AGM 2010 in Tczew
ECF AGM 2010 in Tczew
The ECF Annual General Meeting 2010 was held on May 14/ 15 in Tczew/ Poland, kindly hosted by ECF member PSWE. The AGM preceded a 1-day conference on "Cycling in cities located along large European rivers as an important tool for regional and active eco-tourism development", marking an important step forward in bicycle promotion in Poland. The conference was attended by about 70 people.
Here are the main outcomes of the AGM:
1) 9 new ECF members:
9 organisations joined the ECF, strengthening considerably the ECF network with their experience and energy. The ECF now reaches into three new countries where it has not had members before: Bulgaria, Ukraine and Israel. ECF now counts 65 members in 39 countries.
New full members:
Podilatokinisi Club/ Cyprus
Bicycle Transportation Union/ Russia
Cykelfrämjandet/ Sweden
A Contramano: Cyclist Association of Sevilla/ Spain
Kyiv Cyclists' Association/ Ukraine
Bulgarian Cyclists' Association
Ukrainian Cyclists' Association
New associate members:
Ekopolis Foundation/ Slovakia
Israel Bicycle Association
2) Election of Management Committee
he AGM exonerated the Management Committee (MC) and re-elected the sitting MC members except Michaël de Borman who was replaced by Morten I Kerr from the Norwegian Cyclists' Assocation SLF. Manfred Neun remains ECF President, Jens Loft Rasmussen ECF Treasurer; Adam Bodor, Käthi Diethelm, Kevin Mayne, Frans van Schoot and Doretta Vicini all remain ECF Vice-presidents.
3) Annual Report 2009 and Budget / Work Plan 2010 and 2011
In 2006 ECF set out a Vision for the year 2012:
"In 2012 cycling plays a significant role in all European strategies on mobility, public transport, tourism,health, climate change. To achieve this, a strong ECF is needed: In 2012 the ECF has a highly professional representation in Brussels, strong member organisations in every European country, a sound financial situation, an excellent service for the individual members of the member organisations, a good support for the member organisations, and is the well known, most accepted, most powerful European bicycle user organisation in politics, administration, bicycle industry, bicycle trade, tourism, the public, and employs therefore in the Brussels ECF office at least 5 employees, working in the main fields of ‘bicycle planning and infrastructure', 'road safety and technique', 'sustainable tourism', 'health and quality of life' and 'marketing and development'."
The President Manfred Neun und the Secretary General Dr Bernhard Ensink report on their activities for 2009 and present the Budget and Work Plan for 2010 and 2011, stressing that ECF has made considerable steps forward in achieving the Vision 2012 but are not there yet.
4) Adoption of the ECF Road Safety Charter
As the European Commission is to publish later this year in 2010 the 4th Road Safety Action Programme, ECF adopted its Road Safety Charter, titled: "Halving injury and fatality rates for cyclists by 2020." The Charter demands a recognition of the "Safety in Numbers" principle and asks for action on EU level to achieve this aim. Important measures will be the reduction of private motorised transport, speed management, and an improved vehicle design and equipment, among other.
5) Cities for Cyclists
The AGM agreed on the re-launch of "Cities for Cyclists" as a global network during the forthcoming Velo-city Global 2010 Conference in Copenhagen. Cities and other entities can sign up for it, receiving free tickets for the Velo-city conferences (as of 2011) and benefiting from the exchange of best practices and knowledge. Full information about the network can be found here: http://ecf.com/54_1
6) Update of ECF statutes
The AGM discussed the proposal for an update of the current ECF statutes. As the quorum of 2/3 of full members to be present in order to vote was not fulfilled, ECF now calls for an Extraordinary General Meeting to be held on June 22, 2010 in Copenhagen.
7) Three ECF workshops
On day 2 of the AGM, ECF organized three workshops on Road Safety, Cycling Campaigning and EuroVelo. The AGM was also used by many participants from the Baltic Sea region to prepare a bid for European funding on EuroVelo 10.
8) Leisure activities
The participants of the AGM were taken to guided tours through the historic centre of Tczew, to a bike ride to the Malbork castle, and to those that stayed longer on, to a 3-day bike ride through Pomerania, including a visit to Gdansk.
9) ECF AGM 2011 in Seville
The next ECF AGM 2011 will be organised in connection with the Velo-city 2011 conference in Seville/ Spain. The AGM will take place on March 22 followed by the 3-day Velo-city conference (March 23-25).
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