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“Cities have just 2,000 days left to achieve critical sustainability goals,” warns Arcadis in latest report

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Arcadis’ Sustainable Cities Index 2024 reveals major disparities in sustainability progress, as cities race to meet 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)  Amsterdam takes top spot as most Sustainable City, thanks to strong economic performance, social equity, and renewable energy investment. Maintaining trajectory critical as SDG deadline approaches, with opportunities for even highest-ranking cities to accelerate sustainability goals

AMSTERDAM, June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Arcadis has issued a rallying call to cities worldwide, as the publication of its Sustainable Cities Index 2024 reveals the need for accelerated action in tackling climate change and other sustainability challenges.

The publication of the report comes with nearly 2,000 days until the 2030 deadline for achieving the UN SDGs. It reveals clear differences between leading cities such as Amsterdam (1st), Copenhagen (3rd) and Munich (5th), and those trailing behind – particularly US and Asian cities like New York (48th), Boston (56th), and Taipei (62nd).  

Arcadis’ Sustainable Cities Index ranks 100 cities across three pillars of sustainability – Planet, People, and Profit. Marking the 6th edition of the report since its inception in 2015, it comprises 67 metrics that highlight our evolving understanding of sustainability, including air pollution, waste management, and investment in low carbon infrastructure (including renewable energy and sustainable transport), as well as economic performance, social equity, and natural disaster resilience.

This year Arcadis has also added a fourth ‘Progress’ pillar to measure change over time. This demonstrates the impact of sustainability interventions over the last decade and, when considered alongside the other pillars, provides insights into a city’s future trajectory.

Overall, European cities dominate the top of the Index. All four German cities included in the report – Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, and Berlin – claim spots in the top 10, buoyed by achievements in water sanitation and waste management, and low greenhouse gas emissions.

High performance in the Planet pillar is associated with overall success, with eight of the top 10 cities for Planet also appearing in the overall top 10. The Planet pillar is comprised of metrics like sustainable energy systems and low-emission transport, suggesting these are powerful tools for urban sustainability.

This year’s index also highlights that high performance on the Profit metric does not necessarily come at the expense of environmental sustainability. The report emphasizes how a thriving economy should support investment in infrastructure, alternative energy sources, green initiatives, and social programs. Amsterdam, the most sustainable city of 2024, also ranks at the top of the Profit pillar, excelling in income and living standards, employment, and transport infrastructure.

North American cities dominate the Profit pillar. San Francisco, Dallas, Chicago, Houston, New York, and Seattle all appear in the top 10 for Profit, thanks to ease of doing business, GDP per capita, and employment rates. However, while these cities demonstrate business success, wage levels and living standards are not keeping pace. To move higher up, socially inclusive development strategies are critical, and North American and European cities must draw inspiration from each other to continue making progress.

When it comes to progress over the last decade, many European cities have made significant strides – despite their sustainable starting points – to cement their position at the top of the Index. Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Warsaw, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, and Berlin all feature in the top third of the Progress pillar and the top third of the index overall. This is thanks to a commitment to renewable energy production, as well as socio-economic factors like female labor force participation, and healthcare.

Although low in the overall rankings, the dominance of Asian cities such as Jakarta, Wuhan, and Shanghai at the top of the Progress pillar shows that, in cities with limited prior sustainable infrastructure or practices, early steps can have enormous impact in generating momentum.

John Batten, Arcadis Global Cities Director, said:

“Cities play a critical role in advancing the sustainable development agenda. However, our progress assessment shows that more needs to be done to meet the SDG deadline. With just 2,000 days to go, the challenge is to keep innovating. Whether by scaling up renewable energy initiatives, integrating climate considerations into infrastructure planning, improving mobility through intelligent traffic management, or supporting the retrofit of existing buildings, there are always areas to improve. As 2030 approaches, cities must build on successes, identify areas for progress, and foster collaboration to address challenges.”

Download the full report here.

About Arcadis

 

SOURCE Arcadis

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Neusoft Education officially renamed as ” Neutech Group Limited “, accelerating the advancement of the “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour” strategy in a new stage

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January 12, 2025

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HONG KONG, Jan. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On 9 January, Neusoft Education (09616.HK) announced that the Company’s English name will change from “Neusoft Education Technology Co. Limited” to “Neutech Group Limited”. The name change will take effect on the same day.

According to the announcement, the Company’s renaming to “Neutech Group Limited” better reflects its strategic transformation and upgrade, and more accurately demonstrates its five-in-one industry layout of “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour”. This will establish a new corporate brand image and highlight the Company’s comprehensive strength in technological innovation and integrated development. Starting with the name change, the Company will focus on education and adapt to the aging economy, promoting the parallel development of academic education, continuing education, senior education, and resource output. This will create a business model of “education-assisted healthcare, education-assisted wellness, medical-care conversion, medical-education assistance, care-supported medicine, and care-education assistance”. Driven by technology and platform research and development, the company will achieve integrated development of education, medicine, care, health, and tourism, as well as efficient use of human, financial, and material resources. This will build a harmonious and inclusive “education + technology + medical care + health + tourism” prosperous ecosystem. It is expected to further enhance the Company’s brand reputation and industry influence, and support its sustainable development.

Neutech Group, as a pioneer in the “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour” ecosystem in China, successfully listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 29 September 2020, becoming the “first stock of IT higher education” (stock code: 9616.HK). With the broad market opportunities brought by the aging population and the positive support of policies for the development of the elderly care industry, the Company leverages its innovative research and development capabilities in “education + technology + medical care” to build a new ecosystem of integrated development of ” education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour”.

In the education technology business sector, the Company will retain the main body of ” Neusoft Education Group” and continue to operate academic education, continuing education, and resource output businesses. Based on IT innovation education, the Company will further develop the “digital media” and “medical care” fields, build an integrated ecosystem of “education-healthcare-wellness”, and consolidate the core competitiveness of education technology in the future. The Company will also establish a characteristic product and service system based on the 4S model, providing first-class platforms, resources, models, and management services to governments, universities, hospitals, and health care institutions, continuously empowering partners’ reform and development.

In the elderly education and elderly care technology business sector, following the concept of “Elderly care starts with prevention, education drives elderly care, and technology empowers elderly care”, the Company has deeply developed elderly education through Neuedu Phoenix Academy and created a unique “LIFECARES” model of integrated elderly education with “leisure, care, medical services, education, and integration”. Using top-notch medical and care services and platform services to empower the elderly to live a happy life, the Company is building a dream university for active seniors. In addition, the Company will strengthen the training of elderly care service personnel by creating a one-stop industry chain of “university training + training + intern + human resource services”. On the other hand, the Company will build a medical and care technology operation service model, create an elderly care solution industrial ecosystem through the output of overall smart elderly care solutions and elderly care technology products and services, and achieve mutually beneficial cooperation with ecological partners.

In the medical and health care service sector, the Company integrates customer management service systems to provide intelligent medical and elderly care information solutions, and create a “medical care and elderly care” integrated development system with treatment-based medical institutions, rehabilitation-based nursing institutions, and care-based elderly care institutions. Its subsidiaries, Ruikang Cardiovascular Hospital, Dalian Ruikang Zhuomei Stomatology Hospital Co., Ltd., and Wecare Family Nursing Home, have been put into operation.

In the wellness tourism sector, targeting energetic seniors, the Company integrates tourism, education, and elderly care into one, with a focus on “leisure learning, slow travel, and peaceful living”. Through the concept of “study-travel-care”, seniors can experience a variety of dimensions of “learning-travel-care” in their travel and learning process, creating a comprehensive elderly education model that provides opportunities for art experiences, promotes physical and mental relaxation, enhances cultural literacy, and expands social interaction.

In addition, the Company expands its industrial management and service sector, with the vision of building a better life and using technology to empower intelligent logistics. It explores diverse, characteristic, and value-added service models to meet the diverse needs of internal and external customers, continuously expanding its brand reputation and social influence.

With its keen market insight and deep accumulation of industry and education resources, Neutech Group Limited actively embraces the development of the silver-haired economy, timely enters new tracks, and improves its position in the industrial ecosystem. Now, the Group’s new layout of “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour ” has been formed, which not only helps to create a new growth curve but also continuously expands new development margins, moving towards becoming a leader in the development of the “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour” ecosystem.

CONTACT: Lin Wei, weilin@neuedu.com

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SOURCE Neutech Group Limited

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RoboSense and Coco Robotics Forge Strategic Partnership to Revolutionize Autonomous Last-Mile Delivery

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January 12, 2025

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LAS VEGAS, Jan. 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — RoboSense (2498.HK), a global leader in AI-driven robotics technology, and Coco Robotics, an innovator in delivery robots, have announced a strategic partnership to transform last-mile logistics. By combining RoboSense’s advanced sensor technology with Coco Robotics’s delivery solutions, the collaboration aims to enhance safety, efficiency, and sustainability in urban networks.

Coco Robotics bridges the gap between local businesses and customers through advanced navigation and real-time tracking, prioritizing sustainability by reducing carbon emissions and delivery costs. Since its launch in 2020, the company has expanded operations to major U.S. and European cities, forming partnerships with food delivery leaders like Uber Eats and DoorDash to meet the growing demands of modern logistics and support a greener future.

This partnership addresses key challenges in autonomous last-mile delivery by integrating RoboSense’s perception solutions into Coco Robotics’s fleet to enhance navigation and obstacle detection. Together, the companies are accelerating the deployment of delivery robots to optimize efficiency and scale operations.

“We’re thrilled to collaborate with RoboSense to push the boundaries of what’s possible in last-mile delivery,” said Zach Rash, Co-founder and CEO of Coco Robotics. “This partnership strengthens our ability to provide safe, reliable, and sustainable delivery solutions at scale, helping us better serve businesses and communities.”

Mark Qiu, CEO of RoboSense, said, “The successful collaboration with Coco Robotics is one of the key milestones in RoboSense’s global strategy. By combining our visual sensor technology with Coco Robotics’ innovative robotics solutions, we aim to redefine what’s possible in autonomous last-mile delivery. RoboSense will continue to innovate, providing superior incremental components and solutions to our global robotics customers. Partnering with Coco Robotics, we will create safer, smarter robotic delivery services and expand into global markets.”  

About RoboSense

RoboSense (2498.HK), founded in 2014, is an AI-driven robotics technology company that supplies industry-leading incremental components and solutions for the robotics market. The company is committed to “Become the global leader in robotics technology platforms”, and its mission is “Safer world, Smarter life”. For more information about RoboSense, visit https://www.robosense.ai 

About Coco Robotics

Coco Robotics is the world’s largest urban robot delivery platform. Founded in 2020, Coco has completed over 500,000 zero-emission deliveries, serving customers in the US and Europe. Coco’s mission is to create a more sustainable, reliable, and affordable last-mile logistics solution in cities around the world. For more information about Coco, visit cocodelivery.com  

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SOURCE RoboSense Technology Co., Ltd.

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AI Wellness Launches SoCal Fire Relief Initiative to Support Families and First Responders in Southern California

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6 hours ago

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January 12, 2025

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LOS ANGELES, Jan. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Demonstrating a commitment to both innovation and compassion, AI Wellness has officially launched the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative to provide aid to families and first responders affected by the devastating fires in Southern California. Unveiled during CES 2025, this initiative aims to deliver critical resources and long-term recovery solutions to the communities hardest hit by this tragedy.

 

“Southern California is more than just where we operate—it’s our home,” said Dr. Gideon Kwok, Co-Founder of AI Wellness. “The fires have left countless families without homes, belongings, and hope. This initiative is our way of giving back and rebuilding the lives of our neighbors and the first responders who have worked tirelessly to protect them.”

Let’s Take Action Together

The SoCal Fire Relief Initiative brings together individuals, brands, and organizations to address the urgent and long-term needs of affected communities. In partnership with the Mission Community Hospital Foundation and the Santo Niño Health Center, AI Wellness is leading efforts to:

Provide essential supplies such as food, water, clothing, and medical care to displaced families.Deliver hydration and wellness resources to first responders working on the frontlines.Support long-term community recovery through wellness programs and innovative solutions.

“It is during a crisis that the best of humanity comes out,” said Bernard Hiller. “It’s important for those affected to know they are not alone. This is a huge undertaking that we cannot do without you. These are our friends, neighbors, and family. Please help us.”

How You Can Help

The initiative provides several ways to make a difference:

Donate to Relief Efforts:
Contributions directly fund essential resources for families and first responders.Send Water to Evacuation Centers:
Every purchase of AI Wellness Water helps ensure first responders and displaced families stay hydrated, while also funding continued production and donation efforts.Spread Awareness:
Share the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative with your networks to amplify its reach and inspire collective action.Wellness Bundles:
Wellness bundle purchases such as the Powersuit, Smart Ring, and Mindbody Matrix Water, help support relief efforts with proceeds contributing to recovery initiatives.

DONATE HERE

Real Impact in Action

Since the fires began, AI Wellness and its partners have made a significant impact:

Delivered over 10,000 water packs to evacuation centers and first responders.Distributed 500 wellness bundles to displaced families.Donated proceeds from the first 1,000 AI Wellness Powersuits and 5,000 Smart Rings to relief efforts.Raised $250,000 to support critical aid and recovery.

“This initiative is about more than providing relief,” said Abby Aboitiz Founder of AI Wellness. “It’s about restoring hope and rebuilding our community, together.”

Uniting Brands and Innovators

During CES 2025, AI Wellness called on brands and innovators to collaborate on this critical mission. Companies can contribute by donating resources, partnering on curated wellness bundles, or amplifying awareness for the initiative.

“We’re inspired by the innovation and generosity of the brands we’ve met here at CES,” said Dr. TK Huynh, Medical Innovator at AI Wellness. “Together, we can transform this tragedy into an opportunity to rebuild lives and strengthen our community.”

Join the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative

Support the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative by visiting aiwellness.ai or contacting AI Wellness directly:

Email: info@aiwellness.aiInstagram: @aiwellnesstv

About AI Wellness

AI Wellness is a pioneer in health, wellness, and philanthropy, combining cutting-edge AI technology with innovative solutions to address the most pressing challenges facing communities today. From digital avatars to precision education and curated wellness bundles, AI Wellness empowers individuals and brands to make a meaningful impact.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ai-wellness-launches-socal-fire-relief-initiative-to-support-families-and-first-responders-in-southern-california-302348576.html

SOURCE Assisted Intelligence Wellness, Inc.

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