Smart Docklands funds four projects to address community need

Posted on: 09 December 2024

The Call for Pilots programme is delivered in partnership between Dublin City Council and the CONNECT Research Ireland Centre for Future Networks headquartered at Trinity College Dublin.

Smart Docklands is one of Dublin’s flagship smart districts – a unique collaboration across academia, industry and local government to advocate for and pilot community centred technology innovations.  

The four pilot winners are: 

• UTS Technologies – River Liffey Water Sensors: This project will introduce a network of sensors along the River Liffey to deliver real-time data on water behaviour, supporting a diverse range of users, including kayakers and boaters. The aim of this initiative is to bring an improved understanding and actionable insights for users of the river and to support more sustainable river management. 
• UCD – Count Docklands: This project will deploy a network of citizen science traffic monitoring, low-cost, camera-based traffic counters across the Docklands. This will help citizen scientists to gather crucial data, supporting Dublin’s transport goals and improving community engagement in urban mobility planning and traffic monitoring. 
• UCD – Craft My Street: This project will leverage highly innovative youth engagement via open-source geospatial data and Minecraft, for crowd mapping through interactive multiplayer gaming. This pilot aims to support young people to actively participate in shaping policies and projects that affect their communities. 

• HoloGen – Immersive Graffiti: This project will use AR/VR technology to teach young people about street art, turning illegal tagging into an opportunity for learning and expressing art in a safe virtual space. The aim is to reduce illegal graffiti and boost creative urban expression. 

Jamie Cudden, Smart City Lead on announcing the pilot winners at an event in the Dublin City Council Innovation Hub in the CHQ said: “These pilot projects highlight how technology can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. By directly engaging with the community, we’ve chosen initiatives to address the Docklands’ community concerns around sustainability, youth engagement and environmental concerns. We are super excited to be working with such an amazing group of innovators and entrepreneurs who all want to make a difference for the Docklands community!” 

Professor Dan Kilper, Director CONNECT Centre, Trinity College Dublin said: “The CONNECT Centre is proud to partner with Smart Docklands on the Pilot Projects, which play an important role in demonstrating the transformative impact technology can have when guided by community needs. These initiatives create solutions that address real challenges and pave the way for a smarter, more sustainable future. The pilot winners’ projects highlight this important work—congratulations to them and to our colleagues at Smart Docklands.” 

The Smart Docklands programme established in 2017 has a track record of collaboration where academia, local government, industry, and residents come together to address urban challenges through innovation and deployment of new and emerging technologies. The Call for Pilots is a testament to the programme’s commitment to ensuring that technology serves real community needs.  

Smart Docklands’ first Call for Pilots represents a milestone in creating a connected, innovative, and engaged urban environment. By addressing key challenges through collaboration, education, and smart technology, these pilot projects highlight the benefit of what smart districts can achieve.  

 The Call for Pilots programme aims to tackle key community priorities identified through a community survey that was carried out in late 2023 and early 2024 where insights were gathered from over 300 responses. Smart Docklands ensures that smart tech is not just being deployed for ‘tech’s sake’; the programme works to engage directly with the community who live in, work in or visit the Docklands. This is done through in-person events and innovative approaches to community surveys.  

Smart Docklands extend thanks to Accenture, An Post, IPB Insurance, and National College Ireland for their support in evaluating applications. 

For more information see the  Smart Docklands website. 

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