Cycling Cities
In many places around the world, cycling is not seen as a mode of transport. This is largely because street infrastructure that makes cycling safe and attractive for most people is not prioritized, cycling has not been meaningfully integrated with other transport modes like buses and rail, and cultural norms have prevented some–often, women–from learning to ride a bicycle. While some of these barriers can be addressed through tangible transformation of streets and adopting policies that support and prioritize cycling, behavior change also plays a role.
In the second session of ITDP’s Cycling Cities Stories webinar series, we will hear from a city representative from Niteroi, Brazil, and a national representative from India, who will share their approaches to building public and political support for cycle lanes and related cycling projects. In Niteroi, participatory planning and community engagement have been key to gaining widespread support for a comprehensive cycle plan that includes new cycle lanes, a bikeshare program, and cycling education programs. In India, national level campaigns have jump-started prioritization of cycling and walking in cities across the country, especially encouraging city government officials to reexamine their mobility behaviors. As part of a moderated discussion, both speakers will share lessons learned from these experiences including navigating participatory planning processes, governance structures, budgeting, and ensuring support for cycling across different stakeholder groups.
This event will feature live interpretations in Portuguese.
Danielle Hoppe worked as an urban analyst in the public and private sectors in Brazil, and has also participated in urban planning-related initiatives supported by the Canadian International Development Agency in Bolivia and Honduras. She holds a master’s degree in Urban Planning from McGill University in Montreal, Canada and a bachelor’s in Architecture and Urban Design from the Federal University in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Before joining ITDP, Danielle was the local coordinator of the Urban Age Conference 2013, organized by the London School of Economics and Political Science in Rio de Janeiro.
Filipe is an architect and urban planner who graduated from Universidade Federal Fluminense, his focus was modal integration and mobility by a bicycle. He is an urban cyclist and bicycle mobility enthusiast as a transport solution in Brazilian cities. He has been working on policies to encourage bicycle mobility since 2015, and took the lead in Niterói de Bicicleta (Niterói by Bicycle) in 2020. During this period, he coordinated a comprehensive structuring of the organization and implemented actions that resulted in over 40+ km of cycling infrastructure and an extensive bicycle culture promotion program.
Jeenal Sawla works as the Principal Advisor at the Smart Cities Mission of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs. Here, she anchors initiatives to transform streets and public spaces in India’s Smart Cities. Through the India Cycles4Change and Streets4People initiatives, she supports 40+ cities, along with ITDP, to improve walking and cycling. Through the Nurturing Neighborhoods Challenge, she works with BvLF and WRI in 10 cities, to make them friendly for young children and their caregivers. Under the Placemaking Marathon, she supports 50+ cities to develop small public spaces. At the Ministry, Jeenal also works on improving citizen services and infrastructure by leveraging data and technology in 100 Smart Cities.
Prior to this, Jeenal worked in urban development across the United States, Switzerland and India. Jeenal holds a Bachelor’s of Architecture from Kamla Raheja in Mumbai and a master’s degree in Urban Planning from Harvard University, USA.