We have drafted and adopted this Declaration in order to proclaim our commitment to address the problem of road traffic fatalities and injuries, and to urge Europe to take action to prevent road accidents. This is the robust sentiment at the core of the European Youth Declaration for Road Safety that was adopted by over 52 youth delegates at the 4th European Youth Forum for Road Safety 2011. Now, European Youth Ambassadors for Road Safety go back to their nations to share the declaration with key decision makers to influence change across Europe.
Over 50 youth delegates from over 25 European countries adoped the First European Youth Declaration for Road Safety. The declaration gives the youth delegates a strong mandate to pursue influence in road safety policies and road safety action in their nations.
The declaration, drafted by YOURS was officially adopted by the youth delegates from across Europe at the 4th Edition of the European Youth Forum for Road Safety 2011 held on 24-25th November 2011 at the European Commission, Brussels – Belgium. The youth delegates urge decision makers across Europe to commit to safer mobility because of the tragic circumstance that sees over 400,000 young people being killed on the world’s roads every year with thousands more seriously injurred.
Youth Commitment
The text of the delcaration includes:
We have respect for our own life and for the lives of our peers. Because life is so fragile, we must do our best to live safely and also encourage our peers do so. We fully acknowledge the importance of youth involvement in making road safety happen. We call for awareness among our peers of the serious risks they run in becoming involved in road traffic accidents. We call upon our peers to serve as role models on the road and to promote road safety among our friends and families – particularly our younger brothers and sisters. Specifically, we ask our peers to avoid driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs, avoid speeding, refrain from aggressive behaviour on the road, use helmets when riding motorcycles and bicycles, wear seat-belts when in motor vehicles, and ensure that we are visible on the roads.
However, our efforts alone are not sufficient. We therefore also call upon our parents and guardians, our schools and universities, the communities in which we live – as well as on policy-makers, community-based organizations, private sector companies, media, celebrities and the entertainment sector – to share responsibility and work together with us to make the road ahead safe and sustainable. We also see that we have an obligation to help each others by sharing the knowledge and networking with other worldwide youth organizations.
We therefore urge you to:
- Continue to support the annual European Youth Forum for Road Safety and to acknowledge its importance as a forum for young people to meet and share best practices, and to make their voices heard at European level.
- Develop and implement policies and initiatives to make European roads safer, in particular:to encourage through education at school the development of a road safety culture at a younger age; to develop, through the training and licensing process, a sense of individual responsibility and respect of other users;
- to re-inforce the awareness amongst young people of the need to comply with road traffic rules and to avoid risky behaviours, in particular in relation with speed, drugs, alcohol and the use of mobile phones while driving;to improve the safety of young people as vulnerable road users, and to address as a priority the safety of young riders of powered-two-wheelers.
- to prevent and limit the consequences of crashes involving more particularly young people through the development of safer infrastructure and vehicle technologies;
- to strengthen efforts to reduce the number and severity of road traffic injuries which may have long-life dramatic consequences for young people;
- Discuss youth and road safety issues, learn about the situation of young people on the roads and bring their issues to the forefront.
YOURS Director, Mr Floor Lieshout gave a presentation about using declarations in general to achieve effective change, ‘How to advocate using a declaration’, this presentation is attached in attachements. His presentation is also attached as a video along with the presenatation of Communications Officer Mr Manpreet Darroch along with a highlights reel from the forum.
You can read the full text of the European Youth Declaration for Road Safety in the attachments.