Dear European colleagues, youth road safety partners and friends, 

It’s been several months since we have met all together for the last European Youth Forum for Road Safety, in July 2009. I am sure that you all have been doing a fantastic job regarding your road safety awareness activities in your countries.

Well, as you have noticed, even after the good recommendations of the last Forum, such as the creation of the “Youth Blog” (on this very page), and the will to have a better follow of each of our main awareness event, we still do not have a good overview of what has been done, and we have even lost contacts with some of you.

Therefore, as Mrs. Marolda (our reference in the European Commission - DG TREN E3) told us in a previous post: “The best way to face this situation is just to start organizing next year Forum: as announced during the Second one, we will have a rotating "programme organization" for the future Forums to come, so that the burden (and the joy) of this task will be shared periodically among you. For the event in 2010 we have asked the RESPONSIBLE YOUNG DRIVERS to organize the agenda and the activities of the Forum.”

So… This year it’s our turn to organize the agenda J. And we are planning several changes and improvements easy to apply. And I have the honor to announce you that the European Youth Forum for Road Safety 2010, 3rd edition, will be held in Brussels (at the European Commission) on the 1st and 2nd of July 2010.

As we have the opportunity to invite only 2 delegates per country, some of you will be contacted very soon to cooperate with us and share your motivation and willingness to succeed to make this event a real SUCCESS!!! A pre-selection of the best young actors very active in the road safety field will be done in every participating country; testing their motivation according to their will to take part in the follow up of the Forum and their involvement within road safety activities in their countries toward youngsters.

The main objective of the European Youth Forum for Road Safety 2010 is to favor road safety among all youngsters and improve the exchange of good practices, experience, trainings and knowledge between Youth NGO’s located in all EU Member States and neighborhood. As we have to learn from past experience, the Youth Forum 2010 will be focusing on concrete projects and taking back home actions and tools, in order to enforce road safety campaigns by gaining in credibility and experience.

• How are we going to improve our Forum and make it concrete?

Well, we foreseen to implement a common European campaign (on posters), but also several common actions on the field by accessing effective tools and support at a European level, thanks to the European Commission. Those will strengthen the knowledge and skills of all delegates representing their country and organizations just like you, hence reaching a maximum of youngsters through cost-efficient campaigns.

Furthermore, the Forum’s project will surely be emphasized thanks to the European connotation: working on the awareness field, you know young people are nowadays very attracted by this idea of being European citizen, sharing cultures, tradition and experiences.

• The European Youth Forum 2010 will this year focus on 5 main axes:

1. Development and consolidation of the EU Network,
2. Update on the European issues and neighborhood/global collaborations, (Euro-Mediterranean collaboration and YOURS, the youth global NGO for Road Safety),
3. Spreading and making efficient use of this EU Youth BLOG,
4. Creation of a common project and taking back home actions,
5. Road Safety Action Plan for the new Decade of Actions and permanent follow-up.

The Forum aims at increasing European and road safety visibility towards our young target and get in credibility through the strength of the European belonging, thanks to the development of a common and concrete project, based on the exchange of knowledge, practices, advice between youngsters on road safety at a professional level.

If you have any further queries or comments, please feel free to contact me. I also will keep you updated about what’s happening within our European Network of course… You’re part of it too. ;-)

I hope everything is clear for you and I’m already looking forward to the excellent work we will do together, for a better road safety.

I am looking forward to meeting you again next summer and get to see your motivation and new projects to be launched during (and after) this THIRD YOUTH FORUM 2010.

Kindest regards,

Axl