I spent the first half of this month in three European cities connecting with One Street partners and helping local leaders get started with their own Social Bike Business programs for their cities. It was my shortest trip to Europe in a long time, and yet I may have had more productive and inspiring meetings with bike advocates than I do during my longer trips. My journeys by bike and train between the cities were the longest stretches of time I had without engaging in high level discussions to make real, lasting improvements for bicycling. Here are some highlights:
Prague Social Bike Business program – Our workshop and meetings with more than 20 local leaders set the program on a strong course forward. Local representatives for bike advocacy, the bike industry, the environment and distressed areas of the city discussed the barriers to everyday cycling faced by disadvantaged Prague citizens and how the program can tackle them. Most surprising to me was the normal two week wait for bicycle repair at the city’s bike shops. The program will definitely start with a strong emphasis on repair training and repair services!
The other important emphasis will be affordable transportation bikes for disadvantage people in this city where 95% of the bikes are high-end mountain bikes (note that bicycle transportation mode share is less than one percent). Once these local leaders have secured a location for the center, we will launch the program with a citywide call for used bikes as the source for the early runs of social bikes – just one of the unique details for this Prague program. Their logic is sound because they see the need for the lead organization, Auto*Mat, to have a big promotional push at the start of the program; very clever, I say. These used bikes will be outfitted with racks, city tires and other transportation elements to make them roadworthy as the bike manufacturing element of the program is developed.
After the workshop we visited several potential sites for the program’s center including a gorgeous, though rundown former factory that now houses a few artists with lots of room to spare. The group is working on a two-page promotional paper which we will use to seek funding for launching the program.
Budapest Social Bike Business program – Unlike the intense single day Prague gathering, the Budapest meetings, workshops and site visits stretched over three days with new leaders and experts joining us along the way. The diversity of expertise and strong commitment from this group was truly inspiring. Participants represented bike advocacy, social and environmental organizations, each stepping up to offer their talents. This means we already have our lead organization (the Hungarian Cyclists’ Club), our expert bike repair trainer and bike manufacturing area designer, our expert on state-level job training accreditation (a unique aspect for the Hungarian program), experts on EU social program funding, fundraising helpers, and organizers for the program to spread to the rural areas of Hungary (the Cycling Hungary Alliance).
These workshops, which continued at Velo-city the next week, produced vibrant next steps with names assigned to each, connecting with over 20 participants in the end. We even visited potential sites for the center including a former train factory that faces a city park in the infamous Eighth District where many of our target folks live. As we biked around the site I imagined a learn-to-bike course winding through the grass as social bike trainees displayed their newest offerings facing the park outside the massive factory, now windowless, but oh so fabulous. Other sites might work as well, but this one made my knees weak.
Velo-city 2009 conference in Brussels – The Europe Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) pulled off another stellar conference! Over 800 attendees were treated to topnotch speakers who wove bicycling into complex discussions such as climate change and health. Conference organizers from ECF ensured the conference leveraged its spotlight by inviting high-level officials to the conference podium. On the last day, they actually brought the conference to the European Parliament where we sat in the seats of the members of parliament! Some members of parliament participated in panel discussions and the day’s climax – the signing of the Charter of Brussels.
Of course, one of my highlights was the outstanding success of ECF’s helmet campaign (see below – Hot Topics). I also enjoyed many one-on-one meetings with bicycle advocacy leaders planning the next big efforts for our movement. Mark your calendars now for Velo-city Global 2010 in Copenhagen June 22-25. I sure have!
Resources Highlights – “Sustainable Transport that Works: Lessons from Germany”
This month we’d like to highlight two papers by the insightful Professor John Pucher and his expert co-author Ralph Buehler:
Hot Topics – Dangerization of Bicycling through Helmet Promotions
The immense harm done by shock-horror helmet promotions and mandatory helmet laws goes unrecognized by most officials and the general public as they blindly replicate these horrifying, false messages. In countries where bicycling mode share is low, the spell is most intense. Fortunately, One Street has found a committed partner for fighting this offensive messaging that is undermining our movement. At Velo-city, the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) launched their campaign to stop the dangerization of bicycling through helmet promotions with an informative brochure and buttons (otherwise known as badges) that read, “Ask me why I cycle without a helmet.”
Bracing for a mild reception if not an all out backlash, we were delighted by overwhelming support. Nearly all of the 500 buttons were gone by day two of the four day conference (most being worn!) and all buttons and 1,000 brochures were gone by the end. ECF has posted the brochure on their new Helmets web page at: www.ecf.com/3500_1 and will be posting more supportive materials in June.
Supporter Spotlight – Prescott College
Prescott College has enriched One Street’s efforts to guide new leaders into the bicycle advocacy movement through their university-level course “The Bicycle: Vehicle for a Small Planet.” This past spring semester, Sue Knaup, One Street’s Executive Director, assisted Professor Dave Craig with the course. In 2010, Professor Craig will hand the reins of the course over to Sue to teach. We applaud Prescott College for their pioneering spirit through this course focused entirely on the bicycle and its spectrum of benefits for our ailing planet.
