On June 1, technology innovators will convene at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC for the Global City Teams Challenge (GCTC) Expo. Sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and US Ignite, the GCTC Expo allows attendees to experience first-hand the future of Smart City and Internet of Things applications. Smart cities use technology to improve performance in key sectors, such as transport, energy and health care. The Internet of Things helps smart cities reduce costs and engage more effectively with its citizens.
Over 40 GCTC teams will be conducting project demonstrations, including unmanned aerial vehicle networks for firefighters, autonomous vehicles and other Internet of Things applications. In addition, city officials will discuss ongoing research and the future of smart cities in a series of rapid-fire presentations. Several VIPs from the United States and Europe will be in attendance, including a special visit from King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima from the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The District of Columbia government fiber network, DC-Net is the prime provider of transport, Internet and Wi-Fi services for participants and attendees at the GCTC Expo. Working alongside the George Washington University Capital Area Advanced Research and Education Network (CAAREN), attendees will be connected to Internet2 over a dedicated, secure network. The Internet2 connection will allow attendees to use the power of high bandwidth applications throughout the Expo. CAAREN and DC-Net will enable secure connectivity for the participating teams, and public access to thousands of attendees.
CAAREN is building a high-performance research and education infrastructure in the D.C. area to facilitate world-class research, and serves as an onramp to Internet2 as a member of the United States Unified Community Anchor Network (U.S. UCAN). CAAREN offers research network services to organizations such as schools, libraries, hospitals, government institutions and some private-sector organizations.
DC-Net is the District’s government owned and operated fiber optic network and is the first 100Gbps capable municipal network in the U.S. In addition to bringing the power of the 21st century technology to government services, DC-Net connects schools and universities, health care providers and other community anchors throughout the D.C. region. DC-Net has partnered with CAAREN since 2013, enabling access to advanced research programming that is key for science, technology, education and mathematics (STEM) and other school initiatives.