In April, Logue will retire from her leading role at UCF.

麻豆精品 S淭he timing couldn 麻豆精品 S檛 be better, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says. 麻豆精品 S淲e have no crisis, no funding gap 麻豆精品 S� just a healthy business environment [for] the foreseeable future. I can walk away with peace of mind that our 麻豆精品 S榞row your own 麻豆精品 S� approach has become the hallmark of economic development in Central Florida. 麻豆精品 S�

Under Logue 麻豆精品 S檚 guidance, the Innovation Districts and Incubation Program has cultivated growth for hundreds of startups, resulting in thousands of jobs and tens of millions of dollars for the local economy from a medley of industries. Logue 麻豆精品 S檚 approach to her work has captured the attention of colleagues across the country, serving as a testament to her strong work ethic and humility.

麻豆精品 S淚 麻豆精品 S檝e followed a crooked path, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says, 麻豆精品 S渂ut I 麻豆精品 S檝e never forgotten where I came from. 麻豆精品 S�

The Farm Girl From Arkansas

Logue learned how to drive from the seat of a tractor at age 10. She can 麻豆精品 S檛 begin to count how many piglets she bottle-fed or the hours she spent picking, cleaning and canning vegetables from her family 麻豆精品 S檚 enormous garden. Logue 麻豆精品 S檚 granddad ran the general store. Her father earned a degree in agricultural engineering, but didn 麻豆精品 S檛 stray from his rural roots where everyone knew each other as neighbors and helped each other as friends.

麻豆精品 S淢y upbringing close to the Earth prepared me to work with entrepreneurs even back when I had other plans, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says.

Those plans were supposed to include medical school, however, along the way she discovered the world of technology at the University of Arkansas library, where early online databases fed her hunger for knowledge. From there, Logue 麻豆精品 S檚 route bounced around the south 麻豆精品 S� to Louisiana State University for a master 麻豆精品 S檚 degree, back to Arkansas to teach and eventually to the University of Florida (UF) in 1984 where she helped run an information center with rocket scientists.

麻豆精品 S淎griculture is the original STEM field, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says of the connection between farming and technology.

While at UF, she would attend occasional business conferences in Orlando, and each time she became more intrigued about the blossoming potential of the area and the young university on its east side. At one conference in the aftermath of 9/11, she heard a new strategy outlined 麻豆精品 S� for the region, for UCF, and, as Logue believed, for her own career.

麻豆精品 S淭he ground had shaken after 9/11, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淚t forced every business and municipality to change. During that conference, I heard how technology and young startups in Orlando were poised to diversify the economy beyond tourism. Everyone wanted to participate 麻豆精品 S� the city, the county, private enterprise. And at the center of it all: UCF. It wasn 麻豆精品 S檛 just talk. Innovation would drive entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurship would grow the greater community. I 麻豆精品 S檇 always wanted to be in a place where I could see those kinds of long-term results. 麻豆精品 S�

Laying the Groundwork for Orlando’s Economic Boom

When Logue arrived at UCF a few months later, she saw the equivalent of a big field 麻豆精品 S� one incubator in one building. She felt at home. Working with entrepreneurs reminded her of planting seeds. Developing partnerships with the city and county was like watering and fertilizing.

麻豆精品 S淛ust like it is when you 麻豆精品 S檙e growing crops, you keep watch, knowing there will be factors outside your control, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says. 麻豆精品 S淏ut you keep nurturing, keep fending off pests and focus on the harvest ahead. 麻豆精品 S�

Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 business culture today is very different than it was in 2002. The region once known for a busy airport and theme parks now garners global attention for technology and innovation clusters that feed a robust local economy. There 麻豆精品 S檚 expertise in virtual reality, augmented reality, digital twinning, modeling, simulation, gaming and theme park advancements. All of this has been spun into a wide range of business interests: education, hospitality, medicine, real estate, smart city planning and the space program. Trace any of the vendors back to their roots and you 麻豆精品 S檒l probably find yourself still standing in Central Florida.

This is the fruit reaped from sowing locally, and it 麻豆精品 S檚 due in large part to UCF 麻豆精品 S� and to Logue.

麻豆精品 S淐olleagues from around the country ask how we do this, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淚 tell them UCF always has a seat at the table. During conversations, you can 麻豆精品 S檛 tell who works for government, who works for industry and who works for UCF. It 麻豆精品 S檚 truly collaborative, which is helpful for entrepreneurs. At the heart of it, we share a goal to drive a better quality of life from within. 麻豆精品 S�

RINI Technologies, one of the first businesses in the incubator program when Logue arrived in 2002, now offers leading research and development from a 12,000-square-foot facility just one mile from UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 main campus. It 麻豆精品 S檚 among the companies Logue and her team have helped grow from laboratory to marketplace.

The successes gained so much attention from the U.S. Department of Defense that when it recognized a need for rapid innovation in 2019, it launched the Central Florida Tech Grove and appointed Logue as director. Five years later, 11 government entities now collaborate with Tech Grove, where the primary mission to grow the defense industrial base for each entity has expanded overall economic vitality. Business leaders from around the world see the ease of integrating with other companies and government and want to know how to be a part of it.

They call the person at the center of the progress: Logue.

麻豆精品 S淚t isn 麻豆精品 S檛 me, 麻豆精品 S� she says with down-to-earth modesty. 麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 the vibrant economic environment here. I know it will be sustained long after I leave. 麻豆精品 S�

Her Ambitious To-do List for Retirement

Logue plans to take online courses in history, photography and possibly artificial intelligence. There are books to read and documentaries to watch about people, WWI and WWII. She 麻豆精品 S檒l vacation in Eastern Europe and visit her grandkids in Alaska. But near the top of the list is a trip she 麻豆精品 S檚 been thinking about for a long time. This trip will be to the pastures of Lexington, Kentucky, and the foothills and flatlands of Arkansas 麻豆精品 S� home.

麻豆精品 S淏ack to the place that prepared me in ways I never saw coming, 麻豆精品 S� she says.

Then Logue and her husband, Ed, will return to Florida and take a breath before she makes time for a once-familiar hobby.

麻豆精品 S淚 麻豆精品 S檓 going to have a big garden, 麻豆精品 S� she says, 麻豆精品 S渁nd I look forward to spending a lot of time in it. 麻豆精品 S�

麻豆精品 S淔rom the moment I heard about cities being smart, it has always been on my mind, 麻豆精品 S� Agarwal says. The concept resonates for this engineering visionary because he was raised in a small town in India with unstable transportation, electric, water and drainage systems. 麻豆精品 S淚 had a strong feeling that a 麻豆精品 S榮mart city 麻豆精品 S� would benefit everyone living in it, for generations. 麻豆精品 S�

Little did Agarwal know at the time that in 2024 he would be in Orlando, The City Beautiful, as founding director of UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Urban Intelligence and Smart City Lab and coordinator of its innovative Smart Cities master 麻豆精品 S檚 program. He could have continued his blossoming career in any major city with a reputable university, but he came to Central Florida because he saw something fresh: under the umbrella of the Future City Initiative, researchers and students from a variety of departments who would soon be working with industry and city leaders toward a singular goal.

麻豆精品 S淪martness, 麻豆精品 S� says Agarwal, an associate professor in civil environmental and construction engineering.

Let 麻豆精品 S檚 just pause for a moment and address a basic question: What exactly is a smart city? The Orlando area has smart people with smart ideas. We have a university with world-renown instructors and a history of groundbreaking tech research in AR, VR, digital twinning, modeling and simulation. Yet with all of these smarts, we still live on a finite piece of land with a finite supply of water, all shared by a rapidly growing population. It doesn 麻豆精品 S檛 take long for such a city to become less beautiful.

Unless it 麻豆精品 S檚 truly smart.

麻豆精品 S淭he concept of a smart city is broad, but in general it means you integrate technology to remove the negatives of daily life, 麻豆精品 S� says Cameron Ford, founding director of UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and executive director of the Blackstone LaunchPad. 麻豆精品 S淣o congestion. No sanitation issues. No excess air pollutants. No problems with reliable power or water. A smart city uses foresight to improve livability, sustainability and resilience so residents can enjoy today while preparing for the uncertainties of tomorrow.”

For an example, Agarwal 麻豆精品 S檚 latest research provides a moving picture of what mobility within a smart city might look like: Traffic moving with the harmonious speed and efficiency of a school of fish (as opposed to the stop-and-go crawl of a caterpillar). In this city, autonomous vehicles would use sensors to transmit messages to each other and to the infrastructure. Road travel becomes cooperative and quick. It 麻豆精品 S檚 stress-free, and yes, friendly.

麻豆精品 S淭echnology is the connective tissue between every project in a smart city, 麻豆精品 S� Agarwal says, 麻豆精品 S渁nd it requires a lot of small projects connected together. They become the digital infrastructure. You can 麻豆精品 S檛 necessarily see them, but they make the quality of daily life better. 麻豆精品 S�

Carol Ann Logue is director of programs and operations for UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Innovation Districts and Business Incubation Program. She and Ford are involved in smart city initiatives because at some point every tech-centered project, visible or invisible, comes down to business. Without investment even the smartest idea will never see the light of day.

麻豆精品 S淭he cities that can pull this off have experts from every important sector intertwined into a singular ecosystem, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says. 麻豆精品 S淔or Orlando, it 麻豆精品 S檚 healthcare, transportation, hospitality, education, engineering and business. We have a pipeline of young talent, intellectual property, forward-thinking research 麻豆精品 S� everything is here, due in large part to UCF, to be become fully integrated, and smarter. 麻豆精品 S�

Until recently, however, something crucial had been missing.

麻豆精品 S淔or as long as I 麻豆精品 S檝e been in Orlando, there have been frustrations that the rest of the world didn 麻豆精品 S檛 know about the tech capabilities here, which made it challenging to attract outside investors, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says. 麻豆精品 S淏ut that 麻豆精品 S檚 changing quickly. 麻豆精品 S�

Logue is referring to the presence of Plug and Play, a global startup accelerator with a deep network of investors and companies able to supercharge emerging tech markets like central Florida. Plug and Play opened an Orlando office earlier in 2024 as part of a partnership with UCF, the city, Orange County, Duke Energy and Tavistock, with the goal of advancing Orlando as a smart city.

麻豆精品 S淭his region 麻豆精品 S檚 identity as a tech market is unique, 麻豆精品 S� Ford says. 麻豆精品 S淲e don 麻豆精品 S檛 have major corporate headquarters spinning out talent, like they have in Silicon Valley. However, we do have talented, ambitious students and researchers coming up with new ideas to improve urban life. They 麻豆精品 S檙e developing expertise learning how to turn that expertise into viable business. Plug and Play fills a critical gap by attracting corporate partners and risk capital so those tech startups can flourish. 麻豆精品 S�

Logue says she 麻豆精品 S檇 been aware of Plug and Play for years because she 麻豆精品 S檚 in the world of business incubation. 麻豆精品 S淭hey don 麻豆精品 S檛 just go anywhere. There has to be a culture of innovative technology for them to nurture into a smart-city ecosystem. That 麻豆精品 S檚 exactly what we have here. 麻豆精品 S�

Plug and Play developed its first smart city cohort for Orlando in April. They invited more than two dozen companies to pitch the innovation they would bring to the smart city initiative. Of the 14 companies chosen for the cohort 麻豆精品 S� some local and some from outside the area 麻豆精品 S� four were founded by students, graduates and researchers from UCF: CapaciTech, which builds flexible and high-energy storage solutions; the smart mobility company ConnectedWise; Precision Periodic, which uses nanobeads for water treatment; and Fluix, an energy-saving AI-based autopilot.

麻豆精品 S淢any of the companies from outside the area that pitched said, 麻豆精品 S榃e 麻豆精品 S檝e been interested in moving to Florida, but didn 麻豆精品 S檛 know about the tech capabilities here until Plug and Play came along, 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� Logue says. 麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 been a 麻豆精品 S榳ow 麻豆精品 S� for a lot of people. 麻豆精品 S�

They 麻豆精品 S檝e been wowed to find out about UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 aforementioned Smart Cities master 麻豆精品 S檚 program, the only such program that fuses technology with disciplines focused on water and air quality, transportation and land development and public policy. They 麻豆精品 S檝e been wowed to discover UCF working on a $26 million NSF-funded Engineering Research Center for Smart Streetscapes (CS3), and a transportation science and tech program ranked among the world 麻豆精品 S檚 best.

麻豆精品 S淭hey 麻豆精品 S檙e also impressed with the collaboration between experts in different fields, 麻豆精品 S� Logue says, 麻豆精品 S渂ecause everyone knows collaboration is the best way to make real progress. 麻豆精品 S�

Less than 10 years ago, Agarwal heard 麻豆精品 S渟mart city 麻豆精品 S� for the first time. Today he 麻豆精品 S檚 helping one come together. Many students in the Smart Cities master 麻豆精品 S檚 program are professionals who are reskilling themselves. One is developing a smart parking system. Another is coming up with a method to ensure healthy water quality in pools. Yet another is researching a way to locate lead pipes underground so they can be removed without tearing up the landscape.

麻豆精品 S淭hese people have always had ideas, 麻豆精品 S� Agarwal says, 麻豆精品 S渁nd now their ideas have the potential to be grown into start-ups, then incubated, and perhaps supported through Plug and Play 麻豆精品 S檚 network. It 麻豆精品 S檚 still early, but that 麻豆精品 S檚 what makes this an exciting time. We 麻豆精品 S檙e just getting started. 麻豆精品 S�