UN-HABITAT
/UNEP

 

SUSTAINABLE CITIES PROGRAM
demonstration component:
SUSTAINABLE URBAN MOBILITY(SUM)

 
 

General Access:

SUM Member Login

 

SUM newsletter

Demo city news

Knowledge base

SUM agenda


SUM aim, set-up and background

Sustainable Urban Mobility

SUM Expert network membership

SUM discussion forums

SUM working groups

Contact site manager

Link to SCP website

Back to Entry page

SUM discussion forums

List of ongoing discussions

Members: use member login

Aim: Public Debate
The SUM component of the SCP aims at spreading and further expanding knowledge and experience on sustainable low-cost mobility in cities in the developing world. An important tool for doing this is public debate.

The discussion forums created as part of the SUM expert network are meant to trigger interesting and efficient debates on specific, well-defined, SUM issues.

If you wish to participate go to the SUM membership page and register


Conditions for success
The discussion forums opened on the SUM website are an experiment. Experience shows that it is not easy to create a meaningful public discussion. We hope that, with a growing number of expert network members, we can meet a/o the following requirements:

  • Clear questions, the answers to which really matter, and well-defined issues to investigate.
  • Capable discussion management and quality assurance, carried out by network members.
  • Discipline of the participants, and respect for others and their opinions.
  • Momentum, i.e. enough progress and interesting contributions.
  • Benefits from taking part, such as:
    • Contact with colleagues that are active in the same field,
    • Learning and/or a way to obtain useful information,
    • Recognition of one's own good ideas by others,
    • Satisfaction of making a meaningful contribution.

Forum organisation

  • Discussion topics will be clustered in four categories: Public Transport, Pedestrian traffic, Bicycle traffic (the three low-cost modes of urban travel), and Traffic calming.
  • Within each category, separate discussions may concern a single well-defined topic (e.g. informal public transport stops and terminals).
  • Usually, SUM-team members will initiate discussions. However, other members can also do so: email your proposal to the SUM website manager scp-sum@unesco-ihe.org
  • The SUM team will for each discussion invite one or more members to act as a discussion chairperson or committee.
  • No strict rules for how a chairperson should encourage the discussion exist at present. Over time, experience will enable formulating useful rules-of-thumb.
  • A discussion must have direction, and within a limited period of time produce conclusions or recommendations. Experience will show what timeframe is suitable (2-6 months?).
  • Finished discussions that were relevant will be stored in the knowledge base.
  • Participation to discussions is possible as: (also see "membership"):
    • Reader, without making an active contribution.
    • Member, writing comments and communicating original ideas.



 

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