Siemens predicts sustainable future for iconic Rio de Janeiro

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by Brianna Crandall — July 16, 2012—Rio de Janeiro is one of the most iconic cities in the world, but for some decades, especially after losing its post as the national capital in 1960, it has reportedly suffered with lack of safety, economic and social problems. But in recent years it has been thriving again and now is on the right track to become a sustainable and innovative gateway to Latin America and a model for large cities in the region. This is one major conclusion drawn from the study “Pictures of the Future Rio 2030-2040,” a future scenario of the city of Rio de Janeiro. Some of the first conclusions of this exclusive study, which should be finalized in November 2012, were disclosed in June by Siemens Brazil CEO Paulo Stark at the Urban Summit, a side event to the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development.

Rio de Janeiro in 2012 is already a vibrant city with a bright future ahead. And, according to one of the highlight conclusions of the study, if the right technologies and policies continue to be applied and further improvements, especially in education, healthcare, infrastructure and stimulus for economic development, by 2030 Rio can become the Latin American capital of business, tourism and high tech research and development hub. “Rio de Janeiro has all the necessary elements to become a true symbol of sustainable development in the south hemisphere by combining a unique blend of wealthy, creative, livable and social balanced conditions”, said Paulo Stark.

Among the major trends found are:

  • New technologies in transportation could help Rio and Sao Paulo form a powerful regional cluster, a gateway for Latin America and the world.
  • The recent discoveries in the pre-salt resources will put Rio as a reference for the oil and gas industry. Rio will play an increasing role as a leading innovation and research and development (R&D) hub in Latin America for oil/gas, information technology (IT), biotech and affordable solutions, attracting talent from around the globe.
  • Rio should increase its lead as a hub for international tourism and in particular for South America. The city also should consolidate its positioning as event city of South America hosting international events, trade shows and conferences on a regular basis. There will also be a strengthening in creative industry including media and fashion.

Some of the major challenges that Rio must overcome in order to achieve a better a sustainable future are security, transportation and education. The report notes that cities are the growth engines of the future, offering their populations greater opportunities for education, employment and prosperity, yet the negative effects of their growth result in traffic congestion, informal settlements, urban sprawl, environmental pollution, exploitation of resources and pollution. Rio is reportedly making progress in these areas, but these challenges show that social inclusion and greater equity are key on making Rio work as a city for all its inhabitants, as is true for many other developing and emerging country cities. According to the study, Rio is on a good path to overcome these challenges, with the right technologies and policies.

Siemens’ ongoing project “Pictures of the Future Rio 2030-2040” is based on trend analysis of the most important issues concerning the development of the city and is being endorsed by Siemens Corporate Technology and Siemens Brazil in closed cooperation with City of Rio de Janeiro. It incorporates the same scenario planning and strategic foresight methodology used by Siemens in the research and development of future technologies.

More information about Siemens’ activities in Rio is available at its Improving Life in Megacities Web page.