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Thanks to a policy of promoting connectivity,
the city of Dublin, Ohio, in the United States
has been able to attract major companies
and generate employment, while giving its
residents much wider opportunities based
on access to information and communication
technologies (ICT). This article looks at
Dublin’s plan to be the first in the state of
Ohio to go wireless and its recognition as one
of the leading intelligent communities in the
world.
Almost the entire business community of Dublin,
Ohio, is served by broadband connections to the
Internet, as well as most households and all institutions
and government departments. It is this innovation
and dedication to developing ICT that led to
Dublin being named, in January 2010, a Top Seven
Intelligent Community by the Intelligent Community
Forum, a New York-based think-tank that studies the
economic and social development of the 21st century
community.
Dublin was named one of the world’s leading
intelligent communities along with Arlington
County, Virginia; Dundee, Scotland; Eindhoven in the
Netherlands; Ottawa, Canada; Suwon, Republic of
Korea and Tallinn in Estonia. Dublin was given this
recognition for its commitment to building a knowledge-
based society.
“It is a great honour to be considered in league
with these global communities, and to be recognized
for our efforts to keep our citizens and businesses
connected to the world,” said Dublin City Manager
Terry Foegler. “To be named one of seven international
cities awarded Intelligent Community status
further solidifies Dublin’s reputation as a community
where you will find a highly educated workforce, an
entrepreneurial spirit and the infrastructure to support
it.”
But it is Suwon that was finally named in May
2010 as the Intelligent Community of the Year by
the Intelligent Community Forum. Dublin Mayor Tim
Lecklider commented: “Though Dublin may be the
smallest of the Top Seven communities honoured this
year, I think this achievement demonstrates that the
city’s initiatives are on par with innovative communities
across the globe.”
Dublin’s innovation dates back to the liberalization
of the US market. The Telecommunications Act
of 1996 deregulated the sector in the United States
and Dublin began building a system of underground
conduits designed to carry broadband networks. The
fibre-optic network DubLink was completed in 2003
as a result of a public-private partnership with Team
Fishel, a construction and installation company based
in Columbus, the capital of Ohio. Dublin uses the network
for its government offices, but does not provide
communication services to other clients directly.
Instead, it leases space in the network or conduits
to private carriers, in a similar way to the method
used in Stockholm (see article entitled Stockholm,
Sweden: Encouraging competition with an openaccess
broadband network in the May 2010 issue of ITU News).
“DubLink has been cited for connectivity by companies
such as Nationwide Insurance (over 5000 employees),
Verizon Wireless (over 600 employees),
Ohio Health Revenue Cycle Office (over 300 employees),
and Ohio Health’s Dublin Methodist Hospital (an
almost USD 100-million hospital with over 300 employees),”
said Dublin’s Deputy City Manager Dana
McDaniel. “Competitive broadband services provide
a competitively priced and fibre-rich environment for
residents and businesses.”
The network has made Dublin one of the leaders
in e-government, with services including an interactive
locator of property and building sites for developers;
online access to council meetings; and the
ability for online applications to be made for official
permits. Residents can also sign up to receive e-mail
updates on specific topics.
In 2006, Dublin installed a Wi-Fi network covering
ten square kilometres of the city centre offering
high-speed, mobile access to the Internet. Using
mesh technology from Cisco Systems as the wireless
infrastructure, the Dublin-based company DHB
Networks built an outdoor network and connected it
to the existing DubLink system, which serves as the
mesh network’s backhaul.
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The primary aim of the initial deployment was
to improve public safety through supporting police
and other emergency services, as well as to increase
the efficiency of municipal operations, such as clearing
snow from blocked roads. Access points to the
network are attached to buildings and streetlights,
and information can be sent via mobile phones, or
by connected cameras and other sensors. Also, a
Cisco wireless mobile router was installed in the city’s
Mobile Command Post — a communications vehicle
that links to the mesh network and enables the city
to wirelessly transmit video from surveillance cameras
and to operate a multi-station voice over Internet
Protocol (VoIP) telephone network.
DubLink has expanded to join up with networks
in Columbus and other nearby cities. It has also connected
to the Ohio Academic Resources Network
(OARnet) to establish the Central Ohio Research
Network (CORN), which links local governments,
medical facilities, broadcasters, businesses and
schools to the Ohio Supercomputer Center and other
resources. For example, it is now easy for all connected
individuals and organizations to access the
Online Computer Library Center, which has its headquarters
in Dublin. This provides information on the
collections held by more than 70 000 libraries around
the world.
The next stage is to take the wireless network citywide.
“Establishing a wireless institutional network
was our vision from the start,” said Ms McDaniel.
“Construction of this Wi-Fi system will provide mobile
computing and remote broadband access for
municipal operations. Broadband is as essential as
any other utility in the global economy, and it is the
infrastructure of the future.”
In building for the future, Dublin is also committed
to leveraging technology and broadband to benefit and help the youth of the city. Every year, OARnet
holds an event to bring together children from the
United States and beyond. It is designed to give
students in primary and secondary schools around
the world, the opportunity to communicate, collaborate
and contribute to each other’s learning, using
advanced multi-point videoconferencing technology.
For example, at the 2010 event (which was held on
25 February), students at schools in the United States
and Slovenia were able to make music together, although
far apart geographically. Other children gave
presentations and answered questions on the science
projects they are undertaking.
In order to encourage girls in particular to pursue
careers in science and technology, the Ohio
Supercomputer Center organizes a yearly Young
Women’s Summer Institute for girls of 11 to 13 years
of age. It comprises a week-long programme of activities,
including practical experience of using the
latest computer technology to work on an interesting
scientific problem, such as the impact of humans
upon the environment or the water quality of a river
system.
“We are embarking on new initiatives with our
local school district and regional colleges and universities
to leverage broadband and to facilitate discussion
between schools and the business community
to strengthen, retain and attract quality workforce,”
explained Ms McDaniel.
The Intelligent Community Forum, which seeks
to share best practices and offer research and insights
into the success of the world’s Intelligent
Communities, recognized the educational role
that communities such as Dublin have developed
through ICT.
“The Top Seven of 2010 have demonstrated ingenuity
through innovative broadband applications and
dedication to education,” said Intelligent Community
Forum co-founder Louis Zacharilla. “Each of these
communities was affected by the recession, yet they
pushed forward with their commitment to broadband,
innovation and a knowledge-based economy
through investments in research and development
facilities, and the creation and aggressive support of
small business and clusters of industries that continued
to produce new jobs.”
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