I spent a few days recently in Dallas at a round table discussion with technology leaders from cities throughout the country. I was there to share how the St. Pete Innovation District has become a testbed for smart city projects. Listening to the discussions I learned a lot. Unsurprising the challenges are similar. However, each community is using data in different ways to better understand the issues and assess potential solutions. From accurate maps to understand the availability of high speed internet fiber to dashboards that display environmental and lighting sensors, communities are looking to data to answer questions they couldn't before and to validate their investments.
As you will read in the November 2022 newsletter, data is helping make sense of what happened during Hurricane Ian, being used by CDC to mitigate health risks, and can drive future economic opportunities from the ocean. I suspect you are using data in your life and/or work more than you ever have before.
-Alison Barlow
Executive Director, St. Petersburg Innovation District
Over the last few months I have used this space in the newsletter to create a picture of what it takes to foster innovation. November 2023 newsletter: Innovation is a team sport. It requires diverse perspectives and experiences to find a creative solutions. It requires courage to try things out and be willing to learn what won’t work as much as what will work. It requires tenacity to keep going and going and going.
Thank you to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital (JHACH) for sponsoring and hosting our inaugural Morning Sparks: Innovation X-change breakfast. The event was kicked off by Alicia Schulhof, President of JHACH, and followed by an overview of the topic - Artificial Intelligence - by Dr. John Licato of USF's Advanced Machine and Human Reasoning Lab.
Kudos to the Volunteers of America Florida, City of St. Petersburg, and Pinellas County for the recent opening of the new downtown apartments, located in the Innovation District called Innovare. Innovare’s 50 apartments provide stable homes for individuals and families who earn 60 percent or less of the Area’s Median Income (AMI), including many who are transitioning from homelessness.