Conservation groups – including the National Wildlife Federation, Save L.A. Cougars, and ARC (Animal Road Crossings) – marked Wildlife Crossings Week (May 4 – 8) by hosting a series of webinars on current efforts around the world to enhance habitat connectivity. Road Ecology Program Manager Rob Ament led a session on “Improving Ecological Connectivity: the IUCN’s Transport Working Group,” highlighting his collaborative work with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Rob’s full presentation is available to view on the event’s Facebook page.
Did you miss the Earth Optimism Summit hosted by the Smithsonian last month? It also showcased successful conservation actions during a multi-day event. WTI Research Scientist Marcel Huijser led a workshop entitled “Road Ecology – are we taking the right turns?” His presentation is now available to view at on the Summit website.
Our intention for this Summit was to move beyond informative presentations and towards action on this important work. The role of culture in improving the effectiveness of traffic safety systems is critical.
This page is an archive providing access to presentations and other documents created for and by this event. Please feel free to contact our Center for Health and Safety Culture director if you have questions or would like further information.
2011 Summit Proceedings
AAA Rural Safety Center of Excellence (Introduction Video)
Our intention for this Summit was to move beyond informative presentations and towards action on this important work. The role of culture in improving the effectiveness of traffic safety systems is critical.
This page is an archive providing access to presentations and other documents created for and by this event. Please feel free to contact our Center for Health and Safety Culture director if you have questions or would like further information.
2010 Summit Proceedings
Audio voice over, with presentations, for the Monday morning sessions are provided below. Basic pdf’s of each presentation, for viewing purposes, are also provided below. The following presentations have been made available courtesy of the speakers and are the sole property of the originator (speaker/author). As such, they should not be used, modified, etc. without the originators express permission.
WELCOME:
Michael Griffith, Director, Office of Safety Integration, Federal Highway Administration NSRTSC 2010
KEYNOTE SESSION: RURAL TRAFFIC SAFETY CULTURE OVERVIEW
This session focused on the rural context and identifying the behavioral, social and political factors in rural areas that are responsible for (1) the high traffic fatality and serious injury rate, (2) the political reluctance to introduce strong traffic safety policy, and (3) the community resistance to government mandated safety interventions. The format involved three presentations by relevant organizations with time for audience participation and questions. The goal of this session was to focus participants on the rural context and provide background for the later sessions dealing with potential solutions to the rural cultural and institutional barriers.
Nicholas Ward, Professor, Montana State University/Western Transportation Institute Presentation (pdf)
Peter Kissinger, CEO, AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety Presentation (pdf)
John Dawson, Chairman, EuroRAP, London Presentation (pdf)
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES OF TRAFFIC SAFETY DRIVER CULTURE
This interactive session presented different perspectives on driver safety culture and engaged participants in dialogue related to challenges and opportunities for positively improving traffic safety driver culture – especially in rural areas. Participants began to engage in the process of developing a common framework to measure and apply behavioral change strategies predicted on traffic safety culture.
Dee Allsop, Heart+Mind Strategies Presentation (pdf)
John Lee, University of Wisconsin-Madison Presentation (pdf)
Larry Wallack, Portland State University Presentation (pdf)
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES OF TRAFFIC SAFETY ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
There are many organizations that impact traffic safety – law enforcement, local and state road departments, tribal entities and federal agencies. From the top down, or from the bottom up, how can safety culture move through an organization? This session built upon ongoing local, state, tribal and/or national initiatives to discuss how to achieve and accelerate organizationally a change in traffic safety culture.
Bernie Arseneau, Minnesota Department of Transportation Presentation (pdf)
Henri Headdress, Fort Peck Reservation Roads Program
THE SCIENCE OF THE POSITIVE – FRAMEWORK FOR IMPROVING HEALTH AND SAFETY CULTURES
The Science of the Positive (SotP) is a theory of transformation for individual and collective cultures. Through decades of research and application, the SotP approach has evolved to become an holistic science-to-action framework for posing research questions and evaluating the effectiveness of intervention strategies. While numerous definitions of “safety cultures” abound, they all seem to operate from a common deficit-based perspective that essentially views “culture as a problem to be solved.” The most pressing need in safety culture research is to correct this misperception and establish a common positive framework for action. The Science of the Positive identifies three core domains that direct intermediate variables toward sustained cultural transformation of health and safety outcomes.
Drs. Jeffrey Linkenbach and Jerome Evans, Western Transportation Institute National MOST of Us Institute for Positive Community Norms, Montana State University Presentation (pdf)
Behavioral Breakout Session Presentations:
What cultural factors are perpetuating teen driver distraction and how can teen driver distraction be reduced by changing culture? B1 Breakout
What are the main differences in rural and urban culture that relate to the differences in crash risk between these regions? B2 Breakout
What are the cultural barriers to drivers accepting safety interventions (e.g., speed cameras) and enforcement programs (e.g., random roadside stops)? B3 Breakout
What can we do to change the culture of speeding? B4 Breakout
Organizational Breakout Sessions Presentations:
What Institutional changes should we consider to more effectively address rural traffic safety? O1 Breakout
How can we (and what specific steps can we) take to better understand and overcome the culture of complacency? O2 Breakout
What are the challenges and benefits of adopting a zero death goal? O4 Breakout
CLOSING KEYNOTE
Dr. Ileana Arias, Principal Deputy Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Closing Keynote
Our intention for this Summit was to move beyond informative presentations and towards action on this important work. The role of culture in improving the effectiveness of traffic safety systems is critical.
This page is an archive providing access to presentations and other documents created for and by this event. Please feel free to contact our Center for Health and Safety Culture director if you have questions or would like further information.
2009 Summit Proceedings
We completed a successful National Rural Summit on Traffic Safety Culture June 22, 2009 in Big Sky, Montana! Over 60 speakers, panelists, and attendees met to discuss the challenges of defining and improving safety culture. Presentations by leading national and international experts and advocates from different disciplines covered specific issues related to the definition, quantification, analysis, evolution and modification of culture. With the exception of the keynotes, each presentation was followed by a focused discussion between a panel of experts and the presenter in a public forum.
The following presentations have been made available courtesy of the speakers and are the sole property of the originator (speaker/author). As such, they should not be used, modified, etc. without the originators express permission.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome – Steve Albert, Director, Western Transportation Institute
National Perspective – Joseph Toole, Associate Administrator for Safety, Federal Highway Administration
Rob Foss, Center for the Study of Young Drivers, University of North Carolina
John Lee, Human Factors Research, University of Iowa
Lawrence Lonero, Northport Associates
HOW DOES CULTURE INFLUENCE BEHAVIOR?
Presentations on models and evidence of how culture affects behavior broadly and in the context of traffic safety.
HOW CAN CULTURE BE USED TO IMPROVE SAFETY?
Presentations of case studies where culture has been used or changed to promote safer driver behavior and improve traffic safety.
Disclaimer: Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the event hosts or sponsors. Nor do the views and opinions of authors expressed herein necessarily state or reflect those of the event hosts or sponsors and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes.
