What's interesting this week...

Develop Impact - Issue 153

Happy Monday!

I hope you have had a great weekend and are ready to start the new week in high spirits!

Today, I am back sharing with you another five articles that I found informative and thought-provoking. I hope that you find value in this newsletter for your current or future projects.

This community is all about learning, sharing, and growing together. Please let us know if you have any interesting resources or thoughts to share. Let's continue to use technology for the greater good.

Let’s make it a great week!

Jesse

What’s interesting…

Apple neared a healthcare breakthrough

Apple Inc. has a moonshot-style project underway to measure blood glucose without pricking the skin. Apple is developing a silicon photonics chip that uses optical absorption spectroscopy to shine a light under the skin to measure glucose levels without drawing blood. Currently, the technology is in the proof-of-concept stage and is viable, but it needs to be scaled down so that it can fit into a wearable device. If perfected, the Apple Watch could be an essential item for millions of diabetics around the world. It would upend a multibillion-dollar industry.

Türkiye-Syria earthquake: How AI and emerging tech are helping relief efforts

The Kahramanmaras double earthquake struck south-eastern Türkiye and northern and western Syria on 6 February and caused devastation that spans ten provinces, over more than 50,000 square kilometers. Emerging technologies have become a staple of disaster relief efforts and have been in use since the early 2000s. What distinguishes the Türkiye-Syria relief efforts is the scale of the usage of open-source websites, AI, and social media.

Digital public technology can help drive sustainable development progress

Digital technology is receiving growing attention in international dialogues on global prosperity and stability. The German presidency has proposed that the upcoming G-7 Summit should prioritize social justice, equality, and inclusive digitalization. Digital technologies are improving access to public services, social protection, and economic opportunities for millions of people, but they have also opened the door to government surveillance, exacerbated inequalities, and encouraged social divisions.

Using Digital Twin Technology To Better Understand Environmental Impact

In 2022, Mendoza created a digital twin of its green infrastructure by quickly identifying one million trees and geo-referencing them. This allowed for efficient management of each tree's health condition. Fernandes says that digital twins can help address some of the most critical sustainability and resilience challenges by reducing water, waste, and material consumption by design, and providing better tools for improved climate resilience and adaptation.

Why we urgently need all public sector leaders to be digital leaders

Local authorities are experiencing a crisis point as inflation reduces the real value of public spending and they endure 12 annual rounds of budget savings in a row. Meanwhile, citizen expectations continue to rise. Public sector customers expect local government services to be similar in style, quality, and speed to those offered by some of the best-known digitally-enabled businesses.