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Hello Innovator!
Welcome to the September 2026 Smart City Initiative Newsletter, your central hub for the latest updates on emerging tech, digital learning workshops and opportunities, cybersecurity best practices, innovative solutions being implemented in Long Beach, and more!
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Love Your Block Completes Round 2 Projects!
In August and September, the Office of Civic Innovation wrapped up two Love Your Block community-based projects. They spread awareness of transportation efficiency by promoting bike and pedestrian safety and the importance of clean air by planting native plants and flowers in underserved West Long Beach neighborhoods. Thank you to all the partners who supported Love Your Block resident-led projects, and to resident leaders Amy Bauer and Kimmillee Tran for leading change in West Long Beach through creative and impactful work.
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National Science Foundation (NSF) funds Data Privacy App
The Technology & Innovation Department (TID) is developing a new Data Privacy Assistant App through a research partnership with Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and California State University Long Beach (CSULB), supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The app is currently undergoing internal City staff testing and review, with a recent workshop to demo and beta-test the onboarding process for new City-deployed technologies. Soon, we’ll be ready to share updates and request feedback directly from residents.
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Digital Rights Platform & Drone Work
TID's Digital Rights Platform has a new entry covering the City’s Drone/UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) program, giving residents visibility into how these technologies are being used and governed. As part of this work, the Data Privacy Office (DPO) helped lead the July 4th Drone Operations pilot, supporting a cross-department effort to test drone-based enforcement capabilities during the holiday while ensuring the right privacy safeguards and use policies were in place from day one.
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Love Your Block Creates Lasting Change in West Long Beach
Big ideas and community collaboration are making a lasting impact in West Long Beach through Love Your Block, a resident-led initiative that empowers neighbors to transform their communities one project at a time.
Source: InsideLB News
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How a Long Beach Resident Turned a Community Concern into an Opportunity for Change
What started as one resident’s idea to address youth vaping has grown into a community-driven effort promoting public health, environmental stewardship and youth engagement in West Long Beach.
Source: InsideLB News
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NEW: AI Learn & Earn Program
Want to build practical, useful Artificial Intelligence (AI) skills? The Technology and Innovation Department is excited to announce a new 5-week program in partnership with Braven Agency, covering topics like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude in plain, simple language. Classes will meet once a week in 2-hour sessions, and eligible participants will receive a certificate of achievement and a laptop if they meet the program requirements. The program is FREE!
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Digital Skills Classes
Congratulations to Learn and Earn Digital Skills students! In partnership with the Long Beach Center of Economic Inclusion, this engaging 5-week program introduced students to computer basics and email, helping them navigate the ever-changing digital world. At the end of the program, eligible students received a laptop to take home and use what they learned in class. This program taught digital skills and provided over 90 students with laptops. While this program has wrapped up, residents can join the Silverado Park Learn and Earn Program. Interested in signing up? Fill out the Silverado Park Learn and Earn Digital Skills application form.
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Digital Inclusion Week
October 4–10 is Digital Inclusion Week! This year’s theme is Sustain, Empower, Evolve: Building a Brighter Digital Future. The Technology and Innovation Department’s Office of Digital Equity and Inclusion is proud to share its achievements and resources with the Long Beach community. Recognized by the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA), Long Beach has been named a Visionary Digital Inclusion Trailblazer in recognition of the City’s ongoing commitment to expanding essential digital equity programs for residents.
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LB Co-Lab Progress Updates
Awareness of City Services (City Manager’s Office)
- Set-up of charging kiosks at three priority locations and expanded distribution of supply bags, supported by cross-departmental coordination and community‑based storytelling efforts.
Secure Commercial Corridors (Economic Development & Opportunity)
- Completion of pilot scoping, privacy reviews, and community feedback sessions. The SAIPH system (a multispectral sensing technology that send alerts and trigger lighting systems based on pedestrian detections) is validated as low‑risk, and installations in the Midtown Business Improvement District (BID) are set to launch in August 2026.
Maintaining Public Space (Community Development)
- Vendor contracting for the vacant‑lot activation pilot is nearly complete, with one viable property identified and early operational planning underway.
Civic Journalism & Civic User Research (Innovators‑in‑Residence Program)
- Recent workshops strengthened community storytelling capacity and equipped Innovators-in-Residence (IIRs) and staff with skills for conducting meaningful user research aligned with each pilot’s impact goals.
| | What Our City Departments Have to Say: | | |
"I'm so grateful for how thoughtful and engaged our resident team, City staff, and consultant partners have been throughout this project. We recently hit our first milestone by temporarily placing one of our three charging kiosks at the SAFE parking lot of the Multi Service Center while the building is under construction. Now we're gearing up to distribute 300 tech supply bags and begin our storytelling video work. We're excited to keep building trust and strengthen our connection with those most in need of support - let’s go, Long Beach!"
-Michael Quinn, Human Resources
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"Working alongside the residents on our team and collaborating with City departments has been one of the most meaningful parts of shaping this project, allowing us to learn from their insight, services, and ongoing efforts across the community. Through storytelling, outreach, and providing safe places to charge phones, we hope to increase awareness of existing City services among our most vulnerable populations while continuing to strengthen trust and connection."
-Leslee Abrego, Community Development
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October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month! This month is all about reviewing helpful tips to stay safe online and providing the LB community with an overview of the City’s ongoing work to keep City systems secure, protect sensitive data, and safeguard our digital future.
This month, the City of Long Beach will be focusing on a new cybersecurity theme each week to remind residents and staff to take practical steps to protect themselves and their data.
🔒 Week 1: Phishing and Social Engineering
🔒 Week 2: AI Safety and Deepfakes
🔒 Week 3: Data Security and Passwords
🔒 Week 4: Incident Reporting
Help LB stay secure by using strong passwords, enabling multi-factor authentication, and staying alert for email phishing scams.
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AI tools can help draft emails, summarize documents, and generate ideas, but information entered into an AI platform may be processed or retained outside a businesses' or organization’s controlled environment. Before submitting a prompt, confirm that the tool is organization-approved and that the information is appropriate for external processing.
Never enter passwords, personal information, organization data, security configurations, incident details, contracts, legal records, or nonpublic documents. Use public, anonymized, or approved test data whenever possible.

Quick rule: If you would not post the information on a public website, do not enter it into an AI tool.
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