World Bicycle Day was established by the UN in 2018 and provides an opportunity to celebrate the humble bike with friends, colleagues and everyone who loves moving around on their bikes from across the globe.

  • The United Nations say ‘The bicycle is an instrument of sustainable transportation and has a positive impact on climate.’ You can access the UN bike page here to access their resources and read more: www.un.org/en/observances/bicycle-day
  • The World Health Organisation supports World Bicycle Day as a major campaign for population health: www.who.int/campaigns/world-bicycle-day

Australian news for World Bicycle Day

Above: Mark Eedle – Trek Bikes, Janet Rice & Stephen Hodge – WeRide seeing Janet off on her ride to Melbourne.

WeRide participated in a World Bicycle Day webinar organised by Swinburne University of Technology discussing ‘Promoting Cycling to Reduce Car Dependency.’

Above: screen shot of reflections from years of bike advocacy in Parliament from Stephen Hodge’s presentation.

We also reflected on one woman’s 17 day bike ride as she closed out a decade of public service as a Greens Senator for Victoria. Janet Rice cycled the 900 kilometres from Parliament House in Canberra to her home in Melbourne as the closing argument in her political career.

We recorded a short interview and included a few of her words below as she reflected on her ride.

Janet Rice’s epic ride home

Greens Senator for Victoria, Janet Rice, cycled the 900 kilometres from Parliament House in Canberra to her home in Melbourne as the closing argument in her political career. After working with Janet Rice throughout her time in Parliament, WeRide was very happy to join her at Parliament and ride the first few kilometres as she headed off with friends, family and supporters on this epic trip home. WeRide interviewed Janet at the start of the ride and you can see the video here: vimeo.com/953429746

Above: Riding across the line! Photo: Ponraj Krishnapandi

In her update to friends and supporters after the ride, she said:

“What am I going to recall from my epic bike ride home, now that my next part of my life is beginning? That it was possible, despite me being 63 with dodgy knees! My knees feel better now than they did three weeks ago – as does the rest of me!  The gratitude I feel towards the friends, family, colleagues, Greens members and supporters along the way who helped out. They and the sense of community and connection we experienced were amazing and inspiring and uplifting. That being a community representative and advocate in the Parliament over a decade was appreciated by a lot of people. That I’m in awe of the resilience and love and care that the Tibetan community in particular have shared with me along the way. I look forward to reciprocating in whatever ways I can over the years to come.

That bike riding is such a fabulous way to get around and that more people should do it! And I’m still pinching myself at the generosity of Trek Australia to give me a bike with their only request of me to keep promoting the benefits of cycling. I hope the ride and this blog has done that!

And that 17 days on a bike was a great way to draw a line under my time in the Parliament. I’m happy to no longer be a Senator. The decade was amazing and such a privilege, but so is passing the baton on.”

Above: Janet greeted on her arrival by friends and family. Photo: Ponraj Krishnapandi

Well done Janet!

Watch the interview here: vimeo.com/953429746

You can read more on Janet’s blog here: substack.com/@janetrice

World Bicycle Day webinar

In recognition of World Bicycle Day (3 June), the Healthy Cities Research Team of the Centre for Urban Transitions at Swinburne University organised an online seminar, focusing on ‘Promoting Cycling to Reduce Car Dependency: Research and Advocacy for Mobility Transitions’.

The seminar featured five presenters: Dr Belen Zapata-Diomedi (RMIT), Firas Mohamed (Swinburne), Dr Lauren Pearson (Monash), Dr Tepi McLaughlin (WA Government) and Stephen Hodge (We Ride Australia). It was attended by over 60 people from academia, industry and government organisations. The recording of the event can be accessed here www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QzjAil5SZ0

Swinburne University of Technology webinar Promoting Cycling to Reduce Car Dependency

Video Link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QzjAil5SZ0