Discussion Paper on the Future of the European Car Free Day Programme
The following paper was solicited by Richard Evans, UK Coordinator of the European Car Free Day/Mobility Week Programme. It was presented at the programme's June 5 international meeting in Brussels. The result is that representatives of Car Busters/World Carfree Network will soon be invited to meet with the programme's coordinators in Brussels to discuss future cooperation.
Dear European Car Free Day/Mobility Week 2003 committee members:
As members of the World Carfree Network (formerly Car Busters), we were invited by Richard Evans to present this short paper to you. It consists of ideas for possible future directions of the European Car Free Day/Mobility Week programme, and it suggests several ways in which our network might contribute to the further growth and evolution of your programme. We very much thank you for this opportunity, and we look forward to working with you to achieve positive, lasting change in Europe's urban transport priorities.
To serve as an introduction, we are a global network of people promoting alternatives to car dependence and automobile-based urban planning. We support walking, cycling, and public transport - and ultimately the transformation of cities, towns and villages into human-scaled, pedestrian environments rich in public space and community life. Taking bold steps away from car dependence, as you are aware, would lead to a healthier, more socially inclusive and less environmentally destructive way of life. With our Prague office serving as the network hub, we work to share information, skills and experience among activists and campaigners, and to facilitate exchange and collaboration across national boundaries and language barriers. While in the past we left the role of public interface largely to our individual member groups, our new name reflects a desire to engage in such activities at the international level.
Pending further consultation with our network members, we may be interested in contributing as a partner to the European Car Free Day programme in the following subject areas:
- coordination of NGOs in Central and Eastern Europe and youth organisations throughout Europe (outreach, communication, collection of input, etc.);
- contribution of strategic and creative input to the direction of the programme; and
- assistance with the expansion of the European Car Free Day to the global level (participation in the UN Car Free Day Collaborative).
The above points are elaborated upon as follows:
Coordination of NGOs and Youth Organisations
Effective integration of local NGOs could be one way in which the European Car Free Day programme might become more successful in Central and Eastern Europe in particular. This would involve targetted outreach, the maintenance of communication channels and fora, the organisation of an annual meeting, and various other means of collaboration and integration. Our network's existing Towards Car-Free Cities conference series could be a platform for this ongoing exchange.
The European Car Free Day programme could also benefit from greater youth participation throughout Europe. Increased outreach to children, teenagers and university students could be a source of creative, positive energy for the programme, as well as a means to indirectly send a message to parents and the wider community. The organisation of a youth exchange (meeting) within the framework of the European Commission's YOUTH programme might be an initial means of engaging youth environmental leaders on these topics. This could be facilitated through our network's close ties to the four major European youth environmental networks: Youth Environment Europe (YEE), European Youth for Action (EYFA), Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG) and Action for Solidarity, Equity, Environment and Diversity (A SEED).
Contribution of Strategic and Creative Input
Richard Evans has informed us that you are aware of the need for the European Car Free Day programme to adapt from year to year in order to maintain public interest and enthusiasm. Towards that aim we would be happy to contribute ideas on an ongoing basis which may suggest interesting, exciting future directions for your programme. For now, we will present three ideas for your consideration - two entirely positive and one containing constructive criticism:
- Recognition and incentives for ambitious local initiatives
To encourage municipalities to move from low-level or symbolic participation your programme, you may wish to actively encourage ambitious local initiatives that go beyond a single-day event - for example, like those led by Paris, France and Hasselt, Belgium (or even Bogota, Colombia). Complementing the existing DG-Environment Sustainable Mobility Awards programme, this could involve (a.) highlighting a different participating municipality each year, one that is demonstrably pursuing an ambitious, well thought-out, long-term programme to transform itself into a more liveable, less car-dependent city; (b.) providing financial, logistical, technical and media support to the chosen city; and (c.) awards or special recognition for particularly good municipal programmes.
- Incentives and promotion in Central and Eastern Europe
The European Car Free Day and Mobility Week programme needs better publicity in the CEE countries at the national/governmental level, but also through the NGOs active in the region. In many of the CEE countries the information about the Car Free Day and European Mobility Week is not sufficiently promoted at the local level and many municipalities as well as NGOs are not aware of the possibility to take part, the process of participation and the role and concept of both Car Free Day and European Mobility Week. In CEE countries very often the Car Free Day or the Mobility Week is a grassroots activity initiated by local NGOs active in the carfree movement.
CEE cities generally have viable transport alternatives in place, but suffer from the rising car ownership and usage that has come with market liberalisation and rising personal income levels. A particular concern is the higher social status conferred on motorists as compared to pedestrians, public transport users and non-recreational cyclists, who are often stigmatised as lower class. Therefore, it would be invaluable if publicity for the Car Free Day and Mobility Week programme could incorporate a carefully crafted international advertising campaign with the goal of lowering the social status of the motorist while raising the status of the alternative modes.
- Suggestion for modification of 'In Town...' title
In our experience it can cause offense to non-motorists to reinforce the idea that car ownership is always the norm - a sort of requirement for being a productive, respected citizen. This suggestion can be particularly damaging in Central and Eastern Europe, where car ownership rates are lower - and where people are greatly influenced by ideas, particularly values of unsustainable consumption, emanating from the West. We appreciate that local CFD organisers have the choice of using the 'In Town, Without My Car!' moniker or the 'European Car Free Day' title, and we recognise that the word 'My' might assuage the fears of some car drivers. However, we also feel that the programme's organisers at the European level should seriously consider the possible negative effects of the current programme title. In 2004, we would encourage you to instead use 'In Town, Without the Car!' or 'In Town, Without A Car!' (In the Czech Republic, the latter is already being used as the official title.)
Expansion of Programme to Global Level
As a worldwide network, we are particularly interested in the global spread of the carfree day concept. We wish to empower people with the realisation that others - concerned citizens like them, all over the world - are joining together simultaneously to address a common problem. We are aware that there is demand for a 22 September 'World Carfree Day' - and we are working with the new United Nations Car Free Day Collaborative to make official support for this event an eventual reality. In 2003 we are promoting a 22 September World Carfree Day even without official support, as an outgrowth of the grassroots programme we launched in 2000. In 2002 the call to action was answered by groups on five continents - from Taiwan to Tasmania, Santiago to Seville, Jakarta to New Jersey.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Randall H. Ghent
Co-Director, World Carfree Network
Prague, Czech Republic
Ivana Jakubková
Co-Director, World Carfree Network
Prague, Czech Republic
Kathleen Sobush
Transport Planner, World Carfree Network
Prague, Czech Republic
Dominika Zareba
Coordinator, Greenways Programme
Polish Environmental Partnership Foundation
Krakow, Poland
J.H. Crawford
Publisher, Carfree.com
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Gabrielle Hermann
Masters Candidate, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and
Department of Urban and Environmental Policy, Tufts University
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Andras Lukacs
President, Clean Air Action Group
Budapest, Hungary
Richard P. Lane
UK Representative, World Carfree Network
York, England
Jelena Curcic
NGO ReCycle
Novi Sad, Serbia and Montenegro
Daniel Mourek
Coordinator, Greenways Programme
Czech Environmental Partnership Foundation
Prague, Czech Republic
Udo Schuldt
First Chairman, Autofrei Leben!
(German network of carfree people)
Hamburg, Germany
Jason Kirkpatrick
Ecological City Planning Consultant, Berlin, Germany
former Deputy Mayor, City of Arcata, California
Aleksander Buczynski
Member of the Board
Cultural-Environmental Association 'Zielone Mazowsze'
Warsaw, Poland
Desislava Stoyanova
Environmental Association 'For the Earth'
Sofia, Bulgaria
Markus Heller
Freelance Architect
Carfree Network Berlin, autofrei-wohnen.de
Project Director, Carfree Quarter at the Panke
Berlin, Germany
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