10 Days Left for Landmark Nominations (Active Transportation) Tools of Change is soliciting nominations for its 2015 Landmark behavior change case studies in active, sustainable transportation. If you know of anyone working on a particularly effective or innovative approach for changing energy or transportation behaviours, please consider nominating them - or yourself. All nominations must include measured impact results. Nominated programs get frank, confidential program review comments and suggestions from selection panel members, who are experts in a range of related disciplines. All nominations that are presented to our selection panels receive a complete list of unattributed panel comments. For many nominees, this is the most valuable benefit. Designation as a "Landmark" (best practice) case study through this peer selection process recognizes behavior change programs and approaches considered to be among the most successful, innovative, replicable and adaptable in the world. Designated programs gain exposure and credibility, and we prepare and post detailed on-line program case study materials, which may help them attract customers and investors, and maintain or increase program funding. Nominations are screened by Tools of Change staff and then the most promising are rated by peer selection panels based on a standard scoring grid. Designated programs are highlighted in our webinars and written case studies, and in the accompanying webinar transcripts and video recordings. Program organizers get a Landmark designation logo for use on websites and in electronic newsletters, providing click-through access to the program's case study materials. The nomination form, which can be downloaded from www.toolsofchange.com/en/landmark/, must be submitted by June 12, 2015. Designations will be announced by October 2015, and case study webinars will be presented between January and June 2016. To view Landmark case studies designated in past years, go to www.toolsofchange.com/en/landmark/ - 30 - Media contact: Jay Kassirer General Manager, Tools of Change President, Cullbridge Marketing and Communications [log in to unmask] (613) 224-3800 (800) 262-0934 extension 1 BACKGROUNDER ABOUT TOOLS OF CHANGE Tools of Change was launched in January, 2000 as a collaborative effort between CullbridgeT, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Health Canada, Natural Resources Canada, the International Institute for Sustainable Development, Environment Canada, and Canada's National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy. Founded on the principles of community-based social marketing, Tools of Change engages program planners and facilitators from around the world to share and learn from their collective experiences. Its mandate is to build the capacity for planning and implementing more successful health, safety and environmental promotion programs. The Tools of Change website, sections of which are based on a workbook co-authored by Jay Kassirer and Doug McKenzie-Mohr, currently hosts about 150 full-length case studies. An impact evaluation of site users found that most returned to the site many times, had improved their programs as a result, and had used the site to help explain and justify their ideas to colleagues and decision makers. Many had replicated ideas found on the site. The website was awarded the Society of Environmental Journalists' highest rating as an information source for environmental journalists, and was recognized by the Infography as one of six superlative references on social marketing. RECENT LANDMARK DESIGNATIONS The following are some recent examples of programs that have been designated. Active, Sustainable Transportation * Love to Ride is a workplace cycling promotion program that uses 'stage of change' to segment participants and cost-effectively tailor communications with them. By targeting information and tools specific to individual users, participants are moved along a personal journey of change. Also innovative are its use of mobile platforms like cell phones and tablets to reach the right people with the right information at the right time. Originally developed in New Zealand, this program has now been replicated in continental Europe, the UK, US and Australia. Designated in 2014. * The Bicycle Friendly Communities Program is a positive, upstream, results-oriented program designed to get municipal decision makers thinking about how all of their programs around cycling work complementary to one another, and how those programs can be synergistically improved. It provides recognition for the hard work done by municipal staff, the leadership displayed by municipal politicians and the partnerships developed with local cycling organizations. It gives communities that apply both a measure of where they are and a roadmap into the future, using a feedback system that has been developed and refined with input from stakeholders from all areas of transportation issues. Designated in 2014. * Stockholm's Congestion Pricing was introduced in 2006 as a "trial", followed by a referendum. The charges reduced traffic across the cordon by 20%, leading to huge congestion reductions all over the city. Perhaps more surprisingly, the initially hostile opinion turned, and the referendum led to permanent reintroduction of congestion charges. The traffic effects have proved persistent in the years since. Designated in 2013. * CAC's HSBC Clean Air Achievers program provides youth with a chance to meet high profile athletes and be inspired by personal messages to adopt healthier, more active and sustainable lifestyles. The program has dual goals of reducing air pollution and increasing physical activity levels via active transportation. For the 2011-2012 school year, program participants had a 30.6% average percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and 45.2% average percent increase in active transportation. Designated in 2013. * Haliburton Communities in Action is a rare, well-documented model for promoting walking and cycling in a small or rural community. Designated in 2012. * Portland's Smart Trips Welcome Program. Portland has refocused its Individualized Marketing efforts and incorporated an innovative and targeted communication strategy to help new residents develop environmentally-friendly and active transportation habits. As a result, the city's new residents took 10% fewer drive-alone trips and the proportion of their trips taken by green and active methods increased by 14%. This comprehensive approach includes a strong evaluation design and targeted social marketing strategies. Designated in 2012. * Stepping It Up, led by the regional transportation authority Metrolinx, illustrates a coordinated, highly replicable, and institutionalized approach for reducing car traffic and increase walking and cycling to school. The program worked with 30 elementary schools in the City of Hamilton and Region of Peel, Ontario. Designated in 2012. * BIXI Bicycle Sharing (Montreal) is a great example of how to make urban cycling a more practical and attractive transportation option. BIXI makes it convenient for commuters to cycle rather than drive, especially for frequent, short trips. The system was specifically developed to augment Montreal's existing transit system and between 2009 and 2013 Montrealers made more than 13 million trips with BIXI. It is a turn-key service that is inexpensive and replicable across many countries and cultures. In addition, by making cycling more chic and attractive, BIXI has had a major impact on cycling in North America. Designated in 2011. LANDMARK PANEL MEMBERS 2015 Transportation Panel, 2015 This panel includes members from on-the-ground programs (including Ryan Lanyon from the City of Toronto and Patricia Lucy from Translink) as well as from some of North America's most proactive consulting, NGO, and government organizations supporting sustainable transportation professionals (including Mark Dessauer from Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation, Jacky Kennedy from Green Communities Canada, Nathalie Lapointe from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, David Levinger from the Mobility Education Foundation, Geoff Noxon from Noxon Associates, Phil Winters from CUTR and the University of South Florida, and Chuck Wilsker from the U.S. Telework Coalition.) To manage subscriptions/passwords, or view archives, go to http://listserv.yorku.ca/archives/click4hp.html . [log in to unmask] is run in collaboration with Health Nexus: http://www.healthnexus.ca/index_eng.php