Professor Björn Hårsman was in charge of the Stockholm consortium´s proposal to Urban Futures. While there is no Mistra money contributing, the group is still on track to create a cross-platform that will work for several institutions.“We had many ideas and for us the emphasis on business development was very important when we applied to Urban Futures," says Björn Hårsman.
The Royal Institute of Technology, KTH, will create an Urban Laboratory for Sustainable Development together with the City of Stockholm and along with the rest of the application sponsor partners such as IBM, Tyréns, Vasakronan Waterfall and Sweco.
Prototype at the World Congres
IBM, The Road Administration and the City of Stockholm have already initiated a project which addresses how better information to road users and freight carriers can contribute to more efficient choices for transportation methods and routing decisions.
“Together with IBM and the Road Administration, we presented at the ITS World Congress held in Stockholm last week a prototype of how this could be accomplished. Our demonstration was the best attended of all at the exhibition," said Björn Hårsman.
While sounding enthusiastic and goal oriented, he admits that everything will be scaled down without money from Mistra: “Yes, there is no chance for a large scale program without money. We´ll start on a small scale with concrete projects. The future is based on our success."
Another project in the planning stages is about how energy use in buildings can be reduced through supplying accurate information on energy consumption to the users/tenants.
Björn Hårsman also wants to emphasize the economic aspects affecting sustainable urban development. It is about how the urban economy determines what is achievable. This fundamental aspect was not made clear in the Mistra call for entries, according to Björn Hårsman.
“It is an important issue: Is it the case that economic growth is an asset for sustainable urban development, or is it an obstacle?"
He will soon travel to San Francisco to meet some of the many international contacts he has cultivated. “We have established many contacts that we can use now. San Francisco is very into Green Building Structures," says Björn Hårsman.
Frustration and stimulation
Working on the application was both frustrating and invigorating. Engineers and architects from the Royal Institute of Technology had to be in agreement with both social and natural scientists from Stockholm University—in addition to satisfying the needs of various businesses and public administrations.
“We have been battling on all fronts and have as a result come a long way in terms of cross-border cooperation, for example, systems architects and ecologists, behavioral scientists and economists, and especially academics and practitioners."
“When we learned that the Gothenburg team won, several young researchers contacted me and said ‘Now you will see that there really is something to this!´ And I almost feel like it is my sworn duty," jokes Björn Hårsman with a laugh.
