Major Group: Local Authorities
7th SESSION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OPEN WORKING GROUP ON SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDG OWG-7) – 6-10 January 2014
Sustainable Transport
Intervention of Local Authorities Major Group at Morning Hearings
Delivered by David Cadman, President, ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, LAMG OP
Mr. Co-Chair,
It gives me a great pleasure to address the member states of the United Nations in my capacity as the president of ICLEI, which is a global network of local governments for sustainability with more than 1000 members that compasses More than 12 mega-cities, 100 super-cities and urban regions, 450 large cities as well as 450 medium-sized cities and towns in more than 80 countries.
Sustainable cities need and support sustainable transport. We would like to share with you an inspirational concept in this regard.
Many cities are promoting car-free days in the last decades worldwide, but can we imagine a life without cars? ICLEI has been promoting Ecomobility as a part of its smart infrastructure, green urban economy and low-carbon and resilient-city agenda. EcoMobility means traveling through integrated, socially inclusive and environmentally friendly transport options, including and integrating walking, cycling, wheeling, passenging, and car-sharing. EcoMobility is a paradigm shift to bring back the focus from automobile-centered development to human needs and sustainable cities.
This call to action set the tone of the newly released EcoMobility World Festival 2013 Report which documents the experience of Suwon City, South Korea in hosting the first ever month-long car-free initiative.1Instead of using cars, the 4,300 residents of Haenggung-dong neighborhood made their daily commute, shopping trips and journeys to leisure activities on foot, with pedal power and with light electric vehicles. During the festival 1500 cars removed, streets structures are physical changed and ecomobile vehicles and practices are experienced. The Festival is supported with a Congress resulted in Suwon Ecomobility Impulse.
ICLEI follows up through its EcoMobility Initiative and Global Ecomobility Alliance which offers diverse services to support ICLEI Members and other committed local governments in transforming their cities towards ecomobile priorities.
At the UN Warsaw Climate Conference in November 2013, negotiators convened a specific first-time workshop on urbanization and role of governments, which is a result of intensive advocacy through Local Government Climate Roadmap2. The workshop paved the way for the second COP Decision on cities. But even more importantly, the ADP workshop on cities enabled the first high level and intensive discussions on transport and climate change at a negotiation session. This demonstrates that having a city focus or an UrbanSDG may leverage visibility and engagement of many of the sectors, like transport, which has long been ignored or suppressed in global efforts on sustainability.
1 www.ecomobility.org and www.ecomobilityfestival.org
2 http://unfccc.int/meetings/warsaw_nov_2013/workshop/7875.php
DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDG OWG-7) – 6-10 January 2014
Sustainable Transport
Intervention of Local Authorities Major Group at Morning Hearings
Delivered by David Cadman, President, ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability, LAMG OP
Mr. Co-Chair,
It gives me a great pleasure to address the member states of the United Nations in my capacity as the president of ICLEI, which is a global network of local governments for sustainability with more than 1000 members that compasses More than 12 mega-cities, 100 super-cities and urban regions, 450 large cities as well as 450 medium-sized cities and towns in more than 80 countries.
Sustainable cities need and support sustainable transport. We would like to share with you an inspirational concept in this regard.
Many cities are promoting car-free days in the last decades worldwide, but can we imagine a life without cars? ICLEI has been promoting Ecomobility as a part of its smart infrastructure, green urban economy and low-carbon and resilient-city agenda. EcoMobility means traveling through integrated, socially inclusive and environmentally friendly transport options, including and integrating walking, cycling, wheeling, passenging, and car-sharing. EcoMobility is a paradigm shift to bring back the focus from automobile-centered development to human needs and sustainable cities.
This call to action set the tone of the newly released EcoMobility World Festival 2013 Report which documents the experience of Suwon City, South Korea in hosting the first ever month-long car-free initiative.1Instead of using cars, the 4,300 residents of Haenggung-dong neighborhood made their daily commute, shopping trips and journeys to leisure activities on foot, with pedal power and with light electric vehicles. During the festival 1500 cars removed, streets structures are physical changed and ecomobile vehicles and practices are experienced. The Festival is supported with a Congress resulted in Suwon Ecomobility Impulse.
ICLEI follows up through its EcoMobility Initiative and Global Ecomobility Alliance which offers diverse services to support ICLEI Members and other committed local governments in transforming their cities towards ecomobile priorities.
At the UN Warsaw Climate Conference in November 2013, negotiators convened a specific first-time workshop on urbanization and role of governments, which is a result of intensive advocacy through Local Government Climate Roadmap2. The workshop paved the way for the second COP Decision on cities. But even more importantly, the ADP workshop on cities enabled the first high level and intensive discussions on transport and climate change at a negotiation session. This demonstrates that having a city focus or an UrbanSDG may leverage visibility and engagement of many of the sectors, like transport, which has long been ignored or suppressed in global efforts on sustainability.
1 www.ecomobility.org and www.ecomobilityfestival.org
2 http://unfccc.int/meetings/warsaw_nov_2013/workshop/7875.php