Joe Biden will be speaking at SXSW 2017 Joe Biden at SXSW 2017[/caption]

Updated 5:45 p.m. 

In a South by Southwest Conferences & Festivals speech that drew tears from members of the audience, former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said a new model is the key to defeating cancer, a goal he's given himself and the country's administration.

"For decades, we thought we could tackle cancer one discipline at a time," he said. "But we learned that’s not how cancer operates."

He said the new model breaks down silos and invites collaboration between various disciplines, including health and technology.

The former vice president—whose son Beau died of cancer—outlined the workings of his Cancer Moonshot program, which he said aimed to inject an "overwhelming sense of urgency" and change the "culture of how we approach this fight."

 



Beginning in January 2016, the Cancer Moonshot program brought together a task force of every federal agency that "has something to do with cancer," Biden said. Agencies include the National Institute of Health and the National Cancer Institute but also some unlikely participants, such as the Department of Energy and the Department of Veteran Affairs.

In the first five months of the program, the National Cancer Institute and the White House Presidential Innovation Fellows launched a website that lets anyone search for cancer trials in their area.

Biden also formed a Blue Ribbon Panel that brought cancer experts together to look at what solutions are recommended for preventing and ending cancer. He said asked the experts to “recommend what areas hold the greatest promise in the shortest amount of time and warrant the greatest investment.”

In October, Biden delivered to former President Barack Obama an executive report detailing the progress made in the last year and his vision for the future of the Cancer Moonshot project. He said the report outlined changes needed to improve institutions and research.

Once the report was delivered, Biden said he looked at how to significantly increase funding for cancer.

In December, the 21st Century Cures Act was passed, dedicating $6.3 billion to fund drug treatment and cancer research.


Today, Biden said he has faith the new American administration, under President Donald Trump, will be "as enthusiastic as we were" in the fight to end cancer.

"I will do everything in my power to work with the new administration," he said.

Later this month, he said he hopes to announce how he is going to continue to “make sure we don’t lose the momentum that’s been built."

Wrapping up his speech, he specifically addressed the "innovative minds" at SXSW, saying the technological problems—such as not being able to share CAT scans and other patient data across various portable—can be solved with their help.

"I am unwilling to postpone for one day longer the things we can do now to extend people's lives," he said.



Posted 11:25 a.m.: Austin as a 'Smart City'

SXSW Day 3 Austin Smart Cities From left: University of Texas professor Sherri Greenberg, Housing Authority of the City of Austin representative Catherine Crago Blanton and UT professor Craig Watkins at the SXSW Smart Cities panel.[/caption]

A month after the city of Austin won the Smart Cities Readiness Challenge, a few local stakeholders are looking at what it takes to implement initiatives that will result in a smart city.

At a South by Southwest Conference & Festivals panel Sunday, professors from the University of Texas and a representative from the Housing Authority of the City of Austin looked at what challenges come with building a smart city.

A smart city, according to UT professor Sherri Greenberg, "uses new technologies and new engagement and governance models to improve service delivery and access to quality of life for all of its residents."

In winning the award, the city of Austin will have access to a custom readiness workshop to help cities develop plans using smart technologies to solve challenges. The workshop will focus on designing strategies and solutions for affordable housing for underserved populations, mobility and economic development issues that have been heightened by Austin’s rapid growth.

Greenberg said affordable housing, mobility, wellness, technology and public engagement are some of the challenges that come with trying to build a smart city, and Austin has already begun trying to address some of those issues.

Catherine Crago Blanton from HACA said her department has been outfitting a few of HACA's homes with the Nest thermostat, and 100 of the department's public houses were recently outfitted with Google Fiber.

HACA is in the middle of implementing its "Unlocking the Connection" program, which aims to provide internet to all of its approximately 4,300 residents currently living in public housing.

The third phase of the program, which launched in February, is focusing on providing the HACA houses North of 24th Street up to Runberg Lane with free internet by December 2018.