UN leaders rally to counter urban traffic’s impact on child and adolescent health
At the annual United Nations High Level Political Forum, the Executive Director of UN Habitat, Ministers, Ambassadors, the Special Envoy for Road Safety, and UNDP Goodwill Ambassador endorsed the Child Health Initiative’s call for urgent action to tackle the impact of urban traffic on child and adolescent health.
At the UN High Level Political Forum, the Child Health Initiative convened leaders to discuss measures to improve safe and sustainable mobility in the urban context, and the need to prioritize children. The meeting, ‘Every Journey, Every Child: A Global Priority for Urban Sustainable Development,’ was framed in the context of SDG 11, focusing on safe, sustainable cities. The meeting was co-sponsored by UN Missions which have been long-time road safety leaders: The Sultanate of Oman, Russian Federation, Brazil, Jamaica, and Sweden. Other co-sponsors included the FIA Foundation, World Resources Institute, Institute for Transportation Development and Policy, NACTO-Global Designing Cities Initiative, and Humanity and Inclusion.
To better integrate action on traffic injuries and pollution into SDG frameworks, such as the ‘Every Woman, Every Child’ strategy, and the New Urban Agenda, the Child Health Initiative is calling for a UN high level Summit on child and adolescent health.