「Contactless （by default）」Barcelona Urban Design Talk: YouFab Global Creative Awards 2020

Known for its efforts in revolutionizing itself as a smart city, Barcelona has been consistently updating its urban environment from a variety of perspectives, including mobility, energy efficiency and environmental improvement. However, this year’s global pandemic has forced cities around the world, including Barcelona, to undergo major, destabilizing disruptions to everyday life. In the wake of these changes, how have our cities responded – and more importantly, how can we transform the future urban life for the better?

Hosted by the 2020 YouFab Global Creative Award and FabCafe Barcelona, this talk is part of this year’s YouFab theme “Contactless (by default)” – which zeroes in on the ubiquity of ‘contactless’ (by default!) experiences, but also the new innovations turning adversity into opportunity. In the context of the urban environment, we look to cities experts Pablo Valerio and Salvador Rueda to find out the ways in which technology and creativity can merge with the city, in a post-Covid era.

Renowned tech journalist Pablo Valerio is a regular contributor of several publications in the IT ecosystem, focusing on networks, IoT, security, mobile technology and smart cities. He will unravel the ways in which technology and cities can work together towards a smarter future. Meanwhile, urban planner and theorist Salvador Rueda, oft-hailed Barcelona’s father of ‘superblocks’ (superilla) and an ‘urban visionary’, will help to shine a light on the significance of community-building and mobility for future urban utopias. The special panel will be joined by physicist-turned-entrepreneur, FabCafe Barcelona CEO David Tena Vicente. 

The event has been organized by FabCafe Barcelona and the 2020 YouFab Global Creative Award, the global award that celebrates creative works and innovations stemming from powerful collaborations between digital and physical fabrication. 

Event details
Date: October 14, 2020, 20:00 (GMT+9 Japan time)

Distribution: YouTube Live (FabCafeTV) 

Guests: Salvador Rueda and Pablo Valerio

Moderator: David Tena Vicente (FabCafe Barcelona)

Entry Fee: Free

Organizer: YouFab Global Creative Awards  x FabCafe Barcelona 

About the speakers

Pablo Valerio is a tech journalist and writer for publications including EE Times, EBN, IoT Times. He is the editor of Cities of the Future, which focuses on smart cities, environment, and sustainable mobility. He has 25+ years of experience in the IT industry and a MS in electrical engineering from The Ohio State University. 

Salvador Rueda was the director of the Urban Ecology Agency of Barcelona (Ecologia Urbana Agency), a public consortium consisting of the City Council of Barcelona, the Municipal Council and Metropolitan Area of Barcelona and the Barcelona Provincial Council founded in 2000. With degrees in biology, psychology and a diploma in environmental engineering and energy management, Rueda has written extensively on urban planning and has been a guest speaker in numerous national and international conferences, as well as in master’s and postgraduate programs.