In November 2019, Greater Phoenix Smart Region Consortium was founded in Phoenix, Arizona, in
partnership with the
Economic Innovation Partnership, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, the Maricopa Association of
Governments, Arizona
State University and the Digital Progress Institute (greaterphxconnective.com).
The goal of the consortium is to make Greater Phoenix the world's leading marketplace for innovation
and technology.
This consortium is a strategic initiative based on different models of applied research and
development designed to
foster focused, unprecedented collaboration among government, business, academic and public
stakeholders and partners.
The Connective Consortium provides an integrated and comprehensive partnership approach across
sectors and communities,
resulting in effective, interconnected, accessible and interoperable services that improve the
quality of life for
people and businesses in Greater Phoenix.
Figure 1 shows the structure of the Connective Consortium.
Figure 1 - Connective Consortium Structure
Now let's look at what role each member plays in the consortium.
1. Institute for Digital Progress includes (idp-corp.com):
- A network of innovation sandboxes (UZ Urban Labs) that research and test IoT devices, develop and
scale projects
related to smart city, healthcare, water and energy, provide a transformational platform for cities,
entrepreneurs,
innovators and businesses to conduct R&D and a testing ground for commercialization
- The Academy for Smarter Communities (TASC) trains senior government officials in the strategic
foundations and tactics
for leading their communities through smart city technologies and processes
- Development & Management Academy (DMA) - provides training in managing the implementation and
scaling of innovative
solutions and projects
- Networking Academy - trains and fosters the technical skills needed to operate new technology
solutions
2. Greater Phoenix Economic Council includes (gpec.org):
- The Wear Tech Innovation Center - develops solutions for wearable devices that improve quality of
life and human
productivity
- Center for Applied Research, which engages innovative businesses and entrepreneurship, develops
the competitiveness of
the Phoenix agglomeration, provides confidential expertise to companies on strategic management
issues, provides data
and analytics on workforce and economic interaction in the region, provides an inventory of valuable
assets, unique
buildings and ready-to-use facilities, facilitates connections to key resources in the region,
including local and state
3. Arizona State University (ASU) includes (asu.edu):
- Center for Science and Society Learning and Engagement - develops new approaches to the
interaction of scientists,
government, business, and the public
- The Center for Smart Cities and Regions - generates ideas, scenarios, networks, and spaces to
enable partners to use
innovation to create the cities and regions of the future
- The Center for Innovation and Community Development - develops projects that contribute to the
innovative development
of society
- Risk Innovation Lab, which researches and scientifically develops solutions to problems related to
innovation risks
4. Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) includes (azmag.gov):
- Information Technology - provides computing resources, database design and support, programming,
application support
and telecommunications services
- Regional Analytics - collects, manages and analyzes regional and state-level analytics, makes the
data available
through various reports and tools to partners and stakeholders, and provides free training in the
use of interactive
maps and research data
In this way, Connective provides an opportunity to bring together research institutions,
cutting-edge industries, and
high-tech entrepreneurs to solve real-world problems affecting Greater Phoenix residents and
businesses.