Smart cities & digital learning x EU citizens

From the Japanese phrase for “the sound of chit chat,” Pecha Kucha Sessions are informal and fun gatherings where digital explorers present inspirational ideas that have the power to transform society. The Space is a new innovation centre supporting emerging technologies for the benefit of European citizens. We are proud to be the first to host Pecha Kucha in the EU district of Brussels.

Interested in sharing your ideas? Get in touch with the organisers via their Facebook event page.

We are looking for presenters (aka digital explorers) for our first Pecha Kucha Session, scheduled for Wednesday 23 January 2019. We are inviting creative young professionals to share their ideas on how to apply emerging technologies to the benefit of EU citizens in the areas of Smart Cities and Digital Learning.

Why?
The selected digital explorer teams will have the possibility to join our acceleration boost programme where they will have to chance to develop their ideas into prototypes in our innovation centre, with the support of The Space’s mentors.

What is a Pecha Kucha Session?
Drawing its name from the Japanese term for “the sound of chit chat”, the concept of the Pecha Kucha Night was devised by Tokyo’s Klein Dytham Architecture in February 2003 as a forum for young designers to meet, network, exchange ideas and discuss their work in public. It is a presentation format based on a simple idea: 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds, for a total presentation length of six minutes and 40 seconds. The images advance automatically, and presenters accompany the images. This keeps presentations concise, fast-paced and entertaining.

PROGRAMME
17:30: Open doors
17:45: Registration & drinks
18:00: Welcome – Tiziano de Angelis, The Space
18:15: Setting the scene: Smart Cities – Jens Müller
18:30: Setting the scene: Digital Learning – Laurent Hublet
18:45: Fireside chat + Q&A
19:00: Pecha Kucha presentations
20:07: Closing remarks – Steve Szustak
20:15: Jury deliberations & drinks
21:00: Announcement of the winner
22:00 End

DATE AND TIME
Wed, January 23, 2019
17:30 – 22:00 CET
LOCATION
The Space
Avenue des arts 46, 7th floor
1000 Brussels

1/Smart Cities
In a world facing challenges such as overcrowding, resource scarcity, and climate change, the need for smart urban development grows ever greater. Digital technologies, such as the internet of things, big data, mobile apps, machine learning and artificial intelligence, offer new groundbreaking opportunities to ensure public well-being, boost economic growth and preserve the environment. Empowered by talented citizens, smart cities are taking on issues like air pollution, traffic flows, juvenile delinquency, citizen participation, and even economic regeneration.

2/Digital Learning
Today’s society is changing so rapidly that most of us didn’t learn the new skills required when we were in school. The education system must constantly reinvent itself by leveraging on emerging technologies such as such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, robotics, and blockchain in order to teach the right skills, value talent and encourage innovation. Digital learning offers new educational opportunities to diversify teaching methods, turn homework into games, prevent academic cheating and immerse students in new cultural experiences.