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Global Newsletter October 2016 |
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Dear Friends and Supporters, This month, world leaders gathered in Quito, Ecuador, at the United Nations’ Habitat III conference and our industry peers pushed for the inclusion of road safety in the “New Urban Agenda.” The agenda, which lays a framework for sustainable urban development over the next 20 years, now commits to creating “a safe and healthy journey to school” for children worldwide. It also includes measures on prioritizing motorcycle safety. While road safety was showcased on the global stage, we were implementing programs in our project communities that align with this vision of safer urban development for all. We launched our, Helmets for Kids program, supported by Johnson & Johnson, in Vietnam’s Gia Lai Province, a low-income community where ethnic minorities make up nearly half of the population. In China, we expanded our Walk Wise program to 23 new schools. We are proud to say that over the past two years, the helmet wearing rates at our Street Wise project schools, supported by Chevron, in the Songkhla Province of Thailand have increased from 3% to 38%. We want to create long-lasting changes in our project communities, and working with the world’s youngest generations is critical to achieving this. As UNDP Goodwill Ambassador and road safety champion Michelle Yeoh said at the UN Habitat III conference, “Every day, 500 children die on the streets and are severely injured as well. Every day. We cannot afford for that to happen anymore.” Kind regards, Mirjam Sidik
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Global |
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Vietnam |
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Cambodia |
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Thailand |
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China |
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Employment Opportunities
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Global |
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Photo of the Month – California high school raises $1,000 for helmet donations
This month, 18-year-old Amy Lee visited our Ho Chi Minh City office on behalf of her school in the California, U.S.A., Rolling Hills Prep and Renaissance Schools, to present the proceeds from a recent fundraiser conducted by the school's "Cakes for Causes" club. The school doubled its target and was able to raise $1,000, which will support a helmet donation at a primary school in the Gia Lai Province of Vietnam. While in Vietnam, Amy visited one of the project schools AIP Foundation works with and met with doctors at Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, which treats thousands of road crash victims each year. Special thanks to the Rolling Hills Prep and Renaissance Schools for their support and dedication in our mission to save kids lives! |
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Give the gift of a life-saving helmet this #GivingTuesday and holiday season
This holiday season, consider supporting AIP Foundation in our efforts to save lives by reducing road crash fatalities and injuries. Mark your calendar for this year’s #GivingTuesday, which will take place on November 29, when we’ll be launching an end-of-the-year fundraising campaign through our GlobalGiving page. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for updates. |
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Road safety stakeholders explore risk management at conference in Malaysia
AIP Foundation CEO, Mirjam Sidik, joined fellow road safety stakeholders to discuss risk management, as well as the organization’s two-wheeler helmet education programs, at the third “Roads Between Us” conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Sidik presented on AIP Foundation’s work in Vietnam and Cambodia, and participated in a panel discussion. The event built upon preceding “Roads Between Us” conferences in Ghana in 2012 and Cameroon in 2014. This year’s seminar focused on the theme of work-related road risk management processes. The conference was hosted by Nestlé, Zurich Insurance, eDriving, and the Global Road Safety Partnership. The “Roads Between Us” events have aimed to connect road safety stakeholders across industries and countries to strategize for future growth in their sectors. |
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International Walk to School Month Spotlight: UNEP launches Global Outlook report on Walking and Cycling
Source: FIA Foundation, 21 October, 2016 October is International Walk to School Month. Pedestrian safety is a key area that AIP Foundation works in, particularly through its Walk This Way and Walk Wise programs. A new report from road safety and sustainability leaders highlights the importance of pedestrian safety in advancing urban development. A new report by Share the Road, led by UN Environment Programme, and funded by the FIA Foundation, highlights the importance of investment in walking and cycling infrastructure in cities worldwide. Currently a lack of investment in safe walking and cycling infrastructure is contributing to the deaths of millions of people and failing to contribute to the fight against deadly air pollution and climate change. The report, launched at Habitat III, surveys the progress towards safer walking and cycling infrastructure in over 20 low- to middle-income countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America, where compared with high-income countries, twice as many more people die in road traffic crashes. The report provides detailed summaries for each country, which include key non-motorized transport commitments and policy goals or policy statements. It also uses the survey responses to form a first active mobility index, which highlights the status of countries’ walking and cycling policy and planning and performance and implementation. Read the full report here. |
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Save the Date: World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims
Each year, the United Nations hosts the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims to honor the 1.25 million people who die annually due to road crashes. Visit the #WDR16 official website for more information. |
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Related news: Meet another foundation on a drive to improve global road safety
Source: Inside Philanthropy, 4 October, 2016 Global road safety has not been a hot topic among funders. That's curious, since road crashes contributed to approximately 1.25 million deaths in 2013, and that number is set to rise over time. Also, the U.N. has called attention to the importance of road safety in Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) three and 11. Among their many goals, SDG three aims to cut the number of traffic-related fatalities in half by 2020, and more broadly, SDG 11 is working toward improving road safety. The FIA Foundation was established in 2001 with a $300 million donation from the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) the “non-profit federation of motoring organizations and the governing body of motor sport.” The FIA made an additional $60 million donation to the foundation in 2008, earmarked for promoting safety in motor sport. With more than $1.5 million in grants over the past few years, AIP Foundation has received support towards its Global Helmet Vaccine Initiative and the expansion of AIP Foundation’s Child Helmet Public Awareness Campaign in Vietnam and Cambodia. In Cambodia in particular, the FIA Foundation is a co-funder of PAC, along with USAID and The UPS Foundation. Read the full article here. |
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Related news: Habitat III New Urban Agenda adopted in Quito
Source: FIA Foundation, 21 October, 2016 The ‘New Urban Agenda’, a twenty-year global policy framework for cities, has been adopted at the United Nations Habitat III conference, held in Quito, Ecuador. For the FIA Foundation and partners in the Global Initiative for Child Health & Mobility, the formal adoption of the agenda marks a significant achievement: the New Urban Agenda includes our core objective of a ‘safe and healthy journey to school for every child as a priority’. The NUA Declaration, the result of an inter-governmental negotiation which concluded in September, also recognises the importance of the Safe System approach for tackling urban road safety, highlights motorcycle safety as a particular urban priority, and urges action on air pollution and energy efficiency for vehicles, all core policy objectives for the FIA Foundation. Reviewing the Habitat III conference, FIA Foundation Executive Director Saul Billingsley said: “The inclusion of safe and healthy journeys to school in the New Urban Agenda is a significant result for our Global Initiative for Child Health & Mobility, and has formed the key message for our engagement here in Quito. There is strong recognition that urban mobility planning that puts people first and prioritises pedestrians and cyclists is absolutely crucial for combating climate change, air pollution and road traffic injuries, and for creating liveable cities that can cope with rising populations and growing mobility demand. Our focus on children brings together all of these themes and provides a compelling campaigning agenda and a powerful convening space to build alliances that can translate the New Urban Agenda into measurable action.” Read the full article here. |
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Helmets for Kids expands to serving ethnic minority children in Vietnam
To increase helmet use rates of children within the provinces of Dong Nai, Gia Lai, and Quang Nam, AIP Foundation, supported by Johnson & Johnson, will provide 21 primary schools in these provinces with 5,300 high quality helmets and road safety education under the Helmets for Kids program throughout the current school year. Today, members of the Gia Lai Province, which has a high population of ethnic minority groups, joined local community members and student representatives from six of the project schools to kick off the Helmets for Kids program. The program will continue throughout the school year. Program activities, including teacher trainings, occurred in May of this year in the three project provinces. Some participating schools have helmet use rates as low as 14.9%, and are located in busy areas near markets and major roads. Over the past five years, Johnson & Johnson has donated more than 45,000 helmets to children through the Helmets for Kids program. Read the full press release for the event here. View photos from the event here. |
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AIP Foundation Deputy CEO discusses the importance of child helmet use in global webinar
Hoang Thi Na Huong, Deputy CEO of AIP Foundation, discussed the importance of child helmet use during a webinar hosted by the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety as part of the “Crash Course in Key Risk Areas” series. She shared information on the importance of wearing helmets while riding on motorcycles. She also discussed the organization’s experiences working in Vietnam to increase child helmet use rates. Thus far, more than 190 people from over 30 countries have viewed the presentation. Future webinar topics in the series will cover drunk driving, speeding, seatbelt use, child restraints, and fatigued driving. View the full webinar here. Read more about the “Crash Course in Key Risk Areas” series here. |
Cambodia |
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Road safety NGO coalition crafts future efforts for Cambodia
At an AIP Foundation-hosted meeting of the Network of Road Safety NGOs, Cambodia-based road safety leaders convened to discuss ways they can collaborate to improve road safety policy implementation at all levels. This included discussions about effective enforcement of road safety laws, how to advocate for increased funding at the national and provincial levels, road safety school curricula, and future road safety legislation changes to advocate for. The Network of Road Safety NGOs is composed of key representatives from international and local nonprofits, including the Advocacy and Policy Institute, Coalition for Road Safety, Handicap International, Institute for Road Safety, SIPAR, and Women's Media Center. In January 2016, the coalition developed and submitted a Joint Statement on the New Road Traffic Law in Cambodia to the national government. As a result, members have been invited to a monthly meeting with the Cambodia National Road Safety Committee to provide feedback and technical input on key road safety issues. |
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USAID-DIV visits AIP Foundation in Cambodia
Representatives from USAID Development Innovation Ventures (USAID-DIV), based in Washington, D.C., visited the AIP Foundation Cambodia team to discuss the results of the project it recently supported, Head Safe. Helmet On. The representatives, Erin Crossett and Duc Tran, were able to witness first-hand the impact their support has had in increasing passenger helmet use. They visited a police enforcement checkpoint in Phnom Penh, and discussed the key challenges for effective helmet law enforcement with a senior traffic police official. The AIP Foundation Cambodia team, as well Mirjam Sidik, CEO and Peggy Moriarty, Development Coordinator, joined them. In addition to discussing the project outcomes from these past two years, AIP Foundation also presented plans to build on the project’s successes and increase the project’s future reach. Head Safe. Helmet On. was implemented in three provinces in Cambodia from June 2014 and June 2016 with the aim of increasing passenger helmet use and decreasing road crash injuries and fatalities. The project reached more than 226,000 direct beneficiaries and helped to more than triple adult passenger helmet use rates in target provinces. View the results of the project in this infographic. |
Thailand |
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Prospective communications campaigns to reduce urban speed limits developed at workshop
During the third Media for Policy Influence workshop, hosted by AIP Foundation, Legal Development Program (LDP) members developed potential mass media campaigns to advocate for the reduction of urban speed limits, focusing on messages, decision maker analysis, and community identification. They also met with Thanathorn Rattanapanop, a representative from Thailand's Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation. The LDP is a partnership among AIP Foundation, the World Health Organization, and the Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety, that aims to build the capacity of legal and media professionals to advocate for improved road safety legislation throughout Thailand. |
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Thai legal professionals attend World Health Organization workshop in Switzerland
Members of the Legal Development Program (LDP) attended a World Health Organization-hosted workshop in Geneva, Switzerland, that focused on improving road safety legislation worldwide through improving child restraints and seatbelts in vehicles. The event was affiliated with the Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety and more than 30 representatives from five countries attended. The LDP, which is a partnership among AIP Foundation, the World Health Organization, and Bloomberg Philanthropies, aims to build the capacities of its members to improve road safety laws in Thailand through the media and advocacy. |
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Organic rice distributor signs on to support
Helmets for Kids in Northern Thailand
The Natural Growth Co., Ltd., established a partnership with AIP Foundation to support the Helmets for Kids program at a school in the Northern Thai province of Uttaradit, which is where the company grows its crops. The project will start in January 2017. The Natural Growth Co., Ltd., started in 1996 and is a leader in sustainable farming, with an emphasis on building meaningful relationships with its farmers, distributors, and customers. Thailand has the second highest road crash death rate in the world, with an estimated 24,237 fatalities annually. Helmets for Kids provides students in Thailand with quality helmets and road safety education in an effort to instill a safe road culture in the country’s youngest generation. |
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Helmet wearing rates at Chevron-supported project schools in Southern Thailand increase from 3% to 38% over two years
Over the past two years, helmet-wearing rates at Street Wise project schools in Songkhla Province, an initiative supported by Chevron, have increased from 3% to 38%. Street Wise staff presented the program’s final evaluation results to government stakeholders at the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation in Songkhla Province, where Street Wise has been implemented since 2014. The staff also shared a presentation outlining the results and screened two videos profiling project beneficiaries. The meeting’s 30 attendees were invited to ask questions and provide feedback on the program. Over two years, student pedestrian safety knowledge increased significantly. For instance, before the project started only 35% of students knew to look both ways before crossing the street. This increased to 95% in 2016. Observed behavior changes were also significant. The number of students using a crosswalk increased from 29% in 2014 to 91% in 2016, and those not running while crossing increased from 47% to 86%. The Street Wise program launched in the Singhanakorn District of Songkhla Province. Since then, the program has expanded to the neighboring Muang District. Thailand has the second-highest road crash fatality rate in the world, and Street Wise provides school-based education and awareness tools to help make the country’s roads safer. Read the full press release from the event here. |
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Related news: Effective law enforcement key to lessening road fatalities
Source: United News of Bangladesh, 2 October, 2016 Amid the alarming rise in road accidents in Bangladesh, an international expert on road safety has said “regular and effective enforcement” of relevant laws and joint efforts can help lessen the fatalities and save economic losses. “Of course heavy penalty or punishment does help. But regular [law] enforcement helps the most… that’s the key,” Ratanawadee H. Winther, Thailand Chairperson of AIP Foundation, told UNB in an interview on Saturday. She suggested formation of responsible organizations to manage road safety and oversee work together with government agencies and giving more emphasis on awareness building among all. “I think regular enforcement, education and medical response can yield positive results,” Winther said mentioning that road safety issues should be included in the curricula of educational institutions so that all can play a responsible role. Read the full article here. |
China |
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Walk Wise, supported by Chevron, expands road safety education to 23 new schools in its fifth year
Walk Wise, supported by Chevron, launched its fifth year and announced it is expanding its road safety education programs to 23 new schools in the Chuandongbei (CDB) Gas Project area in the Sichuan and Chongqing provinces of China. The program now serves a total of 80 primary schools and about 90,000 students in the region. More than 500 students attended the celebration at Zhaojia No. 2 Primary School in the Kai Zhou District of Chongqing Province. The program provides trainings and educational materials to parents and teachers so they can then teach students about the importance of road and pedestrian safety. The project also creates traffic simulation corners on campuses, and provides students with reflective gear so they are visible along busy roads during their walks to and from school. A third-party evaluation of Walk Wise was completed in June 2016 and found that students’ knowledge and positive road behaviors significantly increased compared to data collected in 2013. Students improved their scores on a road safety quiz from 60% to 85%, and more than 90% looked left and right while crossing the street. Chevron and AIP Foundation launched Walk Wise in 2012. In addition to implementing school-based activities, the project has hosted community events promoting the United Nations Road Safety Week, the National Traffic Safety Day, and general road safety awareness. Read a full press release for the event here. View photos from the event here. |
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More than 400 teachers in China trained on road safety curriculum for
Walk Wise school activities
AIP Foundation staff trained more than 400 teachers from the 23 Walk Wise project schools in road safety curriculum to teach their students in the coming semester. The workshop aimed to increase teachers' understanding of the importance road safety as well as increase their capacity to work with their students. The AIP Foundation team will continue to visit project schools to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the teachers' trainings. In China, more than 260,000 people die due to road crashes and pedestrians account for 26% of these deaths. Chevron and AIP Foundation launched Walk Wise in 2012 in Kai Zhou District to help reduce these numbers. The program implements both school- and community-based activities to equip road users with the necessary skills to stay safe. View photos from the training here. |
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