Moncton named a smart city
Published Thursday October 30th, 2008
Moncton, Fredericton named to list of top 21 'intelligent communities' from around the world
By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff
Metro Moncton has made its way onto the map of the world's brightest cities, according to an influential international think tank. The New York-based Intelligent Community Forum named Moncton as one of the Smart21, 21 cities and regions on four continents that have demonstrated commitment to developing knowledge-based, broadband economies.
Broadband economies, for the uninitiated, are those that use high-speed communications and information technology on both the global and local levels.
"Each of these communities has demonstrated a commitment to improving their communities through innovative broadband applications," ICF co-founder Louis Zacharilla said from Seoul yesterday, where the 2009 list was announced.
"The ingenuity of these communities is exemplified in their investments in the future of the young, the growth and progress of job-creating businesses, and economic security."
Zacharilla said an over-arching theme among the 2009 honorees, "has been the dedication to putting people first and building a talent inventory that will thrive with technology and innovation."
Moncton joins cities such as Edmonton, Stockholm and Manchester on this year's list.
Remarkably, Fredericton is also on the list, a fact that bodes very well for New Brunswick's economy. With the exception of Albany, New York and Westchester County, New York, no other two winners this year are as geographically close or as politically linked as the two New Brunswick centres.
Almost 400 communities, 18 from Canada, were vying for the honour this year. The Smart21 will be narrowed to seven finalists during the Pacific Telecommunications Council annual conference in Honolulu in January and in May, the Intelligent Community of the Year will be named at a broadband economy summit in New York City.
Business New Brunswick Minister Greg Byrne said yesterday, "it's great news. It's hard not to be impressed."
"It's certainly a powerful message that New Brunswick is a great place to be and to do business," he said, noting Moncton and Fredericton also placed second and third in KPMG's 2008 ranking of the most business tax friendly urban centres in Canada.
"It's marketing that you couldn't buy."
Though delighted by the Smart21 announcement, Byrne wasn't completely surprised.
"When the representatives (from ICF) came here last year, they were blown away with some of the stuff going on," he said, citing New Brunswick's bilingualism and broadband coverage, which is per capita the highest in North America, as just two examples of what impressed the evaluators.
Ben Champoux, Moncton's business development specialist, said it would certainly put New Brunswick on the map and help Moncton draw the youthful, educated demographic so necessary to the city's long-term prosperity. Champoux also predicted it will help change outdated images of Moncton.
"I think we're at a point in our history where we need to change the perceptions even within our own community. It's a totally different city from what it was 15 or 20 years ago," he said. "This will help."
Champoux said it was this sort of outside recognition that likely had more power to instill pride in the community than anything civic boosters could say here at home.
The Intelligent Community Forum is a non-profit think tank that studies the economic and social development of the 21st Century community in a world where jobs, investment and progress increasingly depend on broadband communications.
Most Polite City In Canada !
