Children are often more vulnerable to the negative effects of a polluted environment than adults are, especially in urban areas. However, they are not just young innocent victims. They also represent a largely untapped potential resource for encouraging and influencing people to adopt more sustainable behaviour patterns. We, adults, should take our responsibility to involve them in the planning and decision-making processes more seriously, so that they have a chance to influence the present and shape the future.

As announced by Margot Wallström, former Commissioner for Environment, at the Velocity conference in 2001, DG Environment is happy to launch a new handbook entitled "Kids on the move" (pdf ~1,360K).

Just as the manual "Cycling, the way ahead for towns and cities" presented the case for cycling in towns and cities, "Kids on the move" shows the importance of child mobility requirements and highlights existing initiatives developed by schools, transport operators or local authorities aimed at promoting the well-being of our children.

"Kids on the move" contains numerous practical suggestions, addresses and documentation references on how to address the issue of child mobility from the point of view of a parent, a school, a transport operator, a local authority and a child itself. It also includes short descriptions of some fifteen initiatives that have been taken at local, national or international level (assemblies for children and young people, safe routes to schools, walking and cycling buses, public transport adoption campaign, bicycle for young female immigrants, bicycle parties such as the Italian Bimbimbici events, car free days, etc.)

This new publication has been officially presented during a workshop organised by ECF at Green Week (on 15th April 2002) in Brussels. It is meant to be distributed both via the usual EU information channels and via networks or associations of local authorities, schools, parents, young people, etc. It will also be available in the coming months at events organised with the participation of the Commission.

This new handbook should also prove helpful to those who want to take part in the "European Mobility Week" initiative and in particular in those events taking place on September 20 - the day devoted to the theme "living streets and greenways."