Time for an update from the SMiLES project. We had our consortium meeting and there have been quite some things going on!
SMiLES consortium meets at QBuzz
The members of the SMiLES consortium met on Wednesday, October 18. This time at the location of societal partner QBuzz. In the morning we received an update on the work packages. In the afternoon we received an update from Michel van der Mark of QBuzz, followed by a tour on the site. The societal partners then provided an update on what their organization/company is currently doing and what the challenges are for the remaining time. Some overarching themes were how to facilitate sharing of knowledge, data and infrastructure, and what kind of legal and policy frameworks are needed to support sustainable transitions. New connections have been established and hopefully great new collaborations will emerge from this.
The countryside is emptying out, amenities are disappearing and you can't get anywhere without a car. But how bad is that really? Transport geographer Felix Pot of the University of Groningen - Faculty of Spatial Sciences and involved in the SMiLES project, investigated how people in rural areas experience access to daily facilities. It turns out: rural residents are often less dissatisfied with the offered facilities than is thought. He spoke about it on radio1.
Five questions for… René Schripsema (Groningen Bereikbaar)
Hive.mobility periodically asks 5 questions to one of their partners. And this also happens to be one of our partners in SMiLES. What do they exactly do, how important is mobility and innovation to them and how they see the future of mobility. 5 questions were asked to René Schripsema, who became recently director of Groningen Bereikbaar.
What does IT law have to say about mobility and logistics?
Aline Klingenberg (Professor of Educational Innovation, Data Sharing and Communication Law) and Gerard Ritsema van Eck (Assistant Professor and post-doc IT Law) are involved in the SMiLES project from the Faculty of Law. They look at the issues of mobility and logistics from a legal perspective, in particular from the point of view of IT law.
There are many new developments in the sector, such as autonomous driving, transport via drones, hydrogen-powered ships and data sharing. Legislation is often lacking for all these subjects because they are still in the innovation phase. Aline points out that IT law is always asking what the public values are: What are the most important norms and values of our society that should always apply
and be legally protected?
Conference 'Hoe houden we het bereikbaar'
Groningen Bereikbaar will be presenting during the Conference 'Hoe houden we het bereikbaar' on Thursday, November 9 from 10-13.30 in the Forum. Want to join? Register via the CROW website.
Thu 16 Nov: HIVE LIVE – Talent voor de toekomst
De Puddingfabriek 13-17.30
With the current tight labor market, the demand for talent is more urgent than ever. Especially in the rapidly developing mobility sector with constantly changing issues and technological innovations. From new fuels, battery techniques, IT technologies, legal issues to behavioral campaigns. Sufficient talent is crucial to make the mobility transition a success. On November 16, 2023, Hive.mobility challenges you to think about the issues surrounding talent for the mobility of the future during the HIVE LIVE event. Led by Marelle van Beerschoten and with keynote speaker Marc Lammers, a visionary coach with a clear vision on coaching, talent development and leadership. Various speakers from business, education and science will give you new insights and inspiration about the current labor market and opportunities for innovative learning and successful employer branding.
The allurement of data and its social importance
At the beginning of October '23, Professor Aline Klingenberg officially accepted her position as Professor of Educational Innovation, Data Sharing and Communication Law through her inaugural speech in the Aula of the Academy Building.
In this public speech she discussed educational innovation, data sharing and communications law and the role she hopes to play in this. She also mentioned the SMILES project as an example of how to respond to interfaculty collaboration. She had been in her position for quite some time, but the inaugural lecture makes it official.
The text of the inaugural speech is going to be published online and in a booklet.
Autonomous trains are an opportunity for Arriva
Societal Partner Yvonne Dubben from Arriva Nederland has been interviewed by Hive.Mobility. In the interview Yvonne states that autonomous trains are an opportunity for Arriva to improve services for travelers. Therefore several technical tests have already been carried out and traveller's experiences have been collected. Models and simulations show that autonomous trains can save time. Ton Visser of Nederlandse Spoorwegen indicates that they are looking into the usefulness and necessity of automated trains and expect that they will be able to use this in 10 years time.
(video is in Dutch, but you can change the subtitles into English in YouTube)
In the AD (abbreviation for Algemeen Dagblad, a Dutch daily newspaper) SMiLES partner Gerard Jan Ritsema van Eck is quoted in the article “Cameras follow us everywhere, how bad is that? "Murderers can no longer get away unseen." For the SMiLES project, junior researcher Iris Staalman conducted research at the municipality of Oldambt into the possibilities of camera surveillance in combination with smart lampposts.
Wagenborg Passagiersdiensten
Wagenborg Passagiersdiensten provides the transport to and from the Wadden islands Ameland and Schiermonnikoog. Every year they transport more than 1.5 million passengers and some 200,000 cars and trucks with their ferries and express service. Safe and responsible sailing on the Wadden Sea World Heritage site with respect for nature is their most important corporate value. Wagenborg Passenger Services uses four ships and two express services for transport to and from Ameland and Schiermonnikoog. The ships and the express service operate according to a fixed timetable, and the water taxis can be reserved on demand.
This research project is part of the research programme Sustainable Living Labs, which is co-financed by the Dutch Research Council (NWO), the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Taskforce for Applied Research (SIA) and the Top Sector Logistics.
