details. He sees these vehicles as a way to overcome driver shortages and open new routes. “We could put some of these vehicles in low-performing routes to help them perform better,” he said.
Aug 31, 2026 · via smartcitiesdive.com
Dive Brief: - New York City will spend $8.4 million to turn three concrete roadway medians in the Queens borough into green infrastructure “sponges” designed to absorb stormwater and prevent extreme weather flooding, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Gov. Kathy Hochul and NYC Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa Garcia announced Thursday. - Concrete medians and curbs will be replaced with inlet openings that will divert stormwater from streets to underground storage systems and areas planted with native species, shrubs, grasses and wildflowers. - The state is helping fund the project with $5 million in grants from its Green Innovation Grant Program and Water Quality Improvement Project. “By supporting projects that work with nature to manage severe weather, the State is helping New York City build resilience while minimizing costs for ratepayers,” New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation President and CEO Maureen Coleman said in a statement. Dive Insight: New York City has been building a green infrastructure system to address stormwater runoff and flooding since 2010, when former Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveiled a $2.4 billion plan to capture and retain stormwater runoff before it enters the sewer system. About 60% of NYC’s sewer system is combined, meaning a single pipe carries both stormwater runoff and sewage, overwhelming treatment plants during heavy storms. The city expects to experience as much as 30% more annual rainfall and 150% more days with over an inch of rain by the end of the century. As sea level and groundwater tables rise, stormwater will drain more slowly and contribute to flooding, according to the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice. Distributed stormwater management is part of the larger green infrastructure project designed to slow down, absorb and filter stormwater by capturing it at the source before it can enter the sewer system. The city aims
Aug 31, 2026 · via smartcitiesdive.com
OPINION article Front. Sustain. Cities Sec. Urban Greening Synergies and trade-offs of nature-inclusive architecture in dense cities: between human health and urban biodiversity - WZWeijie Zhong - XLXiangning Li - Tongji University, Shanghai, China Select one of your emails You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers: Notify me on publication Please enter your email address: If you already have an account, please login You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here Abstract As global urbanization intensifies, high-density cities increasingly embrace vertical development to accommodate population growth while limiting urban sprawl. Yet verticalization often comes at the expense of direct access to natural environments, leading to reduced opportunities for human-nature interaction and declining urban biodiversity. Biophilic design frames architecture as an interface for integrating natural elements, processes, and experiences into the built environment, with a primary concern for human health and well-being (Kellert, 2008;Zhong et al., 2022). It differs from green architecture, which is often evaluated through energy, material, and life-cycle environmental performance (Ragheb et al., 2016). Nature-inclusive cities focus more broadly on incorporating biodiversity goals into urban development, district planning, green-blue infrastructure, and real estate projects (Mattijssen et al., 2023;Monti, 2019). Since urban residents spend nearly 90% of their time indoors (Ma et al., 2024), buildings become critical spaces for reconfiguring human-nature relationships. Building-integrated green spaces can also serve as vertically distributed ecological nodes, supplementing limited ground-level greenery and providing habitats for urban flora and fauna. This article therefore explores nature-inclusive architecture, which integrates living organisms, habitat conditions, and ecological processes into buildings to promote human health and urban biodiversity.In dense cities, nature-inclusive architecture is often materialized through three-dimensional green spaces (e.g., sky terraces, green balconies, and vertical gardens), representing a shift from horizontal greening to volumetric and vertically distributed ecological systems (Zhong et al., 2026). However,
Aug 31, 2026 · via frontiersin.org
| News By Tag Industry News News By Place Country(s) Industry News | Godrej Plots Coimbatore ROI Formula: Maximize Wealth Discover why buying land over flats in Coimbatore yields high returns with full control. Explore project pricing and site plans today! By: Real Estate Why Coimbatore, Why Now? Coimbatore's property market is in a growth phase, unlike big metros where prices have peaked. Textile hubs, factories, and IT companies in the city attract many workers and NRI buyers. People want solid long term assets. Plots provide total land ownership without any risk of structure decay that flats face. Understanding Returns on a Plot Investment Many buyers make a mistake when they look at property value. They compare plot loans with flat loans without checking real profit margin. A practical calculation helps here: Basic Return Formula: ROI (%) = [(Selling Price − Purchase Price) ÷ Purchase Price] × 100 For instance, you can buy a Godrej Coimbatore plots unit at ₹40 lakh today. That plot may reach ₹60 lakh after 5 years, giving an ROI of 50% over 5 years or about 10% per year. This calculation leaves out extra build income. Appreciation rates can go higher due to city growth projects. Smart city plans, new ring roads, and airport expansion will push rates up. The Godrej Trust Advantage Godrej Properties brings long market experience, RERA approvals, and clear land papers. These points are critical when you buy open plots. Buyers get a legally safe asset with strong brand value. Explore project details, pricing, and floor plans: https://www.godrejnewlaunching.com/ End Account Email Address Account Phone Number Disclaimer Report Abuse | | | September 2026 | | | | | | | | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Tu | Mo | Su | Sa | Fr | Th | We | | | 1 |
Aug 31, 2026 · via prlog.org
South Sudan is seeking Huawei’s expertise, with the government looking to the technology company to support the digitalisation of public services. The engagement is the latest step in the restoration of relations between the world’s newest country and the Chinese technology company after a fallout dating back more than a decade. Ateny Wek Ateny, minister of information, communication technology and postal services of South Sudan, held exploratory discussions with Huawei vice-president for global public business Eric Ma in Hangzhou, China. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the China-Africa digital Capacity Building and Cooperation Conference. “The government is ready to seek Huawei’s technological expertise in connecting public services,” Ateny said after the meeting. In Hangzhou, a major tech hub driven by e-commerce giants and a rising wave of artificial intelligence and robotics startups, the minister welcomed continued partnership with Chinese firms, particularly in the ICT sector. Besides e-governance, South Sudan is seeking Huawei’s participation in building smart cities, providing energy solutions and setting up a national data hub in Juba, the capital. Ateny said Ma recognised Huawei’s more than decade-long presence in South Sudan and the mutual understanding between the country and China. However, relations between South Sudan and the technology company have been strained before. In 2014, government officials accused Huawei of hacking government emails and forging documents. Despite the tension, Huawei stayed active in the East African country’s market, including connecting schoolchildren to the internet and refurbishing school laboratories. Ateny and Wang Shibo, CEO of Huawei South Sudan, are credited with restoring relations between the country and company after both assumed their respective positions in 2025. The breakthrough was a meeting in early 2026 in Juba, where the pair discussed bridging the digital divide, establishing the data hub and transforming the capital into a smart city. Share
Aug 31, 2026 · via itweb.africa
AI has become remarkably good at synthesizing what we already know. Whether it can identify what we don't is a much harder question—one that Charan Kukunoor spends most of his time trying to answer. Charan’s work on making cities more intelligent, focuses on three problems that look unrelated but aren't. Cities cannot see what lies beneath their own streets. Language models cannot see the edges of their own knowledge. Citizens cannot see how the governments they fund actually make decisions. Each has an opacity problem. Each becomes tractable the moment you can measure what you don't know. Charan came to AI research the long way round: urban planning fieldwork on Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh's greenfield capital city, and then with UN-Habitat, before earning a PhD at NYU's Center for Urban Science and Progress, where he studied 3D Bayesian deep learning for underground space. He is now a postdoctoral fellow at the BCG X AI Science Institute. The following conversation explores how AI can move from a retrieval tool to a genuine engine of innovation and civic accountability. The implications are broad, from how cities manage underground infrastructure and how self-driving vehicles integrate into mixed urban traffic to how AI might eventually make the machinery of government visible and trustworthy. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity. Your research at NYU focused on something most people don't think about: underground urban infrastructure. What problem were you trying to solve, and how did AI change how you might have otherwise tried to solve it? Most cities, including New York, don't have comprehensive maps of what's beneath their streets. Water mains, fiber cables, gas lines, subway tunnels... they've been built up over decades by different agencies using different systems, and no one has a single coherent picture of where they all are
Aug 31, 2026 · via bcg.com
- | Mobily Be the future: How Mobily’s first 20 years continue to support Saudi Arabia’s digital aspirations Mobily’s CEO Eng. Nezar Banabeela looks back on how the company is building on its customer-centric heritage, evolving into a technology, media and telecommunications player, and honoring its role as a digital infrastructure partner supporting the achievement of the kingdom’s digital aspirations. It is Monday morning, about 9am, in Riyadh, and Eng. Nezar Banabeela, the CEO of Mobily, sits down to reflect on what makes this moment so significant. It marks two decades of Mobily’s existence. He looks out the window and sees a foggy blur. There is a sandstorm, and he says it will pass. “No one who stopped for the right weather conditions ever gained much.” In leadership, there are no crystal balls that can prepare one for what the future holds. Yet there is insight that can help enterprises navigate a storm or make the most of an opportunity. “The boldest bet was building ahead of demand,” he says. Recalling the company’s early days, he says, “Our license required us to reach seven cities in our first year. We launched in May 2005 with coverage in 32 cities. Then a year later we brought 3G mobile broadband to the kingdom.” Nobody was asking for mobile broadband at this scale in 2006, but Mobily built it anyway. “We believed connected people would create the demand. And they did,” he says. It is this pre-emptive boldness that continues to steer the organization across every vertical. “The same conviction guides us today,” he says. While building the infrastructure was crucial to establishing a solid foundation, the plan was never to stop there. “The network was never the end game. It was the foundation for what people could do with it. The same
Aug 31, 2026 · via fastcompanyme.com
Cities across the world have spent years making themselves smarter – but have they become any more intelligent? Despite installing sensors galore, building command centers, creating digital twins and adding AI into the mix, more data has yet to evolve into more wisdom. More information alone is not the key to smarter cities, with many still struggling with the same basic question: what should we do next? That is the gap cognitive cities were meant to close. Smart cities sense what is happening. Cognitive cities should understand why, anticipate what comes next and coordinate a response. Yet many remain caught between those states: technology can surface a problem faster than institutions, data and decision processes can resolve it. In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), that gap matters especially. Cities face rapidly changing pressures on trade routes, supply chains, energy systems, infrastructure and public services. Resilience requires them to reallocate resources, adjust capacity and maintain service continuity as conditions change. The problem is not a shortage of technology. Too much smart-city investment still starts with what can be connected rather than what needs to be decided. A traffic sensor can show congestion rising, a dashboard can show where and AI can predict what may happen next. None of that is enough if the city cannot decide whether to reroute traffic or change signal timings – or trust the data behind that decision. To move from ambition to impact, cities need two capabilities in parallel: a clear cognitive vision focused on the outcomes and decisions that matter most, and an urban data production system that turns fragmented data into trusted, reusable decision-grade products. Both need clear standards, enforceable governance and fit-for-purpose technology. If cognitive cities are to deliver on their promise, the thinking needs to change. It’s time to stop starting with
Aug 31, 2026 · via strategyand.pwc.com
BAC NINH: Bac Ninh, a northern province on the outskirts of Hanoi, has set a goal of ranking among the world's top 50 smart cities by 2030, an ambition officials say is central to its broader push to become a centrally governed municipality. Provincial chairman Pham Hoang Son said the smart-city drive would rely on data and digital transformation as its foundation, with residents placed at the centre. The province aims to be listed in recognised global indices such as the IMD Smart City Index, he said. By 2030, Bac Ninh plans to have a provincial coordination mechanism and a data-driven urban governance model fully in place, along with real-time monitoring and management systems operating both province-wide and in key urban centres. Smart-city planning will be woven into all levels of urban development, with officials working toward a City Information Model that can eventually feed into a full digital twin of the province. Health care, environmental management, water and waste services, and transportation are listed as priority areas, alongside investment in telecommunications, cloud and data-centre capacity, the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence. The province is also drafting a formal ICT architecture for smart-city development, aligned with national standards, and rules for a regulatory sandbox that would let companies trial new technologies under controlled conditions – part of an effort to foster innovation while keeping data security requirements built into projects from the design stage. Officials have grouped the effort into four workstreams. The first sets up a provincial coordination council and a smart-city master plan running from the province down to the commune level. A densely populated area of Bac Giang Ward, Bac Ninh Province. The second builds the ICT architecture. The third upgrades technical infrastructure such as smart transport, lighting and water systems. The fourth rolls out smart
Aug 31, 2026 · via thestar.com.my
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is rapidly urbanising. It faces compounding vulnerabilities including extreme heat, water scarcity, geopolitical instability, and infrastructural and demographic pressures. Cities remain at the forefront of these converging challenges, tasked with conceptualising systems that ensure that infrastructure design, public services, and governance remain modern and locally rooted, to enforce circularity, resilience, and liveability for years to come. Forging Pathways for Urban Resilience in the MENA Region convenes diverse perspectives from scholars, practitioners, and city leaders to unpack the structural, technological, and institutional mechanisms required to navigate this transition. Across 11 essays, the authors present compelling frameworks on how to leverage human-centred planning approaches, large-scale infrastructure pursuits, nature-based solutions, circular water systems, and clean transport networks alongside coordinated governance to safeguard sustainable urban transformation. The report also highlights how, despite increasing global emphasis on adopting technological innovation, inclusive and integrated governance remains necessary. The contributors underline the importance of simultaneously retaining traditional knowledge systems, encouraging enhanced vertical and horizontal coordination, and enforcing South–South learning exchanges to scale actionable solutions across the region. Sukaina Abdul Ilah Al-Nasrawi sets the stage, underscoring how cities represent microcosms of humanity. Building liveable cities requires paying close attention to the preservation of human dignity and social equity. She argues for the development of a new urban planning paradigm that encompasses integrated planning, human-centred digital approaches, and economic resilience, all of which address the region’s rapid urbanisation, high youth unemployment, displacement, and fragile infrastructure. As countries within the region increasingly pursue mega-development, Mannat Jaspal and Leigh Mante interrogate the risks associated with such ambitious endeavours. Evaluating both the rationale and realities of mega-projects, they call for national-subnational governance coordination and financial and environmental guardrails to prevent cost overruns and socio-environmental damage. Victoria Lee offers a complementary perspective on mega-events, demonstrating
Aug 31, 2026 · via orfonline.org
Beyond a collection of green-certified buildings, TRX has been master-planned as an integrated sustainable financial district, where governance, infrastructure, mobility, nature and digital technologies work collectively to create a resilient, connected and people-centred urban environment. Sustainability at Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) is not just a promise — it is built into the district’s DNA. From the way it is planned and developed, to how it is operated every day, TRX is designed to balance high-performing business with greener spaces, smarter resource use and a better experience for everyone who works, lives and spends time here. Set across more than 70 acres in Kuala Lumpur’s new Golden Triangle, TRX shows what an international financial centre can look like when sustainability and people come first: real green infrastructure, lively public spaces, seamless connectivity and future-ready buildings. Through coordinated district-wide planning and management, TRX supports Malaysia’s sustainability and climate ambitions while contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 15 (Life on Land) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). TRX adopts a district-wide approach where sustainability is embedded across planning, governance, infrastructure and operations from the outset. By viewing the district as a single, interconnected ecosystem, TRX coordinates how buildings, public spaces, utilities and environmental resources function together. This integrated model optimises resource use, reduces infrastructure duplication, improves operational efficiency and supports smarter, long-term decision-making. This integrated, functional approach is further reinforced by TRX’s growing sustainability credentials, including winning Project of the Year and Low Carbon Landscape Awards at the Malaysia Landscape Architecture Awards 2026, and recognition by Australian Institue of Landscape Architects National Landscape Architecture Awards under the international category. At TRX, sustainable mobility is embedded into the district’s design, integrating public
Aug 31, 2026 · via theedgemarkets.com
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Aug 30, 2026 · via guardian.ng