City-University RD&D Partnerships

Georgia Tech and the City of AtlantaDr. Jennifer Clark

Georgia Tech Center for Urban Innovation

Research, Development, and Deployment Partnerships

• Georgia Tech has a history of “civic” research partnerships in various forms

• Some are technology development and design projects while others are technology diffusion projects

• Some are based in curriculum and others in “sponsored research”

• A typology follows:

Typology of City-University Partnerships• Studio/Workshop/Practice Course

Collaborations (student-centered)o Typically a studio brief designed by faculty and cliento Students address/respond brief during the courseo Students present coursework to client o Faculty evaluate student performance o Fees/Sponsorships vary

Typology of City-University Partnerships• Design “Competitions” or “IdeaLabs” (student-

driven) o Student teams address a client competitiono Faculty usually provide guidance to student teamsoNot performed for course credito Increasingly competitions are driven by public sector clientsoHistorically driven by trade associations and/or non-profits (to

encourage focus on materials use or particular sites of interest)

Typology of City-University Partnerships• Research Contracts (researcher/faculty-led

projects)o Often analysis and impact studies using established methods/technologies o Led by faculty or established researcherso Commissioned by a city as a fee for service projecto Similar in scope o Often used to fund and train graduate students o Conclusions/Findings empirically-driveno Discrete deliverables on established timelines

Typology of City-University Partnerships• Research, Design, Deployment Partnerships

(faculty-led projects)

o Technology design and diffusion projectso New technologies, new data, novel applications o Research design includes scalability and dissemination effortso Developing the “industry standard” rather than applying ito Requires specialist faculty and specialist equipmento Pre-commercialization similar to R&D projects with industry partners

MetroLab NetworkGTCUI and City of Atlanta are ifounding members of the MetroLab Network, a newly-launched national network of city-university partnerships. CUI leads Georgia Tech’s participation in MetroLab along with the City of Atlanta and Georgia State.

The MetroLab Network is an initiative of the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy. The Network will research, develop and deploy R&D on “smarter cities,” in particular focusing on:

● Urban Infrastructure systems● City services● Democratic governance● Public policy & management

Georgia Tech and Atlanta • Importance of a dedicated academic research center to R,D& D partnerships

• Importance of a robust city “innovation team” or “urban mechanics”

• Critical commitment of leadership --- mayor(s), university leadership, and civic and corporate stakeholders ---to a “smart cities” agenda

• Familiarity with external partnerships on research and development

• Trust

Innovation DistrictsHighlighting Tech Square’s innovation ecosystem in Putting Innovation in Place: Georgia Tech’s Innovation Neighborhood of “Tech Square,” GTCUI is codifying and sharing the “Atlanta model” with other urban universities and internationally.

Sustainable CitiesGTCUI is facilitating intersecting nodes of layered research, by connecting a $2.5 million NSF-funded civil and environmental engineering project with policymakers in ten cities through the City Energy Project, including the City of Atlanta’s Office of Sustainability.

Spatial proximityand design in Innovation Districts

Exploring relationship of urban form and innovation:

• Site location• Architecture• Mixed Uses• Urban Design• Connectivity

Urban Sustainability Modeling and Policy• One of 10 U.S. cities selected for

an NSF RIPS project

• Energy + Water + Transportation+ (new) Food Systems component

• Evaluation of alternatives across “domains”

• Partnering with City of Atlanta’s Office of Sustainability and the City Energy Project

GreenLink: Facilitating Start-Ups

Cities as Dynamic Spaces of Economic Development and EntrepreneurshipOngoing Research Projects:

• “Dual Deployment” project: smart cities sensors technologies --- interoperability, data analytics, standards, and privacy

• Co-working: Flexible urban spaces for entrepreneurial development• Innovation Districts: Spillover effects, urban design, and connectivity• Urban Food Systems: Mobility, Supply Chains, Firm Strategies

Urban Food SystemsGTCUI has captured the Food Truck Movement’s transformative impact on Atlanta with their empirical analysis, and upcoming chapter in From Loncheras to Lobsta Love: Food Trucks, Cultural Identity and Social Justice. This story of local industry adaptation and reliance of pseudo-private spaces illustrates cultural identity building, contributing to existing food trucks theory.

“Convenings”:Connecting the International Academic Discourse to Today’s Urban Questions

Regional Studies Association North America Conference 2016GTCUI is a research leader with the Regional Studies Association, driving the decision for the RSA to host their 2016 North America Conference at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. International, multidisciplinary scholars will attend and CUI’s guidance will ensure participation by key Atlanta academic and civic leaders.

The conference will focus on the policy implications of emerging forms of governance and policy delivery relative to uneven development and inequality in a post-crisis era of ongoing market liberalization, financialization, and global competition. Conference Tracks:

• Smart Cities, Smart Regions• Regional Innovation: Theory, Methods, Practice• Territory, Politics, Governance• Sustainable Cities and Regions• Emerging Community, Urban, and Regional Identities• Emerging Community, Urban, and Regional Identities• Labor Markets in Cities and Regions• Regional Economies: SMEs andScale-Up

Benefits of City University RD&D Partnerships• Similar to industry and university R&D partnerships• Affordable, specialized, empirically-oriented researchers• Builds a specialized labor markets of urban technologists• Builds institutional capacity in cities and universities on public sector challenges

and opportunities• Brings real-world problems/questions into the research design phase