After the initial national push to make Canadian communities into smart communities, large cities and small towns alike are continuing the effort to level up the positive impact of new technologies. - BY DANIEL PEREZ

When Canada launched its initial Smart Cities Challenge, the initiative was the first of its kind in the country. For peers, it had gleaming European capitals and star cities like Amsterdam, London, and Barcelona. The hope was that the challenge – and its $50 million grand prize – would help the country make a great leap forward in technology adoption and application.

To a degree, that initial push succeeded. However, it was a one-time experime....