France/Lorient Agglomeration: a territory committed to a responsible digital approach

Among the dozen or so French local authorities mobilised under the "French Lab" banner by France Urbaine at the last Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, Lorient Agglomération (Morbihan) was in the right place to present its strategy for digital transition. This was an opportunity for the third largest agglomeration in Brittany to demonstrate that it is committed to a responsible approach that is leading it towards a "smart territory" that integrates the environmental concept.

The Smart City Expo World Congress, which took place in Barcelona from 16 to 18 November, is now the leading European event dedicated to smart cities and digital uses, with 120 countries and 700 cities represented. Every year, elected officials and local managers flock to the event, especially since Barcelona is not so far away, to present their approaches to digital transition and learn about the latest developments in the field.Every year, elected officials and territorial managers flock to the event, especially since Barcelona is not so far away, to present their approaches to digital transition and learn about the advances in the development of so-called "intelligent" cities and territories. For many, this is a unique opportunity.

Embedded byFrance Urbaine, the leading association of metropolises, urban communities, agglomeration communities and large cities, Lorraine will be the first to take part in the event.Lorient Agglomération, the third largest agglomeration in Brittany, in terms of population, behind Rennes and Brest, had a rightful place at the heart of this event. For the politicians of Lorient, it was a question of promoting the digital transition approach in which this territory is involved and establishing a privileged dialogue with foreign delegations on its projects and its ambition for 2030.

Since the adoption of its Digital Territorial Plan in 2019, the agglomeration has set itself the objective of promoting theSince adopting its Territorial Digital Plan in 2019, the urban area has set itself the goal of promoting the economy and innovation, supporting job creation and change, and combating digital vulnerability in all 25 of its municipalities.

"A territory that drives and harmonises digital development

"Lorient Agglomération has a role to play in supporting, training and disseminating the culture of digital uses, in order to gain visibility and to count in the face of the affirmation of metropolises"For Patricia Quéro-Ruen, vice-president in charge of digital at Lorient Agglomeration."Re-examining our way of doing things - and letting people know about it - is becoming necessary in order to meet the objectives of sustainable development, particularly with regard to climate issues, energy sobriety and renewable energies, but also in order to meet the challenges of the future.energy sobriety, renewable energies, but also data security and artificial intelligence".

For all the elected representatives of the Lorient conurbation, the ambition is great since it is a question of making "a territory that drives and harmonizes digital development" with a real strategy thought at the local level, around digital uses. "Make Lorient Agglomération a 100% connected territory, support the digital transition for all users and act for digital responsibility"This is the wish of Lorient and the 24 municipalities that make up this Breton territory.

But the local authority does not intend to stop at simply deploying digital infrastructures on its territory, since the next territorial plan will include a social and environmental approach.

Based on the "Manifesto for responsible digital territories" proposed by France Urbaine, the Lorient conurbation was able toThe Lorient conurbation was able to specify how it was deploying a local strategy based on the concept of a "smart territory" at its level.

This is the case for the territorial data center project, which will enable the region to develop digital sovereignty through control of infrastructures and secure data management. This data center is intended to be eco-responsible thanks to innovative technologies in line with the territory's ecological commitments, and in particular the use of renewable energies that can be re-injected into the energy network.

This is also the case for the "connected waste collection centre", which, thanks to sensors and a low-frequency LORA network, enables theThis is also the case for the "connected waste collection centre", which, thanks to sensors and a LORA low-frequency network, can inform users about the number of people using the site, so that they can choose the best time to drop off their waste and avoid queuing.

For the Breton local authority, which is pooling its services with all the municipalities concerned, the development of a genuine "smart territory" is on the cards. According to local elected officials, this should make it possible to improve the quality of life of inhabitants by combining two important aspects of public policy: the environment and digital technology.This is not always the case, as digital technology, when poorly managed, can be devastating for the environment.

Source: www.villeintelligente-mag.fr/