Makati City Mayor Abby Binay went to Barcelona, Spain on Wednesday, Nov. 8, to participate in a high-level roundtable discussion on climate change and sustainability and to represent Makati as the sole city in the Philippines and Asia Pacific to become a finalist in the prestigious 2023 World Smart Cities Awards.
Mayor Abby Binay
With the topic “From Climate Goals to Action: Cities Taking Charge,” Binay said the forum will be attended by experts in climate action and initiatives.
She expressed hope that Makati City may be able to replicate the ideas and lessons to be discussed in the event.
"Sa mga ganitong international forum tayo natututo ng best practices mula sa ibang progresibong lungsod. Of course, proud din naman tayong i-share ang mga nagawa at nakaabang pa nating mga plano sa Makati (International forums like this is where we learn the best practices of other progressive cities. Of course, we are also proud to share the accomplishments and future projects of Makati)," Binay explained.
"Lagi kong sinasabi na ang international cooperation at collaboration ay isa sa mahalagang elemento ng successful climate program. Bukod dito ay napakaraming aral na maaaring matutunan sa ating paglalakbay tungo sa pagiging smart at sustainable city (I always say that international cooperation and collaboration are some of the essential elements of a successful climate program. We also learn valuable lessons in our journey towards becoming a smart and sustainable city)," she added.
The roundtable discussion will be followed by the awarding ceremony for the 2023 World Smart Cities Awards where the city was chosen as a finalist for the City Awards Category for its entry "Makati City’s IoT Revolution: Empowering the City to Become Better Stewards of Energy & Environment”.
Other finalists in the City Awards Category include "Barranquilla: Solving Development Challenges by Going Green" from Barranquilla, Spain; "Smart Alert System" from Izmir, Turkey; "Viver Cascais I Citizen centered service design" from Cascais, Portugal; "Curitiba Sustainable City" from Curitiba, Brazil, and "Connected for Success: Welcome to Sunderland, City of Smart" from Sunderland, United Kingdom.
"Itinatampok ng ating competition entry ang ilan sa mga bagong inisyatibo natin kasama ang Packetworkx Inc. Kabilang dito ang installation ng state-of-the-art smart meters na layong ma-optimize ang energy at water consumption sa public schools, noise pollution sensors na nagmomonitor sa urban noise levels at nagsusulong ng mapayapang kapaligiran, at outdoor air quality monitors para masubaybayan ang air quality. Naglalagay din ng asset trackers na gumagamit ng advanced LoRaWAN technology upang mapahusay ang resource management sa buong lungsod. (Our competition entry highlights some of our newest initiatives with Packetworkx Inc. These include the installation of state-of-the-art smart meters aimed at optimizing the energy and water consumption of our public schools, noise pollution sensors monitoring the urban noise levels which also act as a promoter for a peaceful environment, and outdoor air quality monitors to observe air quality. We also installed asset trackers which use advanced LoRaWAN technology to improve the resource management of the whole city)," Binay said.
"Bukod dito ay gagawin nang IoT platform ang Makati Command Control and Communications Center (C3) para sa mas maayos na pamamahala ng assets at disaster risk reduction and response ng lungsod (Aside from these, the Makati Command Control and Communications Center (C3) will become an IoT platform with the aim to streamline the management of assets and disaster risk reduction and response of the city)," she noted.
The mayor said the World Smart Cities Award being held at the Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC) gives due recognition to those promoting innovative urban technologies that improve the quality of life of residents of cities around the world.
The city first joined in 2019 where its entry "Use of technology to improve city disaster preparedness and communication to and from city citizens" became one of the top six finalists in the Innovation Category. In that entry, the city government showcased the use of the Makatizen App which is the country's very first digital citizen application where users may immediately report any emergency by tapping the SOS button.