NU Global relations: online lecture on “Smart Sustainable Cities”

The online lecture “Smart Sustainable Cities” took place as part of the cooperation between NU and the Embassy of the Netherlands in early April. Nazarbayev University students had the opportunity to listen to a talk by senior researcher on energy efficiency and lecturer on renewable energy, Dr. Martijn Rietbergen from HU University of Applied Science Utrecht.

The key topics of the lecture revolved around the concept of ‘smart sustainable cities’, including their characteristics, problems of urban areas, implementation stimulating strategies and areas of criticism.

The students learned about the factors driving the development of ‘smart sustainable cities’ and how the concept might be implemented. The lecturer also talked at length about ways to overcome certain barriers in transitioning to smart sustainable cities. At the end of the lecture, the participants discussed some of the environmental problems of Kazakhstan and the city of Nur-Sultan. Also, Nazarbayev University professors specializing in topics related to smart cities and renewable energy were able to network with their Dutch colleagues for further research cooperation.