If there is one place in the world that the global smart city community can consider a mecca, it is Barcelona and its Smart City Expo World Congress. This event brings together leaders from the most innovative companies, government institutions, city representatives, civic initiatives and other organisations with the common goal of steering cities towards a better future. In 2022, this is the eleventh consecutive year since the inaugural edition in 2011. This time, however, with a strong Czech presence built on multi-level public-private cooperation. Thanks to the linking of the City of Prague pavilion with the City For The Future project, a dozen innovative Czech companies are also presented under a common banner. Another fifteen are involved in the accompanying B2B program provided jointly by Technology Centre Prague, South Moravian Innovation Centre and Business Innovation Centre Pilsen as part of the European Enterprise Network activities. The City of Brno delegation will also be present, whose members will come to gain know-how and inspiration for further development of innovation and the Smart City concept in their city and region.

Czech representatives will put their heads and technologies together with 800 other exhibitors and thousands of experts from all over the world to find answers to today's critical challenges. Cities, which consume 75 % of energy, generate 70 % of greenhouse gas emissions and are responsible for activities that account for three-quarters of national GDPs, play a major role in many of these challenges. Yet it is clear that the importance of cities will continue to grow. By 2050, two thirds of the world's population should be living in them, and up to 84 % in the EU. What makes the Barcelona Expo stand out is its inclusive, creative approach under the motto "cities inspired by people". This approach goes hand in hand with the New European Bauhaus initiative, which also calls on actors across all levels of society to be active creators of a shared sustainable future. As a multidisciplinary initiative, The New European Bauhaus aims to translate the goals of the Green Deal into the shape of public spaces and the lives of individuals, using environmental and digitalisation challenges as impulses for positive transformation. When it comes to urban transformation, there is no doubt that the Barcelona meeting will generate countless such impulses.