Modernizing and coordinating digital, physical and social infrastructure can make delivery and use of public, private and hybrid services more efficient, cost effective and socially beneficial. Dentons' Global Smart Cities & Communities Initiative and Think Tank helps cities and communities take advantage of technological developments that enable the integration of essential services.

The Smart Cities and Connected Communities Virtual Roundtable Series brings together the resources of the world's largest law firm and leaders of municipal government, businesses, innovators and stakeholders to help communities craft innovative legal, economic and policy solutions to societal challenges in an era of accelerating technological change.

We hope you will join us for one or all of the following upcoming webinars:

Past events

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Reimagining Cities-The Future of Urban Planning May 21, 2025 The global pandemic significantly disrupted the US economy, particularly affecting the "back to the city" movement that began in the late 1990s. The ensuing shutdown, fear of infection, and rise of remote work had profound impacts on walkable urban places (WalkUPs).

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank: Interconnected Challenges of Energy and Water Management-Addressing Water Demand and Scarcity Amidst Rising Power Needs April 23, 2025 As the demand for power surges, the necessity for water resources also escalates, highlighting the interconnected challenges of energy and water management. Our discussion addressed the critical issue of water scarcity that arises from energy demand to support generation and data centers.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank: The Role of Energy Storage in Meeting the Needs of the Electric Grid March 19, 2025 The Long-Term Reliability Annual Assessment published by North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) in December 2024, states that most of the North American Bulk Power System (BPS), for the next 10 years, will face mounting resource adequacy challenges as surging demand growth continues along with the retirements of existing thermal and nuclear plants.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable Special Edition: States Attorneys General Perspective-Navigating Litigation Pathways in a Divided Landscape March 5, 2025 This Special Edition Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable discussion explored how coalitions in red and blue states might form, diverge, or clash on key policy issues. They also provided insights into what these legal battles could look like in a politically divided environment.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Getting to Know AI’s Revolutionary Potential and Vulnerabilities, Part III February 19, 2025 We continued our discussion about the current state of AI, its future trajectory, and the practical considerations that business, government, and community leaders should be mindful of. While the enormous potential for harnessing AI to solve practical business and societal problems is evident, it also presents significant challenges.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Fireside Chat: Beyond the Horizon - How Space Exploration Will Define the 21st Century January 30, 2025 In the last two decades, the space industry has experienced transformative advancements, unlocking opportunities across defense, commerce, and beyond. This fireside chat explored the innovations driving these changes, evaluated the current state of the industry, and discussed the future potential of space exploration and commercialization.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: What to Expect with a New Congress and Administration – Navigating the Future of Energy Transition November 12, 2024 A week after the historic 2024 presidential and congressional elections, our two panels looked at the political and policy-related implications of the election results. Our panels also looked forward, to the 119th Congress, to preview the path forward for must-pass legislation and the most likely priorities of the Administration.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Revitalizing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Assessing Progress and Charting the Path Forward October 16, 2024 We brought together thought leaders, industry experts, and stakeholders to evaluate the current state of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The discussion focused on understanding the decline in DEI efforts, assessing the progress made so far, and identifying actionable strategies to reinvigorate these initiatives for the future.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Navigating the Surge: Meeting Growing Demand in Data Centers September 18, 2024 The demand for data centers is growing significantly, driven by factors like generative Artificial Intelligence and increased technology usage.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Hydrogen Markets and the Clean Energy Transition August 22, 2024 Thanks to modern advances in technology, the growing demand for energy worldwide, and a new level of awareness about how our actions impact the planet, the benefits of hydrogen as an energy transition fuel is generating a lot of excitement in the energy industry and beyond.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Supreme Court Overturns Chevron Doctrine: Implications for Energy and Climate Policy and Beyond July 10, 2024 Our distinguished panelists discussed the recent Supreme Court decision in Relentless v. Department of Commerce and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Navigating Climate Reporting and Building Sustainability –The Risks and Opportunities May 21, 2024 Industry leaders share their insights and practical strategies for navigating the tug-of-war of competing interests, best compliance practices to avert risk, maximizing the opportunities presented by climate change and energy transition, and preparing for board oversight around ever-changing rules.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: How is Cyber Innovation Disrupting the Energy Sector and Critical Infrastructure? April 25, 2024 New technologies are making cybersecurity in the energy sector more important – and more challenging.

Dentons Global Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank and Wireless Broadband Alliance’s Connected Communities Forum Virtual Roundtable: The Power of Broadband Infrastructure to Enable Smart Cities March 21, 2024 Enabling physical infrastructure with digital technologies is a valuable component of increasing sustainability and social equity. Learn from our conversation about the immense impacts and benefits modern smart digital infrastructure provides to create significant new services for cities, communities and citizens.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Getting To Know AI’s Revolutionary Potential And Vulnerabilities, Part 2 February 16, 2024 We continued our discussion about where we are with AI, where we are headed with AI and practical considerations that business, government and community leaders should be thinking about. The enormous potential for harnessing AI to solve practical business and societal problems has its challenges. Companies are grappling to understand the impact of AI on their activities and to determine what they should be doing about it.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Empowering Communities of Color: Exploring the Impacts of Energy Industry Innovations January 31, 2024 Join us for this discussion that will aim to illuminate the significant effects that innovations in the energy industry can have on communities of color.

Dentons Global Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank virtual roundtable, "The Path to Decarbonization: COP-28 and Beyond" December 12, 2023 Join us for a conversation that will look at, among other things

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Emerging Issues in Transactive Energy November 14, 2023 Thank you for joining our conversation about emerging issues in transactive energy that looked at, among other things.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Smart and Sustainable Agriculture October 12, 2023 Hear our panelists discuss smart technologies and practices related to farming and food production that will promote sustainability.

Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank Virtual Roundtable: Getting To Know AI’s Revolutionary Potential and Vulnerabilities September 20, 2023 We had an impactful discussion about where we are with AI, where we are headed with and practical considerations that business, government and community leaders should be thinking about.

Cleantech Investment Outlook 2023 June 13, 2023 As we continue to consider and address solutions for realizing global environmental and emission goals, Cleantech is often discussed as a solution. While the deployment of clean technologies faces investment and logistical barriers, there is widespread optimism about the future of these technologies.

New Developments In Decarbonization May 9, 2023 Decarbonization is a goal shared by industry, policy makers and advocacy groups, but efforts to reduce carbon often fall short of stated objectives because of challenges posed by incomplete solutions and conflicting regulatory and policy regimes.

To Speak Or Not To Speak – That Is The Question: How Companies Can Navigate Challenging Social And Political Issues April 20, 2023 On April 20, 2023, the ESG Pillar of the Dentons Smart Cities & Connected Communities Think Tank and Keystone Policy Center co-hosted a virtual roundtable entitled “To Speak Or Not To Speak – That Is The Question: How Companies Can Navigate Challenging Social And Political Issues.”

Cruising Into The Future: A Look At The Current And Future State Of Autonomous Vehicles And Smart Communities March 14, 2023 With the rapid race for automotive autonomy comes the need for automakers and technologists to understand how to navigate uncharted legal and regulatory territory. In this virtual think-tank roundtable, Dentons lawyers and prominent industry thought-leaders discussed the current and future policy, regulatory and legal landscape for autonomous vehicles.

Key Conversation: Energy Security In The Face Of Energy Warfare February 1, 2023 Energy globalization has been severely disrupted by the war in Ukraine and post Covid-19 developments. Jagged geopolitics and energy warfare by Russia have created high energy prices as well as unprecedented risks of energy shortages. Layered on top of this is the need to decarbonize at a greatly accelerated pace. Please join us as our extraordinary panel of global energy leaders discuss how nations and regions around the world are adapting.

PART 2: Where Do We Go From Here?: DEI, ESG, And Energy Justice In A Post-Pandemic World. January 18, 2023 In light of a considerable push across the Energy industry towards racial equity and social inclusion over the last few years, how are Energy companies creating sustainable, large-scale transformational advancements in both the workplace and the community, especially considering the growing threat of a global economic recession in 2023? Our distinguished panel will discuss issues of balancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), and Energy Justice with other competing industry challenges in the post-COVID-19 era.

Hydrogen Now Has Traction! December 13, 2022 Modernizing and coordinating digital, physical and social infrastructure can make delivery and use of public, private and hybrid services more efficient, cost effective and socially beneficial.

Smart Technologies and Innovative Policies to Address Wastewater and Improve Drinking Water November 10, 2022 Access to clean water and safe drinking water is essential but is often taken for granted. Aging water infrastructure systems are particularly vulnerable to extreme weather events such as 100-year floods, as we saw in the recent crisis in Jackson, MS.

The Economic Risks Of Overturning Roe: What Are The Implications For Smart Cities & Communities? November 3, 2022 The Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v Wade is equivalent to a major policy change in federal and state rules for households, business, and the economy. In the aftermath of the Dobbs decision, significant changes to state laws governing reproductive rights are expected to have immediate impacts for more than 30 million people in the US and their families.

A Key Conversation: Recognizing the Men and Women Who Restore and Reinforce North America’s Electricity Systems in This New Age of Resilience October 12, 2022 Please join us for a Key Conversation with the co-authors of the inspiring new book entitled, “Heroes of the Storms,” that celebrates the industry’s heroes. Based on interviews with heroes in North America’s investor-owned, public power and cooperative utilities covering

How to Rebuild Trust September 19, 2022 Much has been written about trust, as the foundation for how we live and work together. Please join us for a discussion with, Dr. Lawrence Jones and Sandra Baer, authors of the recent report, “How to Rebuild Trust: Question Storming to Create a Platform for Thinking Differently and Taking New Actions,” based on findings from question storming sessions with more than 200 people from over 25 countries.

Energy Crisis 2022: A Key Conversation September 14, 2022 The current global squeeze on energy supply that’s triggered crippling shortages and sent power and fuel prices soaring, is lifting the cost of powering industry across the globe and adding to inflationary pressures.