Road safety and SDG 4: Our Policy Brief at the UN Transforming Education Summit

Last week from 16 - 19 September, our members Alison Collard de Beaufort and Thiago Gruner joined the United Nations Transforming Education Summit at the UN Head Quarters in New York City. The Summit is a key initiative launched by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

It seeks to bring together education stakeholders from around the world for an inclusive, networked, and effective dialogue to discuss the progress around SDG 4: Quality Education. 

We joined delegations from government entities, representatives from the Member States, and youth members under the UN system in conversations aimed at mobilizing all stakeholders to support the transformation of education worldwide. 

At the Summit, our youth leaders met with decision-makers, talking about the connections between road safety and education through our SDG 4 Policy Brief. The relevance and importance of road safety fall under one of the thematic tracks of the Summit, specifically (1) Inclusive, equitable, safe, and healthy schools. The other themes include (2) learning and skills for life, work, and sustainable development, (3) teachers, teaching, and the teaching profession, (4) digital learning and transformation, and (5) financing of education.

In their conversations, Thiago and Alison talked about how road crashes are the leading killer of youth worldwide, emphasizing that 90% of child pedestrian fatalities occur within 500 meters of a school. 

They are guided by our Policy Brief which lists key facts and recommendations for ensuring safer school zones and safer journeys for students to and from school. 

Some of the recommendations highlighted in our Policy Brief include the enforcement of 30km/h speed limits in densely populated areas especially prioritizing school zones, better infrastructure for safe walking and cycling, and mainstreaming meaningful engagement of children and youth to ensure representation in efforts to address their needs when designing school and university environments. 

The Summit, taking place during the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, was convened by the Secretary-General to elevate education to the top of the global political agenda while also maximizing public awareness and engagement. 

We maintain that road safety is important in addressing the targets under SDG 4. Prioritizing road safety will also fast-track the achievement of the other Global Goals, including Education. Access our Policy Brief for more details.