Collaborative Research: IRES Track I: Future Mobility for Smart City

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By 2050, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimates that approximately 66% of the world’s population will reside in urban areas, posing significant challenges associated with environmental and social sustainability. To address these challenges, many national and global agencies have launched initiatives such as the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Smart City Challenge program, World Bank’s Sustainable Cities Initiative, and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. A multifaceted and holistic approach is the core element in achieving the goals of smart cities, especially balancing the digital infrastructure with the physical infrastructure. Considering the ever-advancing sensors and information technology coupled with the urgency of adapting cities to be resilient to climate change and to provide adequate mobility to the public, the onus is on educators to develop a pedagogic and scholastic approach to preparing our students for the future. There is an urgent and unmet need to expose our students to a research environment where they can appreciate the integrated and interdisciplinary nature of sustainable and smart cities to address a variety of issues surrounding urban areas and develop a multifaceted problem-solving mindset. This project aims to initiate an international research experience for students (IRES) program at Seoul National University (SNU) in South Korea with an overarching research theme of mobility for sustainable and smart cities. The proposed IRES program will support an 8-week summer research experience for a cohort of six U.S. undergraduate/graduate students each year for the three-year duration of the grant. The goals of the proposed IRES program are: (i) To foster creative and multidisciplinary perspectives on problem-solving by exposing students to the research fields of sustainable and smart cities; (ii) to develop global competence by providing students an immersive academic and cultural experience in South Korea; and (iii) to ultimately motivate students to pursue a career in STEM. Furthermore, this proposed IRES program will help our students grow not just as prepared engineers but also as community leaders with a broad and diverse worldview. This IRES project addresses the fundamental research question: How and to what extent a digital infrastructure (e.g., sensors and data science) can enhance human life from an urban mobility perspective? A three-level approach will be emphasized in exploring and delving into the data analytics, optimization techniques, and model building using various tools (e.g., GIS, Unity3D). This innovative and holistic research approach will advance knowledge of the relationship between digital infrastructure and physical infrastructure, and ultimately provide the essential digital infrastructure layout to further support physical infrastructure - a much-needed fundamental information to build a smart city. Furthermore, this will allow our students to capture and understand the importance of a holistic and multidisciplinary approach. Seoul National University’s Smart City Engineering Program provides a state-of-the-art research environment for sustainable and smart cities, with leading experts in engineering, planning, science, and policy, as well as world-class lab and testbed equipment and facilities. Upon completion of this IRES project, we expect students will achieve: (i) Elevated interest and intellectual growth in the immediate and related fields of future mobility for sustainable and smart cities (e.g., big data analyses, code development, design and programming of a multimodal system); (ii) increased awareness of diversity within and across cultures in problem solving in engineering; (iii) confidence in the ability to work as a member of a cross-cultural engineering team; and (iv) diverse and knowledgeable worldview.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.