Focus area Smart Cities and Communities
Smart Cities and Communities is a university wide focus area. It includes all research, education and collaboration that is conducted within smart cities and communities at the University. The focus areas are Smart Mobility, Smart Energy and Smart Citizen and Communities in small and medium sized cities. Many aspects of the focus area include working with businesses and the surrounding society, and taking local conditions into consideration.
Research in collaboration within smart cities and communities
Collaboration when doing research is important in order to develop society. Collaborations between different disciplines and organisations make it possible to achieve real improvement and change. The research at Halmstad University is internationally renowned and conducted within the University’s four Schools.
The focus area Smart Cities and Communities at Halmstad University takes on the challenge of developing a smart and sustainable living environment for people.
The following research programmes are part of focus area Smart Cities and Communities
Current research
Within the focus area Smart Cities and Communities, research is conducted in several different areas. Many research projects are multi- and interdisciplinary. The focus of the focus area is directed towards the areas of Smart Mobility, Smart Energy and Smart Citizens and Communities but also touches upon other areas. The research includes all four of the University’s schools.
Collaborate with a researcher
Are you interested in collaborating with a Halmstad University researcher? A collaboration can include anything from exchanging experiences and ideas to gathering research resources and share funding.
Collaborate with the University
Innovation and collaboration arenas
The University’s innovation and collaboration arenas are used for everything from discussing ideas and testing finished products to simulating environments for educational purposes. The arenas are used by students, teachers, researchs and by businesses and organisations that the University collaborates with.
Electronics Centre in Halmstad (ECH)
Digital Laborotory Centre (DLC)
Halmstad University is also a part of several national arenas, for example Fordonsstrategisk forskning och innovation (FFI) and Drive Sweden.

Education within smart cities and communities
A large part of the education at Halmstad University is permeated with Smart Cities and Communities. It is partly about how smart cities and communities work, and about how we are going to get there. The education includes basic, advanced and research level.
The University has the right to award doctorates in three different areas: Information Technology, Innovation Sciences, and Health and Lifestyle.
Research schools within Smart Cities and Communities
Embedded and Intelligent Systems Industrial Graduate School (EISIGS)
National industrial research school within Smart Industry
The research school Smart Industry Sweden is a collaboration between Halmstad University, University West, University of Skövde, Jönköping University and Mid Sweden University in close collaboration with the Knowledge Foundation. The companies in the research school receive one or more PhD students but gain access to the entire network of universities, PhD students, senior researchers and companies. The purpose of Smart Industry Sweden is to strengthen Swedish industry.
Smart Industry Sweden External link.
Summer schools within Smart Cities and Communities
Summer School on Data-Driven Predictive Maintenance for Industry 4.0
Summer School on District Heating and Cooling, DHC+
Basic and advanced level education
Within the area of smart cities and communities, the University offers several programmes and courses on basic and advanced level. There are for example Master’s programmes in energy smart innovation in the built environment, embedded and intelligent systems and digital service innovation.

Contact focus area Smart Cities and Communities
Would you like to get in contact with the focus area Smart Cities and Communities? Fill out the form and describe what we can help you with, and we will put you in contact with the right person.
About focus area Smart Cities and Communities
Smart Cities and Communities aims to support a wide collaboration at the University within research and education as well as between research specialisations where the University meets challenges together with relevant actors, for example industry, city councils and regions.
The focus area Smart Cities and Communities is well in line with the University being the innovation driven university.
The focus area is interdisciplinary and built on existing strong research programs, with special attention to innovative and sustainable solutions for the industry and the region, to be able to meet challenges for the development of towns and communities. The main point of the focus area is small and medium sized cities and communities. The focus area is a part of the University’s Knowledge Foundation Research – Environment, Research for Innovation.
The focus area Smart Cities and Communities creates sustainability through the use of information and communication technology. Sustainable in this regard is understood as sustainable from three perspectives; economically, socially and environmentally sustainable. This means that all activities within the focus area need to be linked to one or more of the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals.

Innovation conference
The innovation conference is a concept where Halmstad University's two focus areas, Smart Cities and Communities and Health Innovation, alternate the hosting.
The innovation conference of 2021 was hosted by the profile area Smart Cities and Communities and was held on September 23. The focus of the conference was small and medium-sized cities. The theme revolved around the development, challenges and opportunities of the smart city.

Newsletter
Sign up here to register for Halmstad University's Smart Cities and Communities newsletter and get updates on new research results, collaboration initiatives and network activities.
Focus within the focus area
Focus within Smart Cities and Communities is primarily on Smart Mobility, Smart Energy and Smart Citizens and Communities. Examples of activities also exist within the sub-areas Smart Education, Smart Buildings and Smart Health, the latter also being part of the University's other profile area, Health Innovation.
Smart Cities and Communities is one of the two University focus areas, and the latest one to be established. The other is Health Innovation.

Annual Report
Until 2020, annual reports were made to summarise the activities within the focus area Smart Cities and Communities. This has been replaced by newsletters.
Order the Smart Cities and Communities annual report from 2019.
Annual Report Smart Cities and Communities 2019 (DiVA) External link, opens in new window.