ILATS goal is to promote sustainable development and sustainable transportation, raising awareness on the relations amongst environment, land use, and transportation. Sustainable development cannot be achieved without widespread sustainable transportation systems replacing existing business as usual solutions that are inefficient, unsafe, and environmentally harmful. Lack of strategic visions and long term policies leads to reproduction of less-than-optimal solutions that fail to deliver acceptable performance and hurt cities, communities, and environment at the same time. ILATS is focused on environmental education programs geared towards achieving a better understanding of sustainable transportation relevance in the context of a resources limited, overpopulated world.

Establishing a network of associations, public bodies, individuals and academic institutions to propel local actions under four frames:

1. People empowerment: General public opinion building outreach programs, helping communities and individuals to better understand sustainability concepts, develop a more complex understanding of the link between environmental conditions, urban form, and transportation choices, so that people can act locally, advocating for better life quality and better mobility solutions on an informed basis.

2. Technical development: Capacity building programs for public officials, urban planners, transportation planners, engineers, traffic and transit professionals, involved in decision-making processes. Those programs should be aimed at improving overall quality and effectiveness of policies, plans and projects, shift paradigms, and prepare professionals to better interact with local communities, elected representatives, and media professionals towards more participative planning processes.

3. Learn by example: Best practices divulgation and promotion, to improve replication and spur adoption of successful solutions, along with promotion of research and innovation. Sponsor a more widespread divulgation of academic research findings relevant to the initiative goals.

4. Advocate for sustainable cities: Sustainable transport promotion, influencing decisions and promoting adoption of long term policies that prioritize well integrated sustainable transport, urban development, climate change mitigation and resilience.

ILATS Iniciativa Latinoamericana para el Transporte Sostenible
[Latin American Initiative for Sustainable Transportation]