Speakers’ presentations
Gebhard Wulfhorst, TUM – “What Cities Want: Sustainable Urban Mobility and How to Get There”
Shadi Sharif Azadeh, EPFL – “Urban Mobiility as an Engine for Change”
The EuroTech Universities Alliance is delighted to be present at AAAS 2017 in Boston. Its session on “Urban Mobility as an Engine for Change: European Innovation for Sustainable Cities” will take place on 18 February.
Urban centres are bearing the brunt of 21st century population growth and serving as laboratories for how people will live in the future. What kind of mix of technological, business, and policy innovation will keep the city of the future liveable? Universities, companies, and cities in Europe are jointly pioneering approaches that could help shape the answer. While the dynamic life of a city intensifies environmental, economic, and social pressures, it can also catalyze smart solutions. Growth that could make city life less attractive – through more air pollution and traffic jams, for example – could instead spur a transformation that improves local living conditions and benefits the global environment. Copenhagen metropolitan region in Denmark anticipates 20 percent population growth by 2025, and plans to become carbon-neutral by that time.
The EuroTech Universities session covers trends in urban mobility and shows how technological research, innovative policies, and cooperation can turn this challenge into a leverage point for constructive, locally appropriate change. In addition to highlighting the Copenhagen experience, speakers focus on trailblazing urban mobility initiatives of the EuroTech Universities Alliance.
Moderator:
- Maria Kamargianni, Head of the Urban Transport & Energy Group, UCL Energy Institute, University College London
Intervention by Skype:
- Shadi Sharif Azadeh, Scientist, Transportation and Mobility Laboratory, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and Assistant Professor, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Speakers:
- Carlo van de Weijer, Director of Strategic Area Smart Mobility, Eindhoven University of Technology, “Disruptive Mobility: How Exponential Technology Will Safeguard Mobility”
- Niels Carsten Bluhme, Area Director City, Culture, Environment and Employment, Municipality of Albertslund, Greater Copenhagen, “A Living Lab for Liveable Cities: Policy in Practice in Greater Copenhagen”
- Gebhard Wulfhorst, Chair of Urban Structure and Transport Planning, Technical University of Munich (TUM), “What Cities Want: Towards More Liveable Urban Spaces by Transforming Urban Mobility”
Session Press Package
Press Release for Session on Urban Mobility 13.02.17
Background_EuroTech_Universities_Session_on UrbanMobility, AAAS, 18 February, 2017
http://www.technologist.eu/urban-mobility/
http://www.technologist.eu/traffic-remains-a-challenge/
About AAAS Annual Meeting
With a focus on “Serving Society Through Science Policy,” this year’s AAAS Annual Meeting takes place in Boston, MA, February 16-20, 2017. As the world’s largest general science society, it brings together researchers, educators, international media, policy makers and industry representatives for its annual event – one of the world’s most prestigious and well-visited multidisciplinary science conferences.
About the EuroTech Universities Focus Area “Smart & Urban mobility”
The EuroTech Universities offer strong expertise across the entire spectrum of technologies vital in addressing today’s urban mobility challenges. Given the extensive mobility ecosystems in which they operate, the EuroTech Universities form a unique European network of networks with leading automotive players and high-tech industries, excellent technology and service providers as well as public authorities experienced in testing and deploying novel mobility solutions. Smart & Urban mobility has been defined as one of the Alliance’s focus areas and relevant research is covered regularly in the Alliance Technology magazine technologist.eu.
