December 2022 - You are accessing an archived version of our website. This website is no longer maintained or updated. The Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform has been migrated here: https://sdgs.un.org/

Friends of Sustainable Transport Meeting and Panel Discussion on Sustainable Transport: An essential building block for Sustainable Development
19 Nov 2012
location
New York, USA
The Permanent Representative (PR) of the Netherlands, Herman Schaper, opened the lunch meeting
by explaining the purpose of the meeting. After the UN Bike Ride, which the Netherlands Mission
organized last June together with a number of organizations with expertise on sustainable transport
(SloCaT, Dutch Cycling Embassy, UN DESA, ITDP) several delegations and organizations showed an
interest in a follow-up within the UN. Two suggestions were made in particular: to start a Group of
Friends on Sustainable Transport (GoF ST), and/or to introduce a resolution on sustainable transport
in the General Assembly.

The Netherlands, together with the co-organizers of the bike ride and the Mission of Thailand,
therefore decided to explore the interest among Member States and UN-bodies in promoting a
discussion in New York on sustainable transport as an integral part of the broader development
agenda. The overall aim would be to raise the awareness among UN Delegations of the importance of
sustainable transport, and to exchange information, ideas and views, best practices etc.
United Nations