10 Nations including Estonia and New Zealand Represented on List

22 October, 2019 – New York City, NY and Rochester, NY (USA) – In a ceremony from the Arbor at the Port in Rochester, New York and a simultaneous global announcement online from its New York City headquarters, the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) today named the world’s Smart21 Communities of 2020.

Selection of this group of regions, cities and towns begins the think tank’s annual eight-month process which will conclude when ICF names the 2020 Intelligent Community of the Year in June 2020 at the ICF Summit. These semi-finalists for the New York-based ICF’s international award are global communities deemed most ready for the 21st century. Each has applied the six principles of ICF’s Method to begin to build local economic expansion and prosperity, social health and cultural richness. The ICF believes that these factors together make a community strong and resilient. Each community chose to make the journey from Smart City to Intelligent Community and many have been working on their programs for several years.

Following this announcement, the Smart21 will complete detailed questionnaires providing more information on their communities. Seven of them will advance and move on as the Top7 Intelligent Communities of 2020 on February 10 in Taoyuan, Taiwan. They will each be invited to the 2020 ICF Global Summit in Dublin, Ohio, USA, where one will be named the Intelligent Community of the Year on June 16 during the Intelligent Community Awards Dinner.

“You will see several ‘repeat’ cities and communities this year, which reflects the persistence with which Intelligent Communities are building the economies and social structures for themselves and new generations. Like our reigning Intelligent Community of the Year (Taoyuan, Taiwan), they are willing to make the investments in time required to ensure that the next several generations stay ‘home’ and thrive,” said Lou Zacharilla, one of the founders of the ICF.

The Smart21 Communities of 2020 include cities and counties from 10 countries. The announcement video may be viewed below. The video is available by request as a high-resolution download.
 

The Smart21 Communities of 2020 are:

• Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
• Binh Duong Smart City, Vietnam
• Chiayi City, Taiwan
• Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
• Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
• Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
• Hudson, Ohio, USA
• Issy-les-Moulineaux, France
• Leeds, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom
• Markham, Ontario, Canada
• Matsu, Taiwan
• Newmarket, Ontario, Canada
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
• Prospect, South Australia, Australia
• Rochester, New York, USA
• Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
• Tallinn, Estonia
• Wellington, New Zealand
• Westerville, Ohio, USA
• Whanganui, New Zealand
• Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

The 2020 Smart21 Communities were named on the second day of a three-day conference in Rochester, New York which focused on regional economic expansion and the digital revolution in cities and towns around the world. More information about the event can be found at https://www.intelligentcommunity.org/smart21_communities_of_2020_announcement_in_rochester_ny_usa

The Smart21 are selected by ICF based on quantitative and qualitative data related to the six criteria of the ICF Method. The data and information are evaluated by a global team of Analysts led by former Columbia professor, former Cisco executive and Westchester County (New York) CIO, Dr. Norman Jacknis. Dr. Jacknis serves as a Senior Fellow of the Intelligent Community Forum. The ICF Method provides the conceptual framework for understanding the factors that determine a community’s competitiveness in economic, social and cultural terms. Click here to learn more about the ICF Method.

About the Intelligent Community Forum
The Intelligent Community Forum (www.intelligentcommunity.org), headquartered in New York, is a global movement of 180 cities, metro regions and counties with a think tank at its heart and a mission to make everyone’s “hometown” at great place. ICF studies and promotes the best practices of the world's Intelligent Communities as they adapt to the new demands and seize the opportunities presented by information and communications technology (ICT). To help cities and regions build prosperous economies, solve social problems and enrich local cultures, the Intelligent Community Forum conducts research, hosts events around the globe, publishes books, and produces its high-profile annual international awards program. The Forum sponsors research Institutes in North America dedicated to the study of the movement, and national organizations in Canada and Taiwan, both home to many Intelligent Communities. In 2012 ICF was invited to participate at the Nobel Peace Prize conference in Oslo and in 2014, its model and work was recognized by the U.S. Department of Commerce under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which, according to the American government, was "aimed at creating a more flexible and responsive system of workforce development to meet the needs of employers looking to fill 21st century jobs.” The Forum’s membership is made up of 180 designated Intelligent Communities worldwide. For more information, go to www.intelligentcommunity.org/icf_membership. For more details on the Intelligent Community Forum’s recent publications and programs, www.intelligentcommunity.org.


Intelligent Community Forum Contacts
Matthew Owen
Director of Operations
Intelligent Community Forum
Phone: +1 646-291-6166 (x105)
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @Newcommunities

Victoria Krisman
Communications Manager
Intelligent Community Forum
Email: [email protected]