Grace Foundation Gambia

Recently, Nelson Aigbe, (the Founder/Director of Grace Foundation, Gambia) got in contact with me. He had seen news of my research in Sierra Leone and he reached out to share the important work he is doing feeding and educating street kids. I wanted to do a post for Grace Foundation to support their incredible work, spread the work and give readers the opportunity to donate and help Grace Foundation continue their work. In a time when many of us are house-bound and the world seems to have shrunk, it is even more important to keep our eyes and hearts open to needs of others. This post is written by Nelson and outlines what Grace Foundation is and how they help local street kids. Please give generously. Thanks, NG.

Grace Foundation Gambia

Grace Foundation is a registered nonprofit organization in the Gambia that provides education and food for 400 street kids.. Many Gambian children turn up at schools daily on hungry stomach and return home hungry.

Their families are living in extreme poverty and do not have enough income to provide the barest minimum of food.

As a result of the poverty faced daily by these children, many are withdrawn from schools and are forced to engage in street trading in order to get food for their families at home, thus exposing these mainly children girl to sex abuse, child trafficking and child labour.

Grace Foundation provides free school meals and education to 400 kids, most of them are girl s as a way to help stop sex abuse, encourage school attendance and stop hunger at schools.

A message from the Founder/Director

I write to you on behalf of Grace Foundation Gambia.

Grace Foundation provides free school meals and education to mainly girl street children sent to trade in the streets in order to help feed at home thus exposing these mainly girl street children to sex abuse, child trafficking and child labour.

Since the closure of schools these children can no longer assess the free school meals programme we provide daily, and most of these children are back in the streets, trading and hawking in order to be fed at home.

This street trading has once again exposed these mainly girl children to sex abuse, child trafficking and labour.

I pray for your attention in helping me with the continuation of the feeding and probably education of these very vulnerable poor Children.

My organization is a small one that depends on the magnanimous donations of good people like you to help keep these children safe from the streets.

Please feel free to ask any questions that may be useful to you.

Kind regards,

Nelson Aigbe – Founder/Director, Grace Foundation, The Gambia

You can make a difference

Your contributions can help educate a child because your
$15 will buy stationery for a child
$25 will provide school bag for a child

$50 will provide Uniforms
$100 will provide lunch for 2000 pupils

$150 will provide seedlings for school gardens
$700 will buy 2000 acres of land

Grace Foundation Newsletter Download

Support Grace Foundation

To support kindly send donations to: Trust Bank Limited (Gambia)
Account Name: Grace Foundation (GF) Account Number: 110-243272-01
Swift Code: TBLTGMGM

For further inquiries please contact: gracefoundation.gm@gmail.com

Telephone: (00220) 994 88 46 998 18 60

LinkedIn: Grace Foundation GF Gambia

Facebook: https://fb.me/GraceFoundation1968

Twitter: @GraceFoundatio7

All images courtesy of Grace Foundation Gambia.

13/08/202013/10/2020

Dissident Bicycles (Part 2): Brag & Wikström’s ‘Retunity’

This August, we have a 5-part series written by Laura Fisher exploring how bicycles are used as a dissident object in contemporary art. The first post looked at the importance and impact of one of Ai Weiwei’s most iconic bicycle-based artworks ‘Forever’. In this second instalment, Laura looks at the refashioned (literally) ‘reversed engineered’ bike project entitled Returnity by German art duo Elin Wikström and Anna Brag. Enjoy! NG.

Dissident Bicycles (Part 2): Brag & Wikstrom's 'Retunity'. Bicycles Create Change.com 13th August 2020.

While Ai’s bicycles are polished and quiescent, many other artists have employed the bicycle’s movement to activate different kinds of individual and social behaviour. For example, in 1997, as part of the Skulptur Projecte in Münster, Germany, artists Elin Wikström and Anna Brag staged an event called Returnity.

They engineered nine bicycles to travel backwards when they were pedalled forwards, and equipped them with training wheels and a rear-view mirror.

A bicycle club was set up in a public park for three months, providing instructions to members of the public who attempted to ride the altered bicycles. In the end, over 2,000 people participated with about a quarter of these returning again and again to improve their skills.

These bicycles were a prop for heightening people’s spatial and sensory awareness. They also created an unusual social space. As Maria Lind remarked, it “was a playful test that referenced lifelong learning [and] connectivity in a globalised world” and an exercise in “radically rethinking and deliberately disorienting one’s naturalised behaviours”

Lind’s comments about Returnity are a reminder that the bicycle’s humility as a human scaled machine paradoxically gives it great power. Not only is it open to inexhaustible experimentation, it can engage the body and mind in such a way as to galvanise both personal autonomy and social affinity.

Laura Fisher is a post-doctoral research fellow at Sydney College of the Arts, The University of Sydney. In October 2015 she co-curated Bespoke City with Sabrina Sokalik at UNSW Art & Design, a one night exhibition featuring over 20 practitioners celebrating the bicycle through interactive installations, sculpture, video, design innovation, fashion and craft. This event was part of Veloscape, an ongoing art–research project exploring the emotional and sensory dimensions of cycling in Sydney.

The contents of this post was written by Laura Fisher and first published online by Artlink (2015). Minor edits and hyperlinks added and footnotes removed to aid short-form continuity. Images from Artlink unless attributed.

30/07/202027/08/2020

New Materialisms SIG: PlayTank Collective

For this session, we were delighted to have incredible minds behind the Melbourne-based PlayTank Collective – Alicia Flynn, Sarah Healy and Allie Edwards present a session entitled: Lessons from the Play Tank: Adventures in playful scholarship.

New Materialism SIG: The PlayTank Collective. Bicycles Create Change.com 30th July 2020.

Abstract

In this session, we will discuss a workshop that was created to enact NM theories and provide a playful and collaborative space to re-think, re-imagine, re-( ) research for participants at the AARE 2019 conference. Working between the disciplines of art education and design, we embraced the opportunity to create this workshop in a way that attended to the joys and curiosities that we experienced while working/playing together in a material way. This collaboration was intentionally responsive and response-able, allowing us to experience a different way of being academics together, and enabling us to create a workshop that offered the same opportunity for those joining us in our session.

We will share some of the insights from our process of creating the workshop, some highlights and images from the workshop, and pose the question we now have:

What does this workshop make possible, both for us as researchers and for the people who participated in it?

Is this a method that allows people to practice more affirmative and ethical ways of working/playing/being together?

Twitter: @PlayTankCo

Alicia Flynn @LeishFly

Sarah Healy- @eduTH1NK

Alli Edwards – @allinote

Session highlights

Sarah and Alli (and Alicia) not only presented, but also took us on an engaging 2-hour journey through their ideas, inspirations, readings, discussions and no less than two 100s (Stewart, 2010) writing activities (see image) and left us with the enticing thought:

What does this experience make possible, both for us as researchers and for the people who participated in it?

Part of the framing for this session was this incredible piece that Alicia read out:

“Imagine a pattern. This pattern is stable, but not fixed. Think of it in as many dimensions as you like – but it has more than three. This pattern has many threads of many colours, and every thread is connected to, and has a relationship with, all the others. The individual threads are every shape of life. Some – like human, kangaroo, paperbark – are known to Western science as “alive”; others, like rock, would be called “non-living”, but rock is there, just the same. Human is there, too, though it is neither the most nor the least important thread – it is one among many, equal with the others. The pattern made the whole is in each thread, and all the threads together make the whole. Stand close to the pattern and you can focus on a single thread ; stand a little further back and you can see how that thread connects to others; stand further back still and you can see it all – and it is only once you see it all that you recognise the pattern of the whole in every individual thread. The whole is more than the sum of its parts, and the whole is in all its parts. This is the pattern that the Ancestors made. It is life, creation, spirit, and it exists in Country” (Kwaymullina, 2005, p. 12).

*Kwaymullina, A. (2005). Seeing the light: Aboriginal law, learning and sustainable living in country. Indigenous Law Bulletin, 6(11), 12-15

For this meeting we had 2 readings:

Braidotti, R. (2009). On putting the active back into activism. New Formations, (68), 42. doi:10.3898/NEWF.68.03.200

Stewart, K. (2010). Worlding refrains. In M. Gregg & G. J. Seigworth (Eds.), The affect theory reader (pp. 337 -353). Durham [N.C.]: Duke University Press.

Stewart (2010) Worlding refrains Download

Minor Design Activism(un highlighted)Download

Session note: A great question from last meeting that emerged out of the readings was: What is ‘the second corporeal turn in social theory’ referred to in Taylor and Ivinson (2013, p 666)? This question stemmed from this quote here: “Such moves reinforce earlier feminist theories (Butler 1990; Grosz 1994), and speak back to the second corporeal turn in social theory (e.g. Bourdieu and Wacquant 1992; Foucault 1979; Merleau-Ponty 1962, 1968; Shilling 2008) and within education (Evans, Rich, and Davies 2009; James 2000; Prout 2000; Walkerdine 2009). We indend to discuss this further!

25/07/202027/08/2020

Bicycles help the Pascua Yaqui community fight diabetes

I am always looking for stories where bicycles create positive community change. Inclusive bike-focused programs that support First Nations and minority groups is a special interest for this blog.

Previously, I have posted on programs that increase bike use, access and participation for Indigenous Australians such as:

This week, I came across a US community-based project working at the forefront of 3 critical intersecting issues: diabetes, first nations (Native American community) health and using bicycling to mitigate chronic health issues.

This project works with the Pascua Yaqui people in the US. Obesity and diabetes is a major individual and community health issue in many communities – and the Diabetes Community Empowerment Project is using bicycles to help address this issue. What an awesome project!

Who are they?

This initiative is part of Native Exercise Empowerment Project.

Since 2012, the Diabetes Community Empowerment Project has been working with the Native American community helping them move towards better health. This community sees a high incidence of diabetes and obesity and DCEP empower native people to exercise more and be role models for each other.

The programs work in resource poor communities by removing the barriers between people and the healthier, happier versions of themselves.

Starting out

The project began when James Stout (DCEP Executive Director) was training in Tucson Arizona. At the time, he was making a living as a cyclist. Having spent time riding through the reservation and working with nonprofit outside of the US, he noticed the high rate of diabetes among Native American people and wondered if there was anything he could do to help.

As someone who lives with diabetes, James was motivated to share the joy, and health, he found in riding his bike. Taking a clapped out station wagon and as many old bikes and helmets, as it could fit, James took time out from his PhD I began to work on the reservation in order to better understand the barriers between Native people and better diabetes management.

Although access to medication is an issue in many Native American communities, a lack of access to exercise and education is often equally dangerous. Through working with the healthcare team on the reservation, the program engages people with diabetes and encouraged them to try cycling with the goal of completing a El Tour de Tucson event.

3 years after it started, each of the initial riders have returned to serve as a mentor and bought friends and family with them. By 2016 the project has seen over 100 participants finished their goal event, thousands of pounds have been lost and blood glucose management has seen drastic improvement.

DCEP Mission

To research and implement peer mentored, exercise based lifestyle interventions in resource poor diabetes communities. Focusing on goal events, we aim to use community based education and exercise programs to empower people to live healthier and happier lives as well as to be changemakers in their own communities.

Moving forward

The DCEP website has not been updated in a while, so I hope this project is still ongoing! Even if it is not, the project is a great example of an how bicycles can be used to improve indiviviual and community health and well-being.

It also serves as a reminder that we need a broader, more inclusive methods of providing specialist, community-focused responses to support the needs of First Nations communities and minority groups.

All images and some content of this post sourced from DCEP.

20/07/202012/09/2020

Belize: Bikes for Caye Caulker’s Ocean Academy students

This blog prides itself on brings you stories and projects from around the world where bicycles create positive social and environmental change. It has been while since we visited Central America. Last time we were there, we looked at the growing popularity of Ciclovía de Los Domingos or Sunday bikeways. We also checked in to meet Mexico City’s first Latin American Bike Mayor, Areli Carreón and heard some reflections from our guest blogger Diana Vallejo on what it is like to be a Colombian non-rider. Today, we are heading to Belize to see how bicycles are helping support local kids not only stay in school, but also generate some income. Enjoy! NG.

Screen Shot 2020-08-25 at 5.31.00 am — Ocean Academy student Micheal. Image: Planterra Foundation

Belize is a small Caribbean country in northeastern Central America. It has many beautiful islands and atolls and is a popular tourist destination.

However, life for locals can be difficult. Belize is ranked 166 in the world based on GDP, around other lower-income countries like Lesotho, Suriname and Timor Leste.

Caye Caulker is one of Belize’s beautiful islands. Like many other islands, it has shifted from traditional life to embrace a different way of life in order to survive. Caye Caulker’s now depends on ts hospitality and tourism industry. While tourists enjoy natural environs and leisure activities, life is very different for locals.

Being such a small island, there are limited services. Previously, the Caye did not have a high school. This meant that when local children turned 12, they would have to move to the mainland if they wanted to continue their studies. This is not only financially difficult, but having a young family member away can be stressful and add extra pressure for struggling families, so many would not continue their studies and stay on the Caye. This meant there was a growing population of youths who had not completed their education.

Addressing a Critical Need

This situation is an obvious problem for the young students and families of the remote island of Caye Caulker. In many cases, it is not possible for students to travel to the mainland to receive a quality education.

This barrier leads many by the age of 12, to choose to quit school and join the workforce. Nation-wide, only 40% of secondary-aged youths are enrolled in school.

Opening a local high school – Ocean Academy

The Ocean Academy school opened in 2008 as the very first community high school on the island of Caye Caulker.

There are currently 58 students enrolled in the Academy.

Its programs aim to reduce school dropout rates and reverse the growing unemployment issue by providing hands-on and practical tourism education, in addition to the traditional curriculum.

How Planterra Foundation helped

Planeterra raised donations to fund needed bicycles and other materials for the Ocean Academy to develop a student-led bicycle tour of the island. Planeterra also connected the Ocean Academy to a market, G Adventures travellers, on some of G’s tours that visit the island.

This activity is included into some of G Adventures, and bike rentals are available for all travellers, with proceeds funding educational programs for the students at Ocean Academy.

Impact: Student-led bike tours

This project aims to provide youth on Caye Caulker with training for future employment opportunities. It is a social enterprise in tourism, giving students from Caye Caulker’s Ocean Academy the chance to practice guiding skills while giving traveller’s a unique experience on their visit to Caye Caulker.

Ocean Academy prepares students for careers relevant to island tourism and conservation science. In order to ensure the success for the new program, Planeterra supplied Ocean Academy’s Bike with Purpose program with 40 extra bikes at the beginning of the partnership.

This meant students could show tourists around, gaining valuable leadership, communication, business and tourism skills that can then be taken forward. Costs for the student-led bike tours all go to the students.

This is a wonderful example of how bicycles can be used to help support local education, families and employment opportunities. Key to this approach is integrating and enhancing already established local initiatives (the Academy) as well as addressing a need that has immediate and long-lasting positive impacts for local youths and their families.

Bicycles really do create change!

Content for this post sourced from Planterra Foundation

15/05/202013/07/2020

Bike-Pack Rubbish Out! Epic US bike trip to pick up trash.

Bike-Pack Rubbish Out! Leave it Better: Epic US bike trip to pick up trash. Bicycles Create Change.com 15th May 2020.

2 Friends, 4,700 miles, 1 mission: Pick up trash!

On U.S. roads there are 6,000 pieces of litter per mile, on average.

Seth Orme and Abby Taylor set out on their bikes for an epic five-month, 4,700 mile trip across the US – during which they cleaned up 2,130 pounds of trash.

Their journey has been documented in the REI film Leave it Better.

(Below is the trailer. Link to the full 20-minute film for free at end of this post).

Background

One of the main seven tenets of Leave No Trace outdoor ethics is to leave it as you found it. Generally, this is a common-sense approach to preserve the natural or historical beauty of private or public land; it should look untouched when you leave it.

But why not leave it better? In 2015 Seth Orme started a project he calls, Packing It Out, a continuous mission to leave the places he and his companions visit not just as they found them, but better.

For the first-ever Packing It Out trip in 2015, Seth thru–hiked the Appalachian Trail (AT) alongside his friends Joe Dehnert and Paul Twedt. Over 2,200 miles, they packed out 1,100 pounds of trash that was found along the trail.

The following year, Seth and Paul continued the project by hiking a grand total of 2,650 miles from the border of Mexico to Canada along the Pacific Crest Trail. On this trip they cleaned up 720 pounds of trash en route.

This year, Seth traded his hiking boots for a bike and recruited his friend Abby Taylor. On April 26, 2017, Seth and Abby set out on a cross-country bike tour to pick up trash along the way.

Epic US bike trip to pick up trash.

Their route took them from Georgia to Washington State, including a circuit of stops at National Forests, scenic areas, campgrounds, etc., hosting trash cleanups and conservation-theme clinics as they rode.

For 5 months, their goal was to explore the country, meet people, spread the word on ‘Packing It Out,’ and continue their message of environmental stewardship.

At each destination, whether alone or with a group, Orme and Taylor cleaned up trash, totaling more than 2,100 pounds over the course of the trip.

What a fantastic trip and a timely challenge to all riders (and people).

I know I have been stopping more often to pick up rubbish on my bike rides. I hope people, both ON and OFF continue picking rubbish and progressing conversations about sustainability, plastic pollution and conversation.

Happy clean bike rides all!

Images, video and content sourced from Wild Confluence YouTube and an article by Logan Watts for Bike Packing.com

09/05/202016/07/2020

Health Hack 2020 announced

Health Hack is an annual Brisbane-based hackathon that solves problems for medical research and healthcare professionals with technology and design.

Regular readers of this blog know that last year I submitted a problem (Problem Owner) called Bio Map for Heath Hack 2019 – and we had a blast!

Health Hack 2020 has been released and here are the details so far. Expect a few more posts about Heath Hack as we get closer to kick-off.

And yes, that is me on the YouTube promo video cover shot below. And yes, I am wearing a ‘WOW – women on wheels’ T-shirt – spreading the biking love!

HealthHack is a product-building event.

Teams work on problems that have been submitted by Problem Owners – typically medical
researchers, medical organisations, hospitals or government— but they could come from anyone who has a health-related problem they want to solve.

Find more at the HealthHack website.

Everything made at HealthHack is open source and made available for anyone else to use. You can find every project from every HealthHack at our GitHub.

Normally the event is run in person but due to COVID-19 it is running entirely remote this year. The exact plans for this year will be confirmed, but here are the basic so far:

Run out of (sponsor) IBM’s Cloudtheater virtual event space
Run across two weekends (but not during the week in between)
Organisers will still be assisting problem owners and teams to form so there’s no need to have formed a team prior to HealthHack
Same basic format as previous HealthHacks will be kept, but there will be tweaks to allow for the changed circumstances
Organisers will still be available to help teams work together just like every other HealthHack to date

Now more than ever it’s important to support the work of healthcare professionals both in front line services and in medical research and the event is committed to supporting problem owners and hackers solve important problems.

Health Hack 2020 schedule (so far)

July 24th, Friday

5:30pm Registration &Network
6:00pm Problem Owner Pitch Presentations
7:00pm Networking and Team Formation
8:00pm to 9:00pm Hacking

July 25th, Saturday

8:00am to 9:00pm Hackathon (check-ins, fun & games TBA)

July 26th, Sunday

8:00am to 9:00pm Hackathon (check-ins, fun & games TBA)

August 1st, Saturday

8:00am to 9:00pm Hackathon (check ins, fun & games TBA)

August 2nd, Sunday

8:00am to 2:00pm Hackathon (check-ins, fun & games TBA)
2:00pm Hack ends. Prepare for final presentations
4:00pm Final Presentations & Judging
6:00pm to 9:00pm Networking
9:00pm Venue Closes

Health Hack 2020 announced. Bicycles Create Change.com 9th May 2020.

Images, video and content courtesy of Health Hack 2020

20/04/202003/07/2020

Australian riders – give your ideas to a COVID-19 end of (bicycle) trip survey

Bicycle Network is Australia’s biggest bike riding organization that has nearly 50, 000 members nationwide. One of the things I really appreciate about Bicycle Network is that they often undertake surveys in order to see how members and local riders feel about certain key issues. Previously this blog has shared Bicycle Network’s survey on how people feel about Australian helmet laws as well as the results of that survey and some of the flow on critiques and counterarguments the survey results stimulated. Their latest survey gauging how bike riders how they use end of trip facilities at work and if that might change because of COVID-19.

This post is an invitation for Aussie riders to contribute their ideas to help Bicycle Network create a set of guidelines for workplaces so end of trip facilities remain open and people can ride their bike to work- if you are interested – read on!

Does your workplace have somewhere to store your bike and wash up after your commute? Do you wish it did? Let us know what you do when you get to work and how that might change when lockdown eases.

End of trip facilities—areas with bike parking, showers, change rooms and lockers—are a vital part of workplaces that enable people to ride a bike instead of driving or taking the train.

And it is likely end of trip facilities will become more important. New bike lanes are being installed in Australian cities and public transport is running at reduced capacity, encouraging more people ride to work.

Click here for the survey

However, end of trip facilities will need to run a little differently to before COVID-19.

Some facilities might need caps on the number of people who can use the facility at the same time and cleaning will need to be done more regularly.

Bicycle Network is producing a guide with advice for workplaces on how to manage their end of trip facilities so people can keep riding to work.

To help us make the guide we’d like people to complete a survey, tell us how their end of trip facility works and if it will affect the way they travel to work after COVID-19.

Survey, images and content in this post courtesy of Bicycle Network.

05/04/202015/06/2020

London’s Bicycle Library

This post is a great story of how a renovated double-decker bus is getting more Londoners on bicycles. This story comes courtesy of Inhabitat where it first appeared as a story on Architecture and was published under the title: The Bicycle Library Invites Londoners to “Borrow” Bikes Inside a Converted Double Decker Bus. What I find really exciting about this project is the array of thoughtful and useful services the London Bike Library offers. Read more about these services and more in the accompanying interview by Yuka Yoneda who interviews Karta Healy, the man who made it all happen. Such an inspirational story! Enjoy! NG.

London’s Bicycle Library

Most of us are no strangers to libraries where you can borrow books but what about libraries where you can borrow bikes? Well, that’s exactly what The Bicycle Library is (yeah, they didn’t get too creative with the name). Not only does this London-based business promote green transportation, it’s also situated in a converted double-decker bus.

Talk about giving re”cycling” a whole new meaning!

Inside the adapted bus, there is a “library“/gallery on the top floor with a showroom on the first level.

Londoners who need expert advice on which bike they should rent or buy can speak to an in-house “librarian” specializing in all things two-wheeled.

There’s even an array of actual books pertaining to – what else? – bicycles, on hand for reference. The first floor also boasts a shop with clothing and biking accessories.

Just as you would in a regular library, you can browse thorough different bikes, take them out and even test them out on the track outside.

There are seven types of bicycles to choose from: folding, MiniVelo, FGSS (Fix Gear Single Speed), Ladies Coaster, Mens Coaster, cargo and electric, so you’re sure to find one that’s right for you.

And if you find, after renting it for a while, that you’ve met your perfect bike match, the Bike Library even has a borrow to buy program so that you can make it your own.

Karta Healy Interview

Last week, we showcased the Bicycle Library, which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, and it was so unusual that we had to get in touch with its founder and pick his brain. We needed to know what makes a person wake up one morning and want to start a library where people take out bikes instead of books – and in a revamped double-decker bus, no less?! So we caught up with Karta Healy, the driving (or should we say cycling?) force behind this mobile resource, and found out the answers to those questions and more – read on to see what he said..

How did the Bicycle Library get its start?

Karta: It all started last September, when I did a cycle fashion show extravaganza during London Fashion Week. We rented two buses to showcase all my TWOnFRO designs and my friends’ brands such as Rapha, swrve, Cyclechic, Dashing Tweed, 4TN and Brooks.

The buses were a key part of our layout of a London city street within the hallowed halls of Smithfield Market. I set up a test Bicycle Library for our guests and everyone loved it as much as me. That got me thinking…

People love the fact that the Bicycle Library makes its home inside a converted double decker bus – can you tell us about where it came from and why you decided to revamp an old vehicle instead of opening up a more traditional storefront?

Karta: I fell in love with the size and space inside these buses – they carry a certain nostalgia for all of us. From there I searched for our bus -a Leyland Olympian. I found it after 3 months in Milton Keynes. Maggie she is called, because all of her identifying marks start with M, and also because we have a great poster of Margaret Thatcher on a bicycle!

Can you tell us a little about your in-house “librarians” and your borrow to buy program?

Karta: Librarians are there to assist you with any questions, which are answered via their expertise, as well as the books and magazines in the reference library, which is a complete selection of all the best books on bicycle design, culture and history.

There is also a set of iPads to browse all of our bookmarked cycling websites, which are organized according to the 7 sub categories of bikes we advocate for the city.

The Borrow to Buy program is a rent-to-own system with an emphasis on trying many types of bikes in a week, or every week. The total days of bike borrowing is subtracted from the price of the final decision – hopefully a bike for life!

What is your most popular bike right now? What is your own personal favorite bike to ride?

Karta: Our most popular bike category is the electric bike by far, and we have some very special models that really give a snap of the neck with a twist of the wrist. Also, the cargo bikes are very popular, especially the Bernds model with its super-sized wicker basket. My personal favorite is my bamboo bike I built for myself – it flexes enough to soak up the shite London streets’ surfaces, and is unique enough not to be stolen… yet.

What do you think is the biggest obstacle keeping people from riding bikes and how do you think we can change that?

Karta: Each city has a different set of challenges, and London, my city, is a battlefield. Cars are keeping cyclists from multiplying, and the HGV’s are subtracting us even. Best we ban smoking tailpipes in cities, just as we have rid bars of their cigarette fumes already. There are many reasons, safety being the obvious one, due to said motorists.

Another one is image – whether tribal, lycra, or hipster, none say: “I have a real job”. The stigma of sweaty dishevelled students with a hangover on creaking bicycles, although we were all happy with that at one time, has to be outgrown. The sense of aspiration and achievement are typically forsaken for the bicycle in image only. Nowadays there are so many premium, stylish options, even e-bikes that keep you from sweating.

The other obstacle is bike theft, which must be supervised by NATO or somebody with the balls to tackle it. Studies show that when someone has their expensive shiny bike stolen, they will go out and buy one half the price, when that gets stolen, they will find the cheapest possible bike which they will hardly use, and if that gets stolen, they are back on the underground, or even worse, behind the wheel of a car. Cities need to introduce valet parking for bicycles, supervised parking areas, and even automated underground systems like the ones in place across Japan.

We couldn’t agree more! Karta makes it sound easy but we’re sure it was tough work setting up this impressive roving cycle library so congratulations to him and his crew.

Kind of makes you want to set up your own Bicycle Library in your own city, doesn’t it?

All images from Inhabitat.

16/03/202029/05/2020

Free Cycling Lessons Empower Immigrants in Finland

I always find it inspiring to see governments, councils and local community groups welcoming new arrivals and supporting them to access bicycles. Many locals take bike riding for granted and we often forget how empowering and significant riding a bicycle can be – especially for refugees. Previously on this blog, I’ve shared stories about how one former refugee’s life was transformed when a kindly local gave her a bike and then more widely, some considerations and biking activities held on World Refugee Day.

Bicycles transcend language, culture and personalities. Bikes are the perfect entry point for refugees to explore a new community in a cheap and familiar way that everyone understands.

For this post, we travel to Finland to look at the Immigrants on Bikes Project. This article is written by Federico Ferrara, the Project Manager for this initiative.

In February 2018, the Finnish Cyclist’s Federation (Pyöräliitto) started the Immigrants on Bike Project. It is funded by Finland’s state lottery and gambling monopoly for the next three years. The project aims to teach immigrants to cycle, which also promotes a green lifestyle change. The new cyclists benefit from increased mental and physical strength.

In the first 20 months of the project, the Finnish Cyclists’ Federation organized courses for beginner riders, basic cyclists and maintenance. On top of that, it offered short bike tours. So far, the initiative counted 65 courses, trained 330 new cyclists and 40 new cycling instructors. Twelve Finnish cities participate in the project.

In the beginner courses, participants learn to balance on a bicycle, to pedal, to use the brakes as well as the basics of controlling a bicycle. One group consists of four to five coaches and ten participants. Around 90% of the participants learned how to ride a bike successfully. Motivated by this great experience, they are eager to learn more. And the courses are equally enjoyable for coaches!

It’s wonderful to see such big changes! At first, the participants arrive stressed, insecure and afraid of riding a bike. But three hours after, they are already biking with a big wide smile and look happy. It’s incredible to see their transformation as they become empowered!” stated one coach.

The Finnish Cyclists’ Federation relies on a clear teaching methodology, proper equipment (smaller size bicycles, folding pedals etc.), motivation and well-trained coaches in a calm but easily accessible environment. It is important to create a safe space where new cyclists can overcome their fears in their own time.

Additionally, cooperation with NGOs and integration actors are crucial to reach people in need. The NGOs work with groups of people that have already spent time together. Therefore, they can come to the lessons together, which lowers the number of absences and creates a great group dynamic. This accelerates the learning process as trust has already been established beforehand. It also helps to overcome language and cultural barriers very easily found in groups that are so diverse.

Biking can have a positive influence on independence, empowerment, equality, mobility as well as physical and mental health. It’s something Europeans take mostly for granted, but the same doesn’t go for immigrants not used to good city infrastructure.

This project taught me that knowing how to ride a bicycle can be of great importance for immigrants that didn’t learnt it in their childhood and can positively influence their integration process. Especially if the society that welcomes them also values cycling.

This article was first published in entirety by the European Cyclists Federation on 23 Oct 2019.