WELCOME TO VELO-CITY 2020

THE CITY OF LJUBLJANA WILL HOST VELO-CITY 2020

After inspiring Velo-city conferences in Rio de Janeiro and Dublin, Ljubljana (Slovenia) will be the next host of Velo-city 2020. Join the global cycling summit from 15^th through 18^th of September 2020 and explore the theme "Smart Cycling Inclusion".

SMART CYCLING INCLUSION

Ljubljana is a historical city with a rich culture influenced by the neighbour regions and its unique location surrounded by stunning mountains, lakes and not far from the turquoise waters of the Adriatic Sea. Thanks to its strategic location, Ljubljana has always been part of Central European avant-garde tendencies and an important bridge to the Balkan countries. Today, Ljubljana has become one of the best examples of a city that ventured to close its city centre to cars, dedicating the area to active mobility and creating a great functional and clean shared space for citizens and visitors.

Ljubljana city centre is all about reclaiming public space for people and creating the environment for not only cycling and walking but also for providing safe access for all, including children, women, the elderly and people with disabilities. It is only natural that people are in the centre of our discussion and consequently inclusion, social and technological tools, connectivity, public space, timely policy and regulation are the main themes of Velo-city 2020, Ljubljana.

Themes

• SOCIAL INNOVATION & TECH - Through the theme social innovation and technology, we look for insights and good practices on how to develop approaches focused on social needs, collaboration and partnership and social relations for a participatory engagement of society in sustainable urban and rural development. Further to that, we will discuss the role and challenges of technology and innovation on human oriented urban and mobility planning.
• SHARING PUBLIC SPACE AND CONNECTING PEOPLE - The city centre of Ljubljana, as an example of a successful shared space story, will play a big role on the discussions around public realm. The latest developments, planning and design of the city clearly places people in the centre of it. Moreover, the strategic location of Slovenia also allows us to further the discussion of connecting cities and regions and extend it to cross border connectivity. From a shared urban environment to cross border cycling connectivity, this theme aims at bringing different approaches and discussions on the challenges of creating safe, clean, shared and functional spaces for people.
• POLICY OF THE FUTURE - Based in the evolution, growth and usage of technology, innovation and Artificial Intelligence, the Velo-city 2020 Ljubljana programme aims at questioning if the policy and regulatory frameworks we have available today are effective and in line with all the progress of technology and the disruptions it is creating. We are looking for answers to the following questions: Are policies and regulatory frameworks able to catch up with all the disruptions appearing in mobility and public spaces today? How will this be in the future when technology will set trends and patterns much faster? What would be the solution to this challenge? Do we need a new type of Governance to catch up with tech developments?

ABOUT VELO-CITY CONFERENCE SERIES

The Velo-city conference series is the European Cyclists' Federation (ECF) annual global cycling summit, organized by the ECF and selected host cities.

Velo-city conferences are widely considered as the premier international cycling conference series and serve as a global communications and information platform and target to influence decision makers, and improve the policies, planning and provision of infrastructure for cycling and the daily use of the bicycle in an urban environment.

The conferences traditionally involve experts, representatives of associations, institutions, policy-makers and social agents, universities and companies.