Under the theme "Transforming Cities: Building Happiness," Smart City Expo Curitiba (SCECWB) will hold its sixth edition from March 25 to 27 to promote urban transformation focused on citizen well-being. The congress, which moves to the Ligga Arena in downtown Curitiba, will increase its number of exhibitors to 120, bring together 180 speakers, and expects to welcome 20,000 visitors. This is the first of 10 events that Fira de Barcelona will organize abroad throughout 2025, as part of its internationalization strategy.
The event, promoted by the Curitiba City Hall, chaired by Mayor Eduardo Pimentel, and organized by Fira de Barcelona and iCities, is supported by Vale do Pinhao, the city's Innovation Agency. The conference program is designed to address the main challenges facing cities, with a particular focus on the problems of Latin American cities. Presentations will be structured around eight thematic axes: Sustainable Cities and Climate Change, Resilience and Urban Renewal, Governance and Digital Citizenship, Cities for People and Well-being, Digital Transformation and Innovation, Technology and Disruptive Business, and two new thematic events: Tomorrow.Building and Tomorrow.Mobility.
Keynote speakers include Edson Yabiku, a Brazilian architect who has worked in both Japan and London at Norman Foster's office; Canadian urban planner Charles Montgomery, author of the bestseller Happy City, which argues that city design can generate happiness for its inhabitants; and Brazilian artist Márcio Ballas, a leading expert in clown and improvisation techniques.
In addition, SCECWB will feature an exhibition area that will bring together 120 exhibitors and partners. Among the companies and institutions present are Dassault Systems, Ligga Telecom, NEC, Polkadot, and TIM, who will showcase solutions and technologies capable of promoting and collaborating on sustainable urban transformation.
Brazilian Awards.
SCECWB 2025 will host the second edition of the Brazilian Awards, prizes that recognize initiatives and companies with outstanding projects in the field of urban innovation in Brazil. Five awards will be presented in the categories of Innovation and Digital Transformation, Sustainable City, Urban Mobility, Social Equity, and Smart City of Brazil.
A leader in sustainability and inclusion.
In 2025, SCECWB will redouble its commitment to inclusion and sustainability at the event itself. The event will offset 100% of its CO2 emissions, avoid single-use plastics, and recycle 90% of the materials used during the event. It also has planned systems to enable people with mobility, hearing, and neurodivergent disabilities to attend the event and follow all presentations.
Fira de Barcelona, the international platform
for SCECWB, is the first of many events that Fira de Barcelona will organize outside of Spain in 2025. With 10 confirmed events, the trade fair institution is strengthening its international expansion strategy. Scheduled events include further editions of Smart City Expo in New York (USA), Puebla (Mexico), Santiago del Estero (Chile), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), and Tomorrow City Shanghai. In addition, Fira will also hold the Mexico Hospitality Expo, IOT Brazil (São Paulo), and Alimentaria Chengdu in China.
Source: Fira Barcelona.