The IAAC Fab Lab Barcelona is one of the driving forces behind this initiative, born in 2014, which aims to form a worldwide network of locally productive and globally connected cities.
The Fab City project, as a global initiative, has as its main objective the development and implementation of an action plan for cities to move from an extractive urban model to a regenerative and circular model. Fab City drives a model for collaborative and productive cities, capable of using cutting-edge technology and sharing knowledge globally to create new opportunities and re-balance the impact our society has on the planet. On 11, 12 and 13 July, the Fab City initiative, in collaboration with the City of Paris and the European Union, will be bringing together cities from all over the world in Paris for the 2018 Fab City Summit.
The Fab City Summit in Paris 2018 will feature international speakers such as Neil Gershenfeld, Saskia Sassen, Danielle Wood and Dave Hakkens, who will debate global challenges such as climate change and social inequality, and how to approach the use of technology to boost a new urban model for 21st century cities.
This world summit of cities, and their innovation ecosystems, will be attended by Mayor Anne Hidalgo, in her role as leader of the European Capital of Innovation 2017 (iCapital), to introduce the opening ceremony of the event in which other renowned municipal figures such as Barcelona’s Mayor Ada Colau will participate, representing Barcelona as the city that promoted this initiative in 2014, and which was the first recipient of the iCapital award in the same year. In addition to representatives from more than 20 cities belonging to the iCapital and Fab City networks worldwide, the event will be attended by the European Union Commissioner for Science, Innovation, and Technology, Carlos Moedas, as well as the official participation of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.
Fab City Global Initiative is an international initiative powered by the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC), the Center for Bits and Atoms of MIT, the City Council of Barcelona and the Fab Foundation to develop a network of cities that share a sustainable ecosystem of production and knowledge, with environmental, social and economic objectives that change the lifestyle based on massive consumption and linear economy.
To date, more than 18 cities are part of the worldwide Fab City network, including Barcelona, Amsterdam, Paris, Toulouse, Boston, Somerville, Cambridge, Ekurhuleni, Kerala, Georgia, Shenzhen, Bhutan, Sacramento, Santiago de Chile, Detroit, Brest, Curitiba. The project consolidates with the Fab City Summit 2018 a global collaboration between innovation ecosystems, governments, and industry that is enabling the transition to more sustainable and productive cities over the next 36 years.