Cycling Forum Europe Inauguration (15655853120)

The European Cyclists' Federation (ECF) is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

member-based umbrella federation of local, regional and national civil society organizations that promote

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...

for both transportation and leisure. ECF has around 70

member organizations Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

across more than 40 countries that it represents at the

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

an level and internationally. ECF’s activities include conducting cycling advocacy and research, providing tools and resources, developing the EuroVelo network and organizing the Velo-city conference series. Based in Brussels and founded in 1983, ECF’s slogan is “more and better cycling for all.”

Organization

ECF is a legal entity registered under Belgian law as an ASBL (

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

). Its statutes are published in the Moniteur Belge of 24 April 1997. 2013 ECF Board

ECF states that its vision is to “improve and increase cycling across the whole of Europe.” The organization defines the following main goals for 2030: * “ Cycling levels in Europe should increase by at least 50% compared to 2017 levels. * The rate of cyclists killed or seriously injured in road collisions should be reduced by at least 50% compared to 2019. * Cycling should be prioritized by policymakers at all levels across Europe as a sustainable and healthy part of the mobility mix, not only for everyday cycling but also for recreational cycling and sustainable cycling tourism. * Public investments in safe and comfortable infrastructure and other measures to improve and enable more cycling should increase greatly.”

Activities

Advocacy

As one of its primary activities, ECF works to influence legislation in favour of cycling. Apart from raising general awareness around the benefits of cycling, its advocacy involves

lobbying In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...

and engaging with

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

s, policymakers and other stakeholders at the EU and

an level as well as international fora such as the

United Nations Climate Change conference The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC parties (Conference of the Parties, ...

ECF campaign graphic for World Bicycle Day on 3 June 2021

ECF defines seven policy areas for its advocacy: * Modal shift * Safety * Cycling tourism and rural connectivity * Infrastructure * Cycling as part of urban mobility * Thought leadership and knowledge transfer * Cross-cutting issues

EuroVelo

EuroVelo is a network of 17 long-distance cycle routes that criss-cross

. When completed, the total length of the EuroVelo network will be 90,000 km (56,000 mi). As of 2021, more than 51,000 km (31,700 mi) of cycle routes were developed. EuroVelo routes are used by commuters, tourists and recreational cyclists. The EuroVelo network was officially launched in

Logroño Logroño () is the capital of the province of La Rioja, situated in northern Spain. Traversed in its northern part by the Ebro River, Logroño has historically been a place of passage, such as the Camino de Santiago. Its borders were disputed b ...

on 21 November 1997, and its first route, the EuroVelo 12 – North Sea Cycle Route, was inaugurated in 2001. EuroVelo is coordinated by ECF, while the development and operation of individual EuroVelo routes is carried out by National EuroVelo Coordination Centres and Coordinators, which are usually

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...

, commercial service providers or national, regional or local

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

Velo-city

The Velo-city conference series, also known as the annual world cycling summit, is organised by ECF with a different host city every year. Velo-city brings together civil society organizations, cities, academics, experts and the cycling industry to discuss and share the latest ideas and developments from the world of cycling for transport and leisure. Each conference takes place with a particular theme over the course of four days with a programme that consists of plenary sessions, side sessions, an exhibition area, technical visits, social events and a bike parade. Bringing together all those who are involved in the policy, promotion and provision of cycling, Velo-city conferences usually attract around 1,400 delegates, including cycling advocates,

cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

, decisionmakers and industry leaders. Velo-city 2021 Lisboa exhibition hall

Velo-city began in 1980 and has played an important part in the promotion of cycling ever since. Since the first Velo-city Global took place in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

in 2010, the conference has taken place in numerous locations: * 2011:

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

* 2012:

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

* 2013:

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

* 2014;

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

* 2015: Nantes * 2016:

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

* 2017:

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both ban ...

- Nijmegen * 2018:

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

* 2019:

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

* 2021: Lisbon * 2022:

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the are ...

Velo-city 2020 Ljubljana was forced to be postponed to 2022 as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. Because of the pandemic, Velo-city 2021 Lisboa was held with special COVID-19 safety protocols and as a hybrid event with online and digital elements that included live streaming and session recordings within a dedicated mobile app.

Projects

ECF participates in various EU-funded projects together with other organizations and institutions.

Networks

ECF manages several international networks, apart from its own members:

Cities & Regions for Cyclists

The Cities & Regions for Cyclists network is managed by ECF and consists of cities and regions, mainly in Europe, that work to “promote the bicycle as a mode of transport and leisure.”

Cycle-Friendly Employer Consortium

The Cycle-Friendly Employer Certification Framework is a “European standard for cycle friendly companies.” The certification scheme is run by ECF and implemented on the national level by national coordinators.

Scientists for Cycling

The Scientists for Cycling group works to exchange their knowledge and research in order to improve cycling. The main aims of the network are: to build a strong academic community doing research on cycling-related topics; to bridge the gap between the research on cycling issues, cycling advocates and decision makers; to disseminate the latest academic publications on cycling; to assist in developing the Velo-city conference program; to build up a more research based approach to cycling advocacy and policy.

Members

ECF is a member-based organization with around 70 full and associate members in over 40 countries. The organization claims that it is “the world’s largest and best-known cyclists’ advocacy organization.” Full membership is open to European associations of cycle users. Full members are entitled to vote at the ECF Annual General Meetings (AGM). Associate membership is open to: * European organizations that do not meet the criteria for full membership but support the aims of ECF * Cycling organizations from outside Europe * Other bodies with an interest in cycling Associate members pay the subscription, receive material and may attend the AGM or working groups meetings but do not have voting rights.

References

External links

*
DG transport/ European Commission
{{Authority control Cycling organizations International organizations based in Europe Organizations established in 1983 1983 establishments in Europe