The City of Rio de Janeiro has invited G3ict and World Enabled, two nonprofits with extensive global leadership in inclusive cities and accessible technology, to assist with the city’s efforts to ensure that persons with disabilities and older persons can benefit from the city’s investments in smarter public services, according to a recent announcement.
As a part of this visit, the City of Rio de Janeiro along with World Enabled and G3ict will host “Smart Cities for All: A Discussion on Inclusion with City Leaders,” an event which will explore ways in which city agencies can leverage technology to promote innovation and inclusion. The event takes place from 9:00 to 12:30 pm in City Palace, Rua Sao Clemente, 360-Botafogo, Rio.
“Talking about digital inclusion is talking about wealth generation and social inclusion. Therefore, the meeting with Victor Pineda and James Thurston, is a moment of learning and renewing hope for people with disabilities in Brazil,” said Geraldo Nogueira, Undersecretary in the Mayor’s Office for Persons with Disabilities, City of Rio de Janeiro.
The event convenes city leaders in disability rights and technology programs, from both public and private sector organizations, including: Undersecretary for Persons with Disabilities, City of Rio, Municipal Company of Informatics (News - Alert) (IPLANRIO), Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB), Municipal Council for the Defense of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities - Rio de Janeiro (COMDEF), Accessibility Standing Committee - CPA; Rio de Janeiro Department of Education; Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) - Laboratory of Research and Development in Assistive Technology; and the Microsoft (News - Alert) Corporation, etc. The event describes how cities can deploy accessible technology that works for all members of a society. City leaders also will address the challenges they face when deploying smart city services and digital inclusion programs.
“We applaud the city of Rio for its strong commitment to the digital inclusion of all their citizens, including those with disabilities,” said James Thurston, VP, Global Strategy and Development, G3ict. “And we believe that the Smart Cities for All global initiative can help them achieve their Information and Communication Technology (ICT) accessibility goals.”
This event showcases the Smart Cities for All Toolkit -- which is now available in English, Spanish and Portuguese versions. The kit contains four tools to help Smart Cities worldwide include a focus on ICT accessibility and the digital inclusion of persons with disabilities and older persons.