On 5 November 2009 the Global Youth Internet-Forum «New Generation for Safer Roads» was held in the academic council hall of the Russian State University for the Humanities.

The Road Traffic Safety Department of the RF Interior Ministry, the Youth Committee of the World Health Organization at UN, the Russian Alliance of Auto Insurance Companies, the International «Safe World» Center, the Educational Center 1240 and the «Your Road» Magazine organized the event. Robert Bosch GmbH. Mercedes-Benz Russia SAO and the Russian State University for the Humanities acted as forum's partners.

The main goal of the forum was to address the acutest problems related to ensuring the safety of youth on the roads and to introduce the proposals on behalf of the global youth to the Resolution of the First Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety held on 19 -20 November 2009. Sergey Mikhalovich Mironov, Chairman of the Council of Federation, opened the forum.

Address of Sergey Mironov, Chairman of the Council of Federation «Our country enjoys the honor to host the First Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety which will soon unfold in Moscow under the slogan «ll's time to act» in compliance with the special resolution of the UN General Assembly.

The issue of road traffic safely is indeed relevant to every inhabitant of our planet. We must concentrate together on the development of new safe means of transportation, environment-friendly fuels, quality materials and advanced automatic systems. It is no coincidence that out youth was offered to introduce their proposals to the drafts of the Global Youth Declaration and of the Resolution of the First Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safely.

Our stale leadership has made a crucial decision to extend the duration of learning for young drivers and to expand road safety education for children. But the most efficient way to make fellow citizens adhere to the traffic rules is to have young people raising this issue among their peers.

Russian children and youth organizations must be actively involved in promoting road safely. Activities of the Russian Association of Youth Driving Schools can serve as an example thereof; the Russian Defense, Spoils, and Technical Organization also actively works in this field.

Young traffic-controllers units and traffic safety schools have been successfully functioning in the country for over 35 years. However, we must enhance the practice of establishing children and youth road safely organizations to enable the formation of both country-wide and international road safety movements.

Brainstorm on a global scale After the speech of Sergey Mironov. Valter Schopf. Deputy CEO of Robert Bosch GmbH, addressed to the forum participants. One of the leading suppliers of automotive industry.

Bosch sees complex vehicle safety solutions aimed at reducing accident probability and minimizing its consequences among company's priority directions of development. Existing and future safety technologies play an important role in improving road traffic safely and providing optimal protection for drivers and passengers.

Bosch experts constantly work on improving safety characteristics of vehicles cooperating in his field with leading car manufacturers. Inspired by the «injury-free driving» concept, Bosch pioneered safety technologies that greatly contribute to prevention of road traffic accidents.

After the forum the participants had an opportunity to test the Bosch auto simulator displayed in the university lobby. This real-car size device completely imitates driving a vehicle equipped with ABS (antilock break system) and ESP (electronic stability program).

Flor Liestad, Head of the Youth Department of the World Health Organization, reminded from Geneva about the ultimate (ask of the global youth movement: «It is important for the young to be among decision-makers.

This year WHO launched a capacity building program aimed at teaching strategic thinking to those who are capable of inventing and implementing road innovations. Today the youth is exactly the group where we lack road traffic safety initiatives. It is time to call upon the global youth for combining all local efforts and initiatives into one global movement.

We must create a global network where the young would exchange information and learn from each other. Today there is no unified strong voice that could speak on behalf of the global youth. Other speakers at the forum: Alcxcy Nemov, a famous athlete and Olympic champion, expressed his commitment to support all projects related to nation's safety and health and recommended to be bold in attracting the attention of the heads of executive power to such important and crucial tasks.

Alexander Nevsky, actor and TV star, offered a positive solution to the problem of improving road traffic culture - to start with oneself. The journalist section actively supported this notion. Yury Geiko, a well-known journalist, called the «start with oneself» slogan the greatest resource for achieving road safely equally with improving the road infrastructure and the functioning of the Traffic Safety Inspectorate.

 He also complained about mass media lacking professionalism and social responsibility that leads to road safety topic loosing its social and economic resonance and acuteness. Upon summarizing the results of the Internet Forum participants adopted the Draft Resolution of the Global Youth Forum on Road Safety.

Magazine "Your Road", 11.2009