Augusta mayor making a return trip to Qatar this week

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Mayor Hardie Davis Jr. is returning to the Persian Gulf country of Qatar to speak at Smart City Expo Doha on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Davis will provide remarks during the opening ceremony alongside others and will also participate in a discussion on smart solutions for urban sustainability, energy, water, transportation and “transitioning to a greener built environment,” according to a news release.

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It’s Davis’ second trip to Qatar in the past few months. In December, he went there as part of a delegation of U.S. mayors meeting with the country’s minister of municipality. No city funds were used for the trip.

Smart City Expo Doha is organized by the Government of Qatar’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology with support from its innovation laboratory and hosted by Msheireb Downtown Doha and Fira de Barcelona International. The two-day program is themed “Sustaining a Future of Resilience” and will feature 70 speakers.

Davis chairs Smart City Expo USA, which which will take place Sept. 14-15. Along with Smart City Doha, it’s part of Smart City Expo World Congress, a “summit on smart cities and urban solutions.”