News, events and highlights from the Smart City Dresden
News
In our news section, we provide an overview of our latest activities and news.
Online survey: Help design the digital traffic information boards in Dresden
What information is actually useful to road users? The ‘Environmentally Sensitive Traffic Management’ project is currently investigating this question through an online survey.
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New sensors provide data for proactive road maintenance
Which of Dresden’s roads need to be repaired first? The ‘Strategic Maintenance Management’ project is designed to help answer this question.
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TU Dresden presents Research on Open Government Data at ECIS 2026
How can local governments harness the potential of open government data in the long term and promote data-driven innovation in a sustainable way?
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Heavy Rain Portal at the Open House and the Long Night of Science
At two well-attended events in June 2026, the state capital of Dresden, together with its project partners, presented the prototype of the new heavy rain portal.
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Strategic maintenance management provides important data for long-term road planning
Until September 2026, a specially equipped survey vehicle will travel throughout the entire city, collecting highly accurate data on the condition of the road surface.
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Smart Dresden ’s involvement: new projects, new technology, more dialogue
The ‘ Smart Participation’ toolbox is continuously developing both analogue and digital forms of Dresden citizen participation.
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Cleema becomes Livi: Dresden’s app for a good life, participation and community
The Cleema sustainability app is moving forward under a new name and with an expanded concept.
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Dresden University of Technology presented its latest research and the ‘ Smart ’ – ‘City ’ – scientific network at the 2026 IPSC Conference
The academic conference ‘Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Smart City ’ took place on 21 and 22 May 2026 in Kaiserslautern.
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Through its ‘City ’ Alliance, the EU project NEUTRALPATH supports small and medium-sized towns in their green transition
How can we achieve a climate-neutral city? The NEUTRALPATH City Alliance brings together local authorities across Europe.
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Call for Contributions to the ‘ Smart ’ City Summer School Dresden
The Summer School aims to promote networking and collaboration amongst academic stakeholders in the field of Smart City research and application.
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Dresden a guest at the ‘ Smart ’ Cities regional conference in Guben
On 16 April 2026, Dresden was represented at the regional conference in Guben and played an active role in a workshop on simulations in the Smart City .
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Smart City Dresden is showcasing itself at the ‘ e Cities and Regions’ innovation forum in ChemnitzSmart
How can cities and regions be designed to be smart, sustainable and liveable? This was the question addressed by the simul⁺ meets futureSAX innovation forum, ‘Smarte Cities and Regions’.
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Public participation in Dresden: Digital tools and new insights into public administration
Two recent approaches from the pilot project Smart City Dresden demonstrate how digital tools and internal processes work together.
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Smart district heating network in Dresden-Friedrichstadt goes into operation
In Dresden-Friedrichstadt, the district heating network has been comprehensively digitised and made capable of intelligent control. By analysing operational and consumption data, the heat supply can now be tailored much more precisely to actual demand. A large-scale heat pump complements the system and efficiently feeds renewable heat into the network. The project demonstrates how digitalisation is becoming a key technology for climate-friendly district heating.
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Successful appearance at HAUS 2026: Focus on heavy rain preparedness
A great deal of interest, plenty of discussions and a highly topical subject: our appearance at this year’s HAUS construction fair in Dresden was a resounding success.
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Digital twin reveals the impact of heavy rainfall on Dresden
A new digital twin shows, for the first time, where flooding and damage can occur in Dresden during heavy rainfall.
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MPSC’ Dresden, presents its work at the INSEK update
As part of the update to the Integrated Urban Development Concept (INSEK), interested parties were cordially invited to attend a presentation on the current status of the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( City Dresden ).
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Cleema app nominated for European innovation award
The Cleema app has been nominated for the 2026 Innovation in Politics Awards in the Climate Protection and Digital Innovation and Governance categories.
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Status quo workshop on updating the Dresden ‘ Smart ’ – ‘City ’ strategy
The process of updating the state capital’s ‘ Smart ’ – ‘City ’ – strategy has begun with a joint workshop held at Dresden Town Hall. Around 30 staff members from the city administration discussed current perspectives, future guidelines and the requirements for sustainable digital urban development.
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New forms of participation in ‘ Dresden ’: AGORA and public participation kiosks are boosting both in-person and digital participation
With the public participation kiosks (BBKs) and the AGORA at the Stadtforum Dresden, the state capital Dresden is expanding its range of services for modern public participation through the “Toolbox Smart Participation (TSP)” initiative as part of the pilot project Smart City .
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Installation of the first measuring point in the railway underpass
As part of the ‘Digital Urban Heavy Rainfall Twin and Environmental Monitoring’ project, a new measurement system for detecting flooding is being trialled.
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Installation of the first monitoring point for road maintenance
As part of the ‘Strategic Maintenance Management’ initiative, a new monitoring point for road maintenance was set up in December.
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"Smart: Successfully sustaining City " – Dresden at the 7th MPSC Congress
Around 200 people from local authorities involved in the ‘ Smart ’ Cities pilot project gathered in Kiel for the 7th MPSC Congress. Two of the Dresden-based projects presented their concepts in themed workshops and demonstrated how partner local authorities could benefit from them.
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Dresden – A model city for a smarte and climate-neutral future
On 29 October 2025, the Dresden brought together stakeholders from the worlds of science, business, culture and civil society for the innovation forum ‘Dresden – the smarte climate-neutral city’.
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Smart City Dresden at the Expo World Congress 2025 in Barcelona Smart City
Once again, the Office for Economic Development and the team from Smart City Research (TU Dresden) presented their projects at the world’s largest trade fair for Smart-City- developments.
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Tenant survey on the Neutralpath project
As part of the NEUTRALPATH research project, the state capital Dresden is working with Vonovia, the Technical University of Dresden and SachsenEnergie to transform the residential buildings on Jessener Straße into a climate-neutral neighbourhood. Your opinion matters!
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Smart, Dresden –City – Team at the Smart Country Convention Berlin 2025
From 29 September to 2 October 2025, the ‘ Smart ’ Country Convention in Berlin once again provided insights into the digitalisation of the federal, state and local governments. The leading event for the digital state and public services drew to a close with a new record attendance.
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How open data is driving progress in ‘ Dresden ’: HMD special issue presents the latest findings
The latest issue of the journal *HMD – Praxis der Wirtschaftsinformatik* examines open data from a number of perspectives and ties in with the Dresden initiative ‘ Smart ’ (City) – ‘Open Data for Citizens, Business and Public Administration’.
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Strong partners for a strong neighbourhood: Smart City Dresden at the 30th Friedrichstadt Neighbourhood Festival
Several projects from Smart, City and Dresden demonstrated how urban development, the energy transition and community-based research go hand in hand.
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"Administrative data is fun" — Survey on the use of the Open Data Portal Dresden
Why do people in Dresden use the open data portal? And how can we get more people interested in it?
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Dresden research on the international stage: contribution to digital urban planning presented in Tokyo
From 2 to 5 September 2025, a representative from the Faculty of Geoinformation at HTW Dresden attended the 20th International 3D GeoInfo Conference and the 9th International Smart Data and Smart Cities Conference in Tokyo.
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Engaging with the community: Smart-City- Research at the Prohlis Intercultural Community Festival
To mark the Intercultural Citizens’ Festival, the WISSENSARCHITEKTUR – Laboratory of Knowledge Architecture ( Dresden University of Technology) was back in Prohlis.
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Improving the forecasting of heavy rain: Dresden’s neighbourhoods are being digitally mapped using cameras and laser scanners
Cyclomedia Deutschland GmbH has begun carrying out a surface survey in parts of the Dresden urban area.
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First meeting of the ‘ Smart ’ – ‘City ’ – scientific network in Hamburg
What can ‘ Smart ’ –City – research achieve?: Prof. Jörg Noennig (WISSENSARCHITEKTUR) gave a keynote presentation at the network meeting of ‘ Smart ’ –City – Wissenschaft.
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Digital Day 2025 in Dresden: Smart Participation showcased its work at the Stadtforum
The WISSENSARCHITEKTUR – Laboratory of Knowledge Architecture ( Dresden University of Technology) showcased its digital engagement tools at Digital Day 2025.
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Heavy Rain Twins at the ‘Long Night of Science’
How does extreme heavy rainfall affect my home? Visitors were able to find out at the ‘Long Night of Science’. This is made possible by a prototype of an urban digital twin.
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22nd Regional Conference of the ‘ Smart ’ Cities pilot projects in Halle (Saale)
The regional conference brought together local authorities from the region to find out more about and discuss the topic at Smart City . Dresden took part in the ‘Market of Opportunities’ with its Cleema initiative.
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Second neighbourhood workshop for the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( City ) Dresden in Johannstadt
At the popular Bönischplatzfest in Johannstadt, the team from WISSENSARCHITEKTUR – Laboratory of Knowledge Architecture once again carried out surveys as part of its ‘Neighbourhood Workshop’ programme and provided information about the pilot project.
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Working together for sustainable development – TU Dresden ’s sustainability challenge gets underway
From 13 May 25, members of the university community will be able to take part in a sustainability challenge for TU Dresden via the cleema app. Every day, they can collect points here for their own sustainable actions on behalf of TU Dresden.
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6th MPSC Congress in Munich
Around 200 people from local authorities, politics, urban development and research gathered at the Munich Urban Colab on 6 and 7 May for the 6th MPSC Congress.
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Take part now: Online survey on open data launched at Dresden
How accessible and user-friendly is the City of Dresden ’s open data portal? Please help us improve the portal by sharing your feedback in the online survey.
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Smart ’s pilot project City at the opening of the Dresden City Forum
There was an overwhelming turnout for the Dresden City Council’s ‘Open Town Hall’ day: on 29 March 2025, around 12,000 members of the public turned up to take a look inside the Stadtforum Dresden, a new administrative centre in the heart of the city.
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Cooperation towards a systematic and practical "Smart –City" terminology
"Smart City " – what exactly is this? The term is popular, yet it is sometimes used in a narrow sense and sometimes in a vague one. The WISSENSARCHITEKTUR – Laboratory of Knowledge Architecture (TU Dresden) is now set to work with the Federal Association Smart City to develop a standardised, practical terminology.
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OSTRA Laboratory opens
*UPDATE* From the start of March 2025, the OSTRA laboratory at the Heinz-Steyer-Stadion will only be open for specific events. Anyone interested can check this news page regularly for information on upcoming events and opening hours.
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Heavy Rain App for Dresden
In future, users will be able to use an app to simulate heavy rainfall events and receive information about risk situations. The open-source prototype is now available.
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Smart City Index 2024
On Monday 16 September 2024, the digital industry association Bitkom presented its ranking of the most smartGerman cities for the sixth time. Dresden has moved up one place compared with 2023 and, with 81.3 points, has advanced to fifth place in the overall ranking.
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Become a builder with U_Code
On the second weekend in September, the MPSC team was out and about with the U_Code participation tool. At the neighbourhood festivals in Johannstadt, Friedrichstadt and Prohlis, local residents had the opportunity to shape their neighbourhood of the future independently and digitally.
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SmartShaping the future: ‘ Dresden ’ hosted a regional conference
The 15th Regional Conference took place on 12 June 2024. The one-day event focused on the theme ‘Smart: Shaping the Future – Towards a Sustainable and Climate-Friendly City and Region’.
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4th MPSC Congress in Leipzig
Around 230 people from local authorities, politics, urban development and research gathered at the Kunstkraftwerk Leipzig from 23 to 25 April for the 4th MPSC Congress.
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Bitkom State Index 2024: Saxony ranks third for digital administration and society
The industry association Bitkom has unveiled a new digital ranking of the federal states. This ranking complements, at state level, the previously established ‘ Smart ’ –City – index. Saxony ranks third in the categories of digital administration and society.
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Smart pilot project City Dresden at the 11th ITOF
Under the motto “Shaping digitalisation together”, around 500 experts from local authorities and the business sector gathered at the 11th Saxony IT and Organisation Forum at the Messe Dresden.
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Smart Country Convention Berlin 2023
Under the motto “Stadt.Land.Tech”, the Smart City Convention, held from 7 to 9 November 2023, once again provided insights into the digitalisation of the federal, state and local governments. On the first day of the event, the Smart City Awards ceremony took place, at which Dresden 2023 came sixth
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MPSC measures follow an invitation from the GeoSIM working group
On 9 November, the GeoSIM working group’s information day took place in the plenary hall of Dresden Town Hall. More than 100 city council staff attended the presentation on the development of the concept given by those responsible for the project.
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Smart Cities in the Bundestag
On 18 October 2023, a public hearing was held in the Bundestag on the current status and future prospects of the ‘ Smart ’ model projects funded by the Federal Government. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jörg Rainer Noennig ( Dresden University of Technology) was also invited to attend as an expert witness.
Read moreBitkom publishes the ‘ Smart ’ City Index 2023: Dresden ranks 6th
Bitkom, the trade association for the German information and telecommunications sector, has published its ranking of the ‘ smart’ major German cities: Dresden has come sixth this year. This makes Dresden the leading digital city in the eastern German federal states.
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11th Regional Conference of the ‘ Smart ’ Cities pilot projects in Jena
The regional conference brought together local authorities from the region to learn about and discuss the topic of Smart City . Dresden took part in a workshop and subsequent discussion session as part of the ‘ Smart Participation’ initiative.
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Experts wanted – apply now!
Would you like to play an active part as Dresden evolves into Smart City ? Then apply now for our vacancies. The pilot project Smart City Dresden is set to really take off during the implementation phase and is looking for experts to fill the following roles.
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Kick-off to mark the start of the implementation phase
Phase 2 of the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ (MPSC) City Dresden officially began on 1 July 2023. A kick-off event held on 27 June in the plenary hall of Dresden City Hall marked the start of the implementation phase in fitting style.
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Smart City at the Open Town Hall
On 17 June 2023, nearly 5,000 Dresden residents attended the ‘Open Town Hall’ event to take a look ‘behind the scenes’ at Dresden’s city administration. The pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( City Dresden ) also presented itself to the people of Dresden on this day.
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Smart, a resilient organisation City, at the IT Meet-up
On 6 June 2023, this year’s IT conference was held under the theme “Local public services as a stabilising force in times of crisis”. The MPSC Dresden gave a presentation on “The resilient Smart City ”.
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11th IT Planning Council Conference
On 29 and 30 March 2023, Saxony-Anhalt hosted the 11th IT Planning Council Conference in Halle (Saale). Alongside renowned speakers from across Germany, the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( City Dresden ) was also presented.
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Public consultation on the ‘ Smart ’ City Dresden in the ‘Zukunftsbahn’
In collaboration with DVB, the ‘Zukunftsbahnen’ project was carried out on 14 and 17 January 2023. This involved public engagement on three tram routes and, consequently, in our model neighbourhoods.
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Smart Country Convention Berlin 2022
The Smart Country Convention in Berlin is the leading event for the digital state and the public sector. The conference also serves as the backdrop for the presentation of the Smart City Index, in which Dresden achieved third place in 2022.
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Smart, City and Dresden pilot projects at the 10th IT and Organisation Forum at Dresden Airport
The 10th IT and Organisation Forum – the Saxony Digital Administration Congress – took place on 7 and 8 September 2022 at Dresden Airport. The Dresden City Council showcased, amongst other things, the pilot project Smart City .
Read morePress releases
Here you can read past press releases about our Smart City projects again in digital format.
Smart City: Online survey on traffic information boards launched
Members of the public can have their say on future traffic information signs via an online survey.
Read moreSmart City plans: When does the road need to be resurfaced?
As part of the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( City), specifically the ‘Strategic Maintenance Management’ sub-project, five monitoring points are being set up on the main road network of the state capital Dresden.
Read moreDresden is once again digitally mapping the condition of the road network
From Monday 22 June until September 2026, the state capital, Dresden, will be systematically and digitally recording the condition of the road network.
Read moreDresden Strengthens partnership with Taiwan in the fields of semiconductors and Smart City
Dresden, the state capital, has drawn a thoroughly positive conclusion from its most recent delegation visit to Taiwan from 15 to 21 March 2026.
Read moreRepairs following winter damage are in full swing
The winter weather, with its frequent cycles of frost and thaw, has caused significant damage to the roads in Dresden.
Read moreSmart district heating network for Friedrichstadt
Dresden, the state capital, and SachsenEnergie have commissioned a digitally controlled district heating network in Friedrichstadt.
Read moreDresden delegation sets off for Taiwan
A high-level delegation from the state capital, Dresden, will be travelling to Taiwan from Sunday 15 March to Saturday 21 March 2026.
Read moreHighlighting heavy rainfall and its consequences for Dresden
Smart pilot project City presents a prototype digital twin for simulating severe weather events.
Read moreShaping the future of Dresden
Dresden calls on citizens to play an active part in updating the Integrated Urban Development Concept ‘ Dresden ’s Future 2035+’ (INSEK).
Read moreDresdenInnovative projects at the ‘ Smart ’ Country Convention
The team from Smart City Dresden will be attending the Smart Country Convention in Berlin from 30 September to 2 October.
Read moreTransparency through open data: Dresden comes third
A recent report in the trade journal *Kommune21* shows that Dresden is one of the pioneers in the field of open data in Germany.
Read moreSmart City Index 2024: once again ranks among Germany’s cities Dresden smart
On Monday, 16 September 2024, Smart City published the Bitkom Digital Association’s index, in which Dresden ranks fifth among Germany’s major cities. The capital of Saxony has moved up one place compared with 2023.
Read moreSmart-City Experts from across Germany are guests on Dresden
On Wednesday 12 June 2024, the 15th Regional Conference ‘ Smart Cities’ will take place at the Institute for Wood Technology Dresden, Zellescher Weg 24. The conference will focus on the theme ‘Smart: Shaping the Future – Towards a Sustainable and Climate-Friendly City and Region’.
Read moreSmart City Dresden : Neighbourhoods are being mapped digitally
As part of the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( ) City Dresden , Cyclomedia will be surveying parts of the city using survey vehicles from 2 April until, it is expected, 6 May. The aim is to create a surface model that can be used to simulate the effects of heavy rainfall.
Read moreSeeking views on the Ostra Sports Park
The Sportstätten municipal agency wants to find out more about how the Ostra Sports Park is used and is currently conducting a survey as part of the pilot project ‘ Smart ’ ( ) City Dresden . The agency intends to use the results to further optimise the Ostra Sports Park in line with users’ needs and to provide tailor-made services.
Read moreBitkom Ranking 2023: Dresden remains among the top smartcities
In the shortlist for the Smart City Index 2023, published on Friday 6 October 2023, Dresden has once again secured a place amongst the top ten German cities. Dresden As a city of culture, science and high technology, is increasingly recognised as offering an outstanding ecosystem for creating pioneering and exemplary solutions for the public-interest-oriented (digital) city of the future.
Read moreDresden City Council adopts the ‘ Smart ’ – ‘City ’ strategy
On 15 June 2023, the finalised ‘ Smart ’ –City – strategy, and with it the working framework for the subsequent implementation phase, was formally endorsed by the City Council. The implementation phase can begin as planned on 1 July and will end on 31 December 2026. Over the coming years, as part of the implementation phase, pilot projects with nationwide impact will be carried out in the fields of the environment, transport, energy, sport and open data, which will have a positive impact on the people of Dresden.
Read more'19 million euros for a "smarter" city'
19 million euros have been made available for the development of a ‘ Smart ’ –City – concept. Using digital tools, members of the public can contribute their ideas and suggestions, which are then processed and evaluated largely automatically. The smartapplications and concepts developed during the project period, which runs until the end of 2026, are intended to make a decisive contribution to strengthening Dresden as a liveable city and should be adaptable for use by other cities throughout Germany.
Read moreFirst measure implemented: the cleema app
The Dresden-based start-up cleema aims to encourage people in Dresden to adopt sustainable habits through a mobile app – using gamified incentives and easy-to-follow tips for a more mindful everyday life.
Read moreEvents
Below is an overview of upcoming events and dates.
Smart City Summer School Dresden
The Summer School aims to promote networking and collaboration amongst academic stakeholders in the field of Smart City research and application.
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2. Thematic Impulse Accelerator
The team behind the “ Smart Participation Toolbox” invites you to take part in the 2nd Thematic Impulse Accelerator on 11 September.
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