Stephen Hilton is passionate about using digital technology to create a society that is creative, smart, green, connected, open and inclusive. As Director of Bristol Futures, an award winning department of Bristol City Council, he leads on smart cities, environmental sustainability, urban resilience and international strategy.
Over the past 5 years, Stephen has created a high profile team that has achieved many successes for Bristol for example, securing the title of European Green Capital 2015; becoming the first UK Rockefeller Global 100 Resilient City and an official designation as a UK Future City Demonstrator.
Bristol Futures has delivered multi-million pound investment in a smart city demonstrator programme ranging from driverless cars to smart meters to open data and from Knowle West in South Bristol to Guangzhou in South China – where Bristol City Council won the International Innovation Prize for our citizen-focused smart cities work.
Stephen is commercially minded and managed the early work to develop Bristol Energy, the council’s city energy company and Bristol is Open, a joint venture research company between the city council and the University of Bristol. Stephen is a member of the senior leadership team of Bristol is Open, acting as Director of City Experimentation.