YOURS – Youth for Road Safety is looking for another member of the Supervisory Board to help support the strategic ambitions of the organization. The Supervisory Board works in collaboration with the YOURS team in accordance with our organizational principles, vision, and mission. 

About Our Work

YOURS is a global organization that acts to make the world’s roads safe for youth. We are experts in youth and road safety issues and advocate for sustainable mobility at the highest levels of decision-making. We believe in meaningful youth participation as a key strategy to change these statistics.

With strategic global advocacy and empowering youth locally, we will unlock a global revolution for road safety and make this generation the last one facing this massive public health threat.

We are a small team with big ideas and powerful allies. We are proud of our work and have loads of fun while doing it. 

Roles and Responsibilities of the Supervisory Board member

CLOSING DATE: DECEMBER 2021

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE POSITION

Paris, June 15, 2021 – The Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety, Youth for Road Safety (YOURS), and TotalEnergies Foundation are taking to social media to launch #ArtforRoadSafety, the first challenge for safer mobility on the African continent. Road safety is a critical issue for young people in Africa, where road traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for people aged 15 to 29.

The #ArtforRoadSafety challenge is being held in Egypt, Uganda, and Senegal. Its purpose is to change behaviors and make young people realize that they too have an individual responsibility as road users.

The idea is that they then take ownership of this important cause and become local ambassadors themselves in the most creative and original way possible.

Three African artists and influencers will share their talent by creating inspiring content on two road safety issues: observing speed limits and wearing a helmet. The artists selected are Egyptian graffiti artist Elna2Ash, Senegalese graffiti artist Zeinixx, and Ugandan dancer Robert Ssempijja.

The #ArtforRoadSafety campaign has just kicked off on the Global Youth Coalition’s Instagram account (@ClaimingOurSpace) with a video presenting the three artists. From July 6, they will post their artistic content and then throw down the gauntlet to young people on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. The challenge will run in the three countries from July 6 to 22.

“Who better than young people to convince other young people? This social media challenge gives them an opportunity to create inspiring and creative content for safer mobility and share it with their friends.” – Floor Lieshout, Executive Director of YOURS – Youth for Road Safety

“At TotalEnergies, safety is more than just a priority. It’s a value. Through the TotalEnergies Foundation global program of citizenship initiatives, TotalEnergies is pleased to support this innovative campaign being run by and for young people alongside socially engaged African artists.” – Manoelle Lepoutre, Senior Vice President, Civil Society Engagement for TotalEnergies Foundation

On the project, Elna2Ash said: “Road safety is a very personal subject for me because I lost a close friend to a road accident. My works are exhibited in a service station in Cairo to encourage young Egyptians to slow down.”

On his artistic intervention, Robert Ssempijja said: “My choreographies will be a great way to send a message to young Ugandans about wearing a helmet.”

On the impact of the project, Zeinixx said: “The good thing about a traveling exhibition is that it lets you reach out to different people and raise their awareness about speeding.”

DOWNLOAD PRESS RELEASE HERE
 

About the Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety and YOURS

The Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety unites individual youth and organizations and is made up of more than 400 passionate young people from across the world who are taking action for safe mobility issues. It is underpinned by the principles of the Global Youth Statement for Road Safety. The Coalition connects road safety to key related topics such as health, sustainable cities, climate change, education, poverty, and equality. 

www.claimingourspace.org

YOURS is a global non-profit organization that is a direct follow-up of the United Nation’s first World Youth Assembly held in 2007. YOURS believes that young people have a right to be adequately informed, consulted, and empowered on road safety. Its mission is to act to make the world’s roads safer for young people everywhere. YOURS is a multi-award-winning organization, an official member of the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration and has Consultative Status at UN ECOSOC. www.youthforroadsafety.org

About TotalEnergies Foundation
TotalEnergies Foundation covers the citizenship initiatives conducted every day worldwide by TotalEnergies, its affiliates and its corporate foundation. Through this program, TotalEnergies aims to contribute to the dynamism of its host communities and regions, with a special focus on young people. It is targeting four areas: youth inclusion and education; road safety; climate and environment; cultural dialogue and heritage. TotalEnergies Foundation is part of the Group’s societal engagement and supports its ambition to become the responsible energy major. https://www.foundation.total/en

To find out more about the #ArtforRoadSafety campaign, download the brochure in the press kit.

For media inquiries contact: 
Manpreet Darroch
Head of Communications
YOURS – Youth for Road Safety
manpreet@youthforroadsafety.org

TotalEnergies contacts
Media Relations: +33 1 47 44 46 99 l presse@totalEnergies.com l @TotalEnergies Press

Last Friday, June 11, YOURS – Youth for Road Safety with iRAP – International Road Assessment Programme and the Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety held a celebration event for the passers of the Youth Stars Programme. A total of 21 members of the Coalition were able to pass the month-long programme and were certified to use the Star Rating for Schools (SR4S) methodology to rate roads in their local schools and universities. 

The Youth Stars Programme
In 2019, YOURS – Youth for Road Safety partnered with iRAP to create the Youth Stars Programme –  a tool that equips young people to use the Star Rating for Schools Methodology as a road safety approach to ensure the safety of students on their way to schools.

The Youth Stars Programme supports the demands of young people listed in the Global Youth Statement for Road Safety, specifically the demand for “roads that do not kill our dreams”.

The programme began that same year where YOURS and iRAP, supported with sponsorship from FedEx, began training five young people from around the world known as Master Trainers with the skills to rate school zones through the SR4S methodology. These Master Trainers include Alex Ayub from Kenya, Daniel Cano from Colombia, Jacob Smith from the United States, Minh Vo from Vietnam, and Shantel Jacobs from Belize.

The second phase of the programme, which happened this year, focused on the Master Trainers working with other young people to train them on using the SR4S methodology and web tools, passing along tips to help them become youth stars.

Connecting with the Coalition
For phase two of the youth stars programme, the Master Trainers trained members of the Global Youth Coalition for Road Safety in a month-long session that discussed the methodology by introducing the principles of the programme and the methodology, understanding the SR4S project structure, procedure of data gathering, and answering frequently asked questions related to the star rating programme.

The sessions were hosted by YOURS – Youth for Road Safety Communications Officer Manpreet Darroch and were led by Master Trainers Alex Ayub, Daniel Cano, Minh Vo, and Shantel Jacobs. Star Rating for School Global Project Coordinator Rafaela Machado and FedEx representative Shane O’Connor joined the Coalition members for the sessions to elaborate on the methodologies and goals of the programme.

The members of the Coalition participated in interactive sessions where they were able to ask the master trainers about everything related to the methodology. Each session ended with assignments that can help the members better experience the SR4S methodology and help practice its application.

The sessions ran every Monday for four weeks from March 15 to April 5.

Celebration event
During the celebration event, Rafaela Machado from iRAP, Shane O’Connor from FedEx, and Floor Lieshout from YOURS – Youth for Road Safety congratulated the passers on the beginning of their journey to rate schools resulting in safer journeys for students around the world.  

“You guys are like firemen and firewomen and the building is burning. We’re losing 500 children every day around the world. You guys have the fire extinguishers to run into the burning building and to put out the fire.” – Shane O’Connor

Sharing his congratulations, Floor Lieshout added that the youth stars is a great opportunity to create more leaders. “To the youth stars, that will be your role in the upcoming years – to create more leaders. Share your knowledge, share your skills, and create more leaders that believe in this system” 

Passers also shared their experiences throughout the sessions and their learnings from interacting with the SR4S tools and methodology. 

Mariam Kukava from Georgia said that the process of learning was interesting, especially the practical lessons of rating a school zone in her area to increase the quality of safety. “The training has convinced me that the Star Rating for School is the best evidence-based tool for measuring, managing, and communicating the risks children are exposed to on their journey to school. 

The end of the Youth Stars Programme is not the final phase of the programme. For the third phase, the newly certified youth stars will engage and reach out to organizations to support them in their assessments as well as to create more youth leaders trained in the SR4S methodology. 

“This is just the beginning of your journey and now, I expect you to see you engage local partners, local organizations, and local authorities, pushing for activities around schools.” – Rafaela Machado 

MORE ABOUT THE STAR RATING FOR SCHOOL PROGRAMME

Last Tuesday to Friday, June 1 to 4, independent and non-profit organization Movin’ On launched the Movin’ On Summit with the theme “from ambition to action”. The goal of the summit is to inspire, connect, and engage mobility stakeholders in collective action to create and implement concrete solutions for more mobility with less dangerous impacts on the environment, society, and community. 

Movin’ On Summit
The session was a “phygital experience” that featured both live and streamed content from 250 public and private organizations and 80 world-class speakers. The summit was held in Montreal, Paris, and Singapore and was streamed live through three formats; live television, satellites, and capsules.

The session featured a number of road safety leaders like Omar Abbosh, Oscar de Bok, JeanLaurent Bonnafé, Xavier Huillard, Ilham Kadri, Patrick Koller, Florent Menegauz, Luca de Meo, Rodolphe Saadé, and Julie Sweet.

The speakers and participants during the Summit talked about how to solve the “burning mobility issues” the global community faces. The ultimate goal is to preserve global resources, produce zero emissions, and achieve universal and multimodal mobility.

YOURS – Youth for Road Safety Executive Director, Floor Lieshout, also spoke during the summit to talk about ensuring road safety through policies and meaningful youth involvement.  

“Put low-speed streets at the heart of our communities. We are calling for a paradigm shift.” – Floor Lieshout. 

Youth Challenge Hackathon
The summit featured three international challenges; the Movin’ On Startup Booster, the Movin’ On Challenge Design, and the Movin’ On Youth Challenge.

Global Youth Coalition regional leader, Sana’ Khasawneh, led the Youth Challenge Hackathon. The Youth Challenge highlights the importance of engaging young people in the thought process and leadership roles in efforts toward sustainable mobility and climate action.

“Movin’ On is committed to ensuring that we include young people in the conversation and the journey towards tackling some of the world’s biggest mobility issues as defined by the 2021 Summit’s five combats.”

During the summit, Sana’ and her team created a plan that presents the future of mobility. Their plans took into account different factors like government policies, financing, the social responsibilities of the private sector, mobility platforms for young people, and youth-led approaches and innovation programs.

They presented their ideas to the global jury who will assess the different proposals from the different youth groups. 

“The spirit of the Movin’ On Summit is to address together issues and topics from different points of view and reach collective conclusions and actions!” – Florent Menegaux 

MORE ABOUT THE MOVIN’ ON SUMMIT

Last August 2020, the United Nations adopted resolution 74/299 “Improving global road safety”, proclaiming the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030. The plan highlights how governments and member states can take action in order to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 3.6 – halving the number of road-related deaths and injuries by the year 2030.

In the same resolution, the UN General Assembly requested WHO and the UN Regional Commissions, in cooperation with other partners in the UN Road Safety Collaboration and other stakeholders, to prepare a plan of action of the Second Decade as a guiding document to support the implementation of the Decade’s objective.

However, it has come to the Coalition’s attention that the plan does little to recognize Youth as stakeholders to fight their own #1 leading cause of death and to help shape their own future around sustainable mobility.

After carefully reviewing, it has come to the Coalition’s attention that the Plan does not recognize youth as stakeholders to fight their own leading cause of death and to help shape their own future around sustainable mobility.

By ignoring Youth as stakeholders, the Global Plan is also failing to consider best practices around meaningful youth engagement guidelines to member states, set by the UN and WHO, respectively through the UN Youth Strategy 2030 and WHO Global Accelerated Action for the Health of Adolescents (AA-HA!)

The Coalition, through the Youth Advisory Board, is demanding the developers of the Plan to recognize Youth as equal partners in developing and implementing the global plan and a driving force to help deliver the Global Goals, including its road safety targets. 

In 2020, promises were made to young people during the 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in Sweden. We cannot afford to have the new Decade of Action for Road Safety without Youth. They have every right to be part of it.

As a result, the Coalition is demanding to have young people involved in the global plan by submitting a plan where young people are at the center of the Global Plan of Action.

We are very proud to share the Youth Submission for the new Decade of Action (DoA) for Road Safety which has gained support from all sectors and shows that many stakeholders are ready to work together with young people. This strengthens us in our call to amend the Plan.

DOWNLOAD DOA YOUTH SUBMISSION HERE 

Last Thursday, May 20, YOURS – Youth for Road Safety Head of Communications, Manpreet Darroch, joined the Jamaica National Road Safety Council webinar for the 6^th UN Global Road Safety Week. The session tackled the importance of addressing road crashes in Jamaica. Dr. Lucien Jones, Vice Chairman of the National Road Safety Council, led the session. 

Road safety and the Decade of Action

The session was opened by the Most Honorable Andrew Holness, ON, MP – the Prime Minister of Jamaica and the Chairman of the National Road Safety Council. During his opening remarks, PM Holness, showed support for the goals set in the new Decade of Action for Road Safety.

“In Jamaica, we will be playing our part to ensure the successful design and implementation of a holistic plan to make our roadways streets for life” – Most Honorable Andrew Holness, ON, MP

The session included speakers; Hon. Earl Jarett, OJ, CD, JP from the Jamaica National Group, Zoleka Mandela from Child Health Initiative, Dr. Parris Lyew-Ayee Jnr. from the Mona Geoinfomatics Institute, Dr. Etienne Krug from the World Health Organization, Saul Billingsley from the Federation Internationale de L’Automobile, Julio Urzua from iRAP – International Road Assessment Programme, Avi Silverman from the Federation Internationale de L’Automobile, and Manpreet Darroch from YOURS – Youth for Road Safety.

Each of the road safety leaders talked about how important low-speed streets are in the achievement of the new Decade of Action for Road Safety. Julio Urzua emphasized that, apart from achieving the goals in the new Decade of Action, addressing issues around road safety could also meet the targets in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr. Etienne also pointed out how important following up on statements is as important as sharing commitments. This task falls on all stakeholders. 

“Be more vocal and bolder. We can’t continue having, even discussions like this, where we have high-level political leaders join us and state their commitment and do not see the results. We have to be more demanding, we have to be more pushy and make sure that these political statements lead to real action” – Dr. Etienne Krug 

The role of youth
During his discussion, Manpreet talked about how important young people are to advocate for low-speed streets and implement road safety projects and initiatives.

Manpreet talked about how YOURS and the Coalition have gathered young people from around the world who are extremely committed to making streets safer for their peers. 

“Too many young have seen their peers being killed on the road and the tragic effects that it has on communities around the world. So we, as the young people, are stepping up and claiming our space” – Manpreet Darroch

Manpreet also emphasized that, apart from giving young people a voice, it is also important to provide them with support and opportunities to energize the global road safety movement so they can move forward and take the fight for road safety forward with them. 

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