IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

Canadian telecommunications operator Bell announced the launch of its commercial 5G service in the country.

In a release, the carrier said that the 5G service is already available in Montréal, the Greater Toronto Area, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.

Bell also said its initial 5G service will expand to more cities across the country in the coming months.

Editor’s note: 2017 marks the sesquicentennial of Confederation. While the anniversary is a chance to reflect on the past, The Conversation Canada asked some of our academic authors to look down the road a further 150 years — or “Canada +150”. Curtis McCord, who researches information systems, predicts technology will further expand our ability to understand politics and engage in political action. Nothing is certain in the next 150 years — not even the future of our democracy. Coming to grips with the tragedies of a colonial past and uncertainties of our present is a challenge for many of us.

Names can tell a lot about an organization. Take Shared Services Canada, the recently-formed branch that will the number of data centres and applications across the federal government.

Still in the early stages, it’s not really a true shared services model, Gartner analyst John Kost told a group of government CIOs and IT administrators here Wednesday. “The only thing that’s shared about it is its name,” he said, because it isn’t governed by its customers – federal departments.

The Conversation) In January 2019, Liberal MP Adam Vaughan argued that privacy concerns about the smart city proposed for Toronto's waterfront should not be allowed to ' reverse 25 years of good, solid work and 40 years of dreaming on the Toronto waterfront.'

But a recent survey suggests that Canadians have strong concerns about giving up on 50 years of struggle for privacy rights so that Google's sister company, Sidewalk Labs , can establish a smart city in Toronto.

While the government is trying to put a square fiscal peg into a round deficit hole with its new budget, it is fast discovering that if you hew too closely to your election promises, the world around you will upset the best laid plans.

Old-fashioned solutions like infrastructure spending on bricks, roads and public works or an accommodative monetary policy won’t revive Canada’s flagging economic fortunes. The government’s challenge is now to come up a serious Plan B that is focused on mainstreaming the digital revolution into the rest of the economy and the public sector. That is where the real gains in productivity, innovation and growth will come from.

Some City of Kingston snowplows can now be tracked online, thanks to a nine-month Smart City pilot with Bell.

Residents can visit CityofKingston.ca/Snow and see the tracker offering data of when the last time roads were snowplowed. The “last plow completed” data notes a range from “less than 4 hours ago” to “16 to 24 hours ago”, shown in different colours on a Google Map.

Innovate Cities’ new model for data governance ensures expert oversight and public accountability at every stage of the process to build and keep the trust of communities

Today marks the official launch of Innovate Cities, a not-for-profit network of innovators dedicated to creating more inclusive, livable and sustainable cities. Innovate Cities is a first-of-its-kind, helping to drive Canadian smart city innovation and commercialization by providing innovators with the tools they need to connect, create and scale - all while protecting every citizen’s privacy.

Current’s CityIQ platform will help Canada’s cities gain insights into parking, traffic, public safety and air quality

Nokia is partnering with Current, powered by GE, with the aim of improving operational infrastructure in cities across Canada and to deliver new services to citizens.

5G is poised to offer significant improvements in connectivity, reliability and innovation. As such, the new standard of mobile networking technology is piquing the interest of the automotive industry. With a clear trajectory towards automation, 5G is expected to play a heavy role in new advancements.

Several manufacturers are looking into the possibilities of self-driving cars. However, to fully realize a future where vehicles function independently, a lot of considerations must be taken. Maintaining safety, functionality, and connectivity are all cornerstones in vehicle automation. Area X.O is a not-for-profit Ottawa-based innovation company that is researching breakthroughs in this field.

The Canadian federal government launched the Smart Cities Challenge in 2017 to award up to $50 million to municipal governments that are best able to leverage technology to improve life in their cities.

The challenge is part of the government’s Impact Canada Initiative, which aims to address complex economic, environmental and social problems across the country.

The Canadian federal government launched the Smart Cities Challenge in 2017 to award up to $50 million to municipal governments that are best able to leverage technology to improve life in their cities.

The challenge is part of the government's Impact Canada Initiative, which aims to address complex economic, environmental and social problems across the country.

The Canadian federal government launched the Smart Cities Challenge in 2017 to award up to $50 million to municipal governments that are best able to leverage technology to improve life in their cities.

The challenge is part of the government’s Impact Canada Initiative, which aims to address complex economic, environmental and social problems across the country.

The figure is contained in the Treasury Board Secretariat's 2012-13 estimates, which contains broad expense plans for departments and agencies across the federal government.

Almost half that amount is allocated for in-house salaries. A further $466.52 million will be spent on professional services fees and commissions, the documents show.

Bell announced an agreement with Esri Canada, the nation’s leading geographic information system (GIS) provider, to create the Bell Integrated Smart City Ecosystem. This integrated solution will combine Bell’s award-winning 5G network and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions with Esri’s real-time analytics and location intelligence capabilities to help cities of all sizes across Canada become connected communities, empowering them to realize their smart city ambitions.

“We’re proud to partner with Esri Canada to deliver this enhanced and comprehensive solution for municipal operations management to governments across Canada,” said Jeremy Wubs, Senior Vice President, Marketing for Bell Business Markets. “Combined with Bell’s leading 5G network and our proven IoT capabilities, this agreement with Esri Canada offers cities across the country a holistic platform to help them manage their critical infrastructure and services in real time.”

When Tony Clement and Rona Ambrose announced the establishment of Shared Services Canada, they brought into formal existence the culmination of 15 years of hard work by thousands of officials across the Government of Canada.

These unsung heroes have toiled without much recognition to figure out what it will take to modernize the "guts" or machinery, of government for the 21st century.

Led by a trio of experts, that policy review completes its first phase today as all initial submissions are due by midnight. The final report is expected by year end.

BC ranked first, notching top marks for citizen-centricity and engagement. Alberta ranked second in Canada, shining in similar areas. Ontario ranked third, given accolades for success in "organizing succinct online information."

Government of Canada announced the second round of projects in Ontario to receive funding approval through the Broadband Canada: Connecting Rural Canadians program, which will deliver important economic and social benefits, including telehealth, business opportunities and distance learning.

The following companies will receive the funding and are responsible for this wave of implementation: Galaxy Broadband Communications Inc., Spectrum Telecom Group Ltd., Blue Sky Economic Growth Corp., TBay Tel and Northwestern Ontario Innovation Centre.

Fifty kilometres east of Tokyo we built a model community. A 1,000 home neighbourhood where everything looks pretty normal but where everyday life is infused with technology that makes it one of the most sustainable and resilient places to live on this planet — truly a smart city.

Fujisawa is powered by a solar smart grid, giving the neighbourhood the ability to run off-grid for up to seven days and the town’s carbon emissions are 70 per cent lower than the average community of its size. The roof of the community centre is a public space that sits above the tsunami flood line and, in the event of a natural disaster, the park benches convert to barbecue grills. The entire town is a virtual gated community with blanket 24-7 video surveillance coverage, allowing children to play safely, while their parents watch from their smart phones.