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Turning smart city ambitions into partnerships and investment plans is a challenging path. Utrecht has gone through this process, laying the foundations for the IRIS Smart Cities project. It developed an investment and implementation plan with local partners incorporating ICT, energy, mobility and citizen engagement. While it wasn't always a slice of heaven, Utrecht outlined their journey and key success factors to provide insight in the process of building a smart city. Today, they have a dynamic, developing urban area and an IRIS demonstration site that embodies the project's smart, sustainable and co-creation pillars. The birth of IRIS in Utrecht dates back to numerous converging initiatives. Top-down, a municipal coalition agreement in 2014 emphasized a multi-stakeholder approach to accelerate energy transition. City engagement in EUROCITIES working groups on mobility, environment and knowledge society as chair or co-chair helped to inspire new ideas and expose councilors and civil servants to best practices. The know-how, relationships and tangible results inspired the city to target a flagship ‘Smart Cities and Communities’ funding call. With a solid skeleton document in play, the natural step was to get everyone around the table. With ambassadors recruited in key partner organizations, the second step was to look for a real estate owner with a renovation property and timeline that could fit. After several exploratory conversations, social housing corporation Bo-Ex provided the perfect fit. A first European lighthouse project proposal was submitted by Utrecht in 2016. It was well appraised but unsuccessful. Back to the drawing board and some critical thinking for the Utrecht ecosystem. Civity, a young SME that really understood the potential of (open) urban data to foster innovation and deliver better services was invited to participate for a second shot. Behind every project are the people and organizations. Having a catalyst, broker and champion is essential. Utrecht Sustainability Institute has a strong DNA of connecting researchers, sustainability advocates and near-to-market solution providers. Their collaboration with the municipality was highly complementary and based on dedication and trust in each other’s teams. With all the interests and ambitions aligned in the demonstration, discussions inevitably come to the vital issue of money. For Utrecht, transparency was again the keyword and efforts made to fully understand each other's interests. Individual and confidential meetings led to a clear budget proposal to be shared and finalize together. The whole process required a lot of calls and in-person exchange. Task 3 For sentences 17-23, choose the correct ending. Mark one letter (A, B or C) on your answer sheet. 17. The concept of a Smart City adopted by Utrecht implies integration of A. technology, provision of accessible environment and public participation in the community projects. B. smart digital solutions, environmental issues and development of civil society. C. use of mobile devices for the management of ITC, energy and society-related issues. 18. The progress Utrecht made on its way to implementing the concept of a Smart City A. was highly valued at an IRIS exhibition. B. can be appreciated both in the real and virtual environment. C. was not as great as it was expected. 19. IRIS in Utrecht was launched A. as a collaborative project of several institutions that elected its own administration board. B. as a project conceived and administered by municipal authorities. C. as a community project involving various stakeholders. 20. The success of IRIS project in Utrecht was determined by the following reasons A. it developed unique ideas and know-how. B. it involved only experienced participants that employed best practices. C. city’s previous experience taking part in and leading similar projects enabled it to apply for relevant financing. 21. In the second stage in IRIS project it was important A. to find a property that needs renovation, which could be potentially performed during the project term. B. to find partners that have experience in implementing social housing projects. C. to select a property of social significance to be renovated within the project. 22. The lighthouse project A. had to be redeveloped to account for environmental concerns. B. was not successful due to insufficient use of open data. C. involved development of digital drawing and a database. 23. The phrase Having a catalyst, broker and champion is essential means that every project needs A. an expert, a financial specialist and the main performer. B. a commissioner, an accountant and project manager. C. an initiator, an intermediary dealing with stakeholders and a leader.