The city of Bristol, in the UK, has launched a £75m initiative to create a futuristic smart city urban experiment. Major elements of the project are already underway, turning the city into a high-tech test-bed for innovation and positioning Bristol among the most exciting smart city projects in the world. Memoori speaks with Stephen Hilton, Futures Director at Bristol City Council: Q: The ‘Bristol is Open’ initiative is making the city a pioneer of smart technology, culture and creativity. What makes Bristol such a progressive city? There are a number of factors that make Bristol quite progressive in this regard. We have an elected independent mayor, George Ferguson, who very confidently sees the city as a place of experimentation. He is an evangelist for many things; he’s an urbanist, an architect, someone who values sustainability, social enterprise and social inclusion at the very heart of his policies. He sees the city as the unit through […]