Accepted by 1st Deputy Mayor José Guillén Parra
(New York City – November 10, 2026) – The Intelligent Community Forum announced the Full Certification of Murcia, a city building a tech-based economy on top of an innovative agricultural one that is known as “Europe’s Orchard.” The announcement was made at the Smart City Expo World Congress, the world’s biggest event for cities and urban innovation, during a daylong ICF program, “From Smart to Intelligent: The Human Element of Communities in an Age of AI.”
The Full Certification is based on written information submitted by the city and evaluated by ICF, followed by an in-person audit that validated this information and provided fresh insights into the city’s technology innovation, its development of an ecosystem of innovative companies, and impressive programs to develop local talent and guide it into employment and entrepreneurship.
Meeting ICF’s Certification standard provides objective validation that a community has high-quality connectivity, effective workforce development, a business innovation ecosystem and meaningful community engagement, digital inclusion and sustainability programs in place. These qualities combine to support the growth of innovative businesses, meet their talent needs and provide inclusive prosperity and a high quality of life.
“Murcia’s Intelligent Community Journey began in 2015 under its long-time mayor José Ballesta,” said ICF co-founder Robert Bell, who audited the city for Certification. “When he passed away in 2026, he left behind a city transformed economically, socially and culturally, through a dense network of public-private partnerships forged by his government. The Certification process captured that transformation through 50 metrics in six categories and an in-person audit. It showed that, with the right leadership and strategy, communities can adapt and prosper as markets and technology changes.”
About Murcia
Agricultural innovation and the city’s position as a regional capital have given Murcia and its people the gift of a stable economy. The city’s leaders, however, have not been satisfied with stability at a time of epic change in technology, markets, employment and climate. In 2015, then-Mayor José Ballesta asked his team to rethink how municipal government should be organized to apply digital technology to manage the challenges of climate change while improving the lives of citizens and supporting economic diversity and growth.
Digital innovation for the people.
When work began, government was entirely paper-based and siloed by department. The contrast with today could not be greater. All data systems have been integrated, using an open-standards solution developed by the European Union, and now power a GIS-based digital twin of the city called MiMurcia (My Murcia). The digital twin’s greatest power, however, is visible in TuMurcia (Your Murcia). This phone app gives citizens transparent access to the city’s data as well as a wide range of news, information and interactivity. Designed to be native to IOS and Android, it adapts to prioritize each user’s favorite functions and plays a major role in public engagement projects.
Public works that unite the public.
The most memorable involved relocating two rail lines underground in a major construction project that impacted 20% of residents. Where such a project would be mired in controversy in most places, Murcia turned it into a learning partnership that deepened citizen engagement in their city. A three-year program brought together residents and architects online and face-to-face in an open innovation program to co-create the new property that would result. The city committed to turning citizen priorities into a binding roadmap for development, and the design choices of residents – including parks and heritage rehabilitation, neighborhood squares and underground utilities – were integrated into the technical specifications of project tenders.
Learn more about Murcia at the ICF website: https://www.intelligentcommunity.org/murcia
About Intelligent Community Certification
Intelligent Community Certification is an economic development credential based on ICF’s Community Accelerator Strategy and analytic methods developed over two decades of research and work with more than 200 communities around the world. It is provided in two stages. In the first stage, the municipality, county or region completes an online questionnaire with guidance from ICF. ICF applies its proven analytic methods to the data and produces both detailed and summary scoring. Communities whose summary score meets or exceeds the standard receive Provisional Certification based on this self-reported data, and the certification must be renewed yearly to remain in effect.
Full Certification requires an onsite audit by ICF. In a site visit, an ICF auditor validates the information provided by the community for its Provisional Certification and learns more about the programs and practices that make it an Intelligent Community. Following the audit, the auditor prepares a report detailing results and updates the scoring of the community based on the audit. Communities whose summary score meets or exceeds the standard receive Full Certification, which is good for three years.
Intelligent Community Certification is based on a set of standards described in detail on the ICF website.
About the Intelligent Community Forum
Starting in 2000 with a research project comparing cities in various nations, the Intelligent Community Forum (www.intelligentcommunity.org) created a unique, data-driven approach to development that puts citizens first while tapping the enormous economic and social potential of technology. In a world dominated by digital, ICF helps cities, counties and regions use technology – and adapt to the massive changes it brings – to create inclusive prosperity, strengthen social bonds and enrich local culture for their people. These are the three markers of success for the place people call home. We do it for communities large and small, in urban clusters and outlying suburbs and rural places through training, consulting, assessment, certification and award programs. ICF believes that digital connectivity and technology create the opportunity for almost every community to develop a dynamic local economy and the social and cultural strengths that go with it – giving them all a chance to be great places to live, work, learn, grow, raise a family and prepare a path for the next generation.
The Forum sponsors Institutes around the world 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.”
For more details on the Intelligent Community Forum’s recent publications and programs, www.intelligentcommunity.org.
Contacts:
Matthew Owen, Executive Director, Intelligent Community Forum
[email protected]
Auri Yates, Communications Manager, Intelligent Community Forum
[email protected]
