The Slovenian initiative Heroes drive in pajamas” went viral after a press conference in Ljubljana. The initiative by Zavod VOZIM, insurance company Generali Zavarovalnica and partners, offers a solution to current problems of young people driving under the influence of alcohol.

With the main message “Make sure you drive home safely!” with the support of ambassadors and professionals and many known Slovenians, it is actively raising awareness to the wider Slovenian public about the dangers of drunk driving, which is the highest especially among the young drivers in the country.

In Slovenia, the cause of every third crash is related to alcohol, and one third of these are caused by young drivers. 22 years is the average age of young people.

Representatives of the Vozim Institute together with Generali Insurance took the initiative with the initiative “Heroes drive in pajamas”. In the iniative, people with disabilities, injured in traffic crashes, young people will be driven home free of charge. They will drive home young people from entertainment places outside major cities where there are no taxi services or organized public transport.

“With the initiative, we want to persuade young people not to drive under the influence of alcohol, and at the same time invite their parents, even in the middle of the night and in pajamas, to take their children home safely. Heroes are in pajamas. We believe that some are already doing this, but we want to do a lot more, much more”.

What is the main message?

The message of the campaign is especially needed in December, when the majority of road traffic crashes happen, with their share being the highest in places outside of bigger cities, where it there is a lack of public transport. Every third accident happens due to drunk driving. 22 years is the average age, where some young people end up on wheelchairs.

We are so excited to share a proud moment with you. We have been awarded the prestigious Prince Michael International Road Safety Award for our work in creating a generation of youth road safety champions. Our Capacity Development Programme has inspired and empowered young people on nearly every continent of the world to take meaningful action for road safety in their communities and beyond.

Press Release: 
Global road safety programme for youth becomes multi award winning!

13th December 2017. For Immediate Release

London, UK. Global non-governmental organization YOURS – Youth for Road Safety has been awarded the prestigious Prince Michael International Road Safety Award for their work in creating a generation of youth road safety ambassadors. The YOURS’ Capacity Development Programme has inspired and empowered young people on nearly every continent of the world to take meaningful action for road safety in their communities and beyond. It was described by the judges as having an exceptional impact across the world.

Held annually, the most outstanding examples of international road safety initiatives are given public recognition through the Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards and the winners are invited to a Gala Presentation held in London. This year in excess of forty nominations were considered and 17 awards presented.

Having been delivered in a.o. Belize, Kenya, Niger, Oman, Saint Lucia, United States of America and South Africa, the programme has developed the capacities of young people in all aspects of youth and road safety issues. It has provided young people with the skills and knowledge needed for them to go out into their communities and deliver strong road safety messages as champions. It focuses on key evidence-based road safety theory; peer-education and campaigning. For each country YOURS develops a ‘tailor made’ curriculum, focused on the needs of a specific communities and situations. It is delivered in a unique youth friendly, brain friendly, highly interactive and energetic way. This is achieved through art, role-plays, debates, discussions, music, creative expressions such as rap and poetry, as well as in the field demonstrations.

YOURS Director Floor Lieshout said, “We are delighted to have our work recognized by this prestigious award. Road traffic crashes remain, and have been the single biggest public health concern facing youth for over a decade. However, the young people we inspire and work worth are doing something about it’, he added.

“Our programme in Belize for example, has contributed to a real change in the country with young people setting the example for the rest of society as road safety champions. It’s the young people themselves who are taking  real action. We need to continue to invest in youth as catalysts of change for road safety and take them seriously in youth participation. We thank our Founding Members Michelin and the World Health Organization for their unwavering support from the start and all other partners that make our work possible”.

The YOURS programme has been described as, “One of the most incredible training experiences in road safety that exists for young people” and is becoming a sought after tool for engaging this demographic in meaningful action.

Some of the topics included in the programme include a focus on why road crashes disproportionately affect youth, how crashes happen, statistics in their country/community and how these can be prevented through evidence based focus on risk factors such as helmets, seatbelts, reducing speeding, knowing the effects of drugs and alcohol on driving and not being distracted behind the wheel. It also focuses on highly transferable leadership skills such as communications, campaigning, strategic planning, presentation skills and facilitation skills.

The Prince Michael International Road Safety Award is the second award for the programme. The first award was presented to YOURS by Queen Sofia of Spain at the Fundacion MAPFRE Social Awards in 2015, where the programme won best Road Safety Initiative

-Ends-

YOURS being presented to road safety decision-makers and leaders at the Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards ceremony at The Savoy in London.

Notes to Editors

History of YOURS: YOURS is a direct follow-up of the United Nations World Youth Assembly for Road Safety in 2007. More than 400 young people from over a 100 countries gathered to discuss the global road safety crisis and how young people can be part of the solution. One of the main wishes of the World Youth Ambassadors was the creation of a global youth-led organization that would lead a global youth movement for road safety. After a full year of planning and preparations under the auspices of the World Health Organization, YOURS was officially launched November 2009 during the opening ceremony of the First Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety in Moscow, Russia, and started its activities early 2010.

YOURS is also an official member of the United Nation Road Safety Collaboration (UNRSC), the body for road safety issues through the UN system. Our work is fully supported by the World Health Organization and is a valuable long-term partner.

At the beginning, YOURS received a generous start-up grant from Michelin, who is a Founding Member of YOURS and has been a supporter of our work since the inception in 2009. Michelin and YOURS have a long-term partnership and are working together to improve the road safety for young people worldwide.

Testimonials from young people who participated in the programme:

“I have never experienced a workshop like this before. You present road safety in such a creative way that it didn’t even feel like learning. It was just phenomenal” – Zaire Garbutt, trained in Belize

“I’ve been inspired, I’ve been motivated. Your style of workshops is very very nice. I can say that it’s very interactive and fun. Africa needs more of these workshops.” – Sally-Anne Gakunga, trained in Kenya

“I’m ready to share the message. As soon as I walked through the door I knew this training was going to be interesting. I have really learned a lot about road safety that I didn’t know before. We are going to share the road safety message in our communities” – Masilo Lephalala, trained in South Africa

Testimonials from partners to the programme:

“The Belize programme implemented by YOURS is an excellent example of investment translating into positive outcomes. It has exceeded expectations in terms of the numbers of youth trained and the degree to which their knowledge of risks has improved.” Glen McCarvell, Operations Officer – Caribbean Development Bank

“The training exceeded my expections. “It was wonderful to see how the youth participated…the knowledge they have gained and the enthusiasm they will leave with, we look forward to the implementation phase” Dr. Pieter Venter, Global Road Safety Partnership

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FIND OUT ALL ABOUT OUR MULTI AWARD WINNING PROGRAMME

Alliance Advocates are selected through a rigorous training program designed to find those applicants who will benefit most from the training.  In 2018, Alliance Advocate training is shifting from a single global training course to several regional courses. The training will take place in collaboration with FedEx and delivered by YOURS.

We invite members of the Global Alliance who are eligible for the training in the region to apply! The African Alliance Advocate training, which will be held in Nairobi, Kenya, in March 2018 is now open for applications.

The Alliance created the ‘Alliance Empowerment Program’, an overarching program that has the aim to work with NGO leaders to improve their effectiveness and impact. Members of the Alliance identified several key areas for development that would help them in their road safety missions on the ground.

In response to a clear capacity development need, the Alliance developed supportive programs under the banner of the Empowerment Program. These include: The Alliance Academy: which offers trainings such as online webinars and in-person training workshops.

The Alliance Advocates training have been delievered twice from a global perspective in Memphis, Tenessee at the FedEx Global Headquarters in 2016 and in 2017.

Eligibility and expenses

The African Alliance Advocate training is open to Alliance members from the African region. Non-members and members of the Alliance from other regions cannot be considered.

Members will need to confirm the visa requirements to travel to Kenya.

We can only consider applicants who are decision-makers within their organization.

Travel, accommodation, and food subsidies will be available but successful participants should expect to cover some costs themselves.

Deadline: 2 January 2018 at midnight GMT.

FOR MORE INFO ABOUT APPLYING VISIT THE GLOBAL ALLIANCE WEBSITE