Coalition member Matin Umaña Barrios starts advocacy journey for Streets for Life

During the 17th to 23rd of May 2021, the UN Road Safety Collaboration (UNRSC) launched the 6th UN Global Road Safety Week with the theme Streets for Life: Advocating for 30 km/h streets.

The week was devoted to engaging different stakeholders to advocate for and implement low-speed streets to ensure safer, greener, and healthier communities. The Coalition led different activities that raised awareness on 30 km/h and got more young people and global leaders involved in the campaign.

To get local decisions involved and to show how young people are taking action, the Coalition started an advocacy journey project where Coalition member, Martin Umaña Barrios, went to the mayor of the Municipality of Curribat in San Jose, Costa Rica, Hon. Jimmy Cruz to talk to him about the importance of low-speed streets and get him to join the global campaign.

Read about how Martin got connected with his local decision-maker and how he’s holding them accountable to ensure safer streets in his community.

1. How did you get access to the decision-makers in your area?
I was working with some of his advisors on topics about mobility and road safety, so I asked one of them if he could coordinate a meeting with the mayor to present some of the work we have done in the past, because he is new as a mayor (he was elected in February 2020). So I created a presentation with the topics, previous works, and the theory about why cities need to create streets for life and he loved it because he is a cyclist so he knows the danger that vulnerable modes are exposed to.

2. How did you introduce and present Streets for Life to the decision-makers?
I showed him myths and reality about what people think about streets for life, and also some data collected in my town, showing the number of people who died and how many people get a permanent injury as a result of vehicle crashes

3. How will you follow up and hold the decision-makers accountable?
I presented to him a proposal of different projects to create some streets for life during the next few years and how he as a mayor could help to push. He was willing to help and he got engaged to create more 30 km/h zones

4. Any lessons/top tips for other young campaigners?
Prepare yourself, be confident, expose your point and emphasize why the topic it's important for our society and be calm and cool.