Smart Cities Council Australia New Zealand (SCCANZ) and the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) have formed a partnership to develop a code for smart communities.
SCCANZ executive director, Adam Beck, said the code would set new benchmarks for smart cities and communities across Australia, New Zealand and beyond by providing important guidance on how to use technology, data and intelligent design to accelerate more efficient, liveable and sustainable development projects.
“The Code will provide important, voluntary guidance to the development industry and include the necessary scoping issues, metrics and model language for the planning, design and delivery of smart communities,” he said.
GBCA, CEO, Romilly Madew, added: "The code for smart communities will provide valuable guidance to governments and private sector developers alike, and will complement the green star suite of rating tools.”
Announcement of the partnership follows a presentation by Beck on SCCANZ, at the time solo, plans for the code, in May at the Energy Management Association of New Zealand setting out SCANZ’s plans for the code.
Beck said then that the code would become a benchmark for accelerating the sustainability outcomes of communities by embracing technological innovation, applying data-driven decision making, and ensuring intelligent design practices and would become a fundamental reference point in city making projects in Australia and New Zealand that would help accelerate liveability, economic development, and environmental outcomes.
“The Code will provide public and private sector developers with a framework for planning, designing, and delivering urban development projects that can drive greenhouse gas emissions reductions through the generation and distribution of low carbon energy, comprehensive data analytics and reporting, and consumer interface management,” he said.
SCCANZ said today that the code would be developed with the support of an advisory committee that will “undertake a 60-day sprint, which will see multiple workshops and review sessions with key stakeholders,” before being showcased as a draft at the Smart Cities Council international conference in Washington DC in October this year.