The 1st Global Convening on Informal and Shared Mobility will explore new ways to recognize, support, and improve informal and shared mobility (ISM) systems; to build a future where cities, towns and rural areas invest in and integrate ISM; where ISM expands access to jobs, economic opportunities, and social services; where municipal, national, and regional governments recognize ISM operators and workers as partners; where philanthropic and public sector initiatives leverage ISM’s innovative, grassroots can-do culture as catalyst for sustainable development, decarbonization, and social justice.

Known in their home countries as angkots, jeepneys, matatus, okadas, boda bodas, tuktuks, autorickshaws, etc., the motorized and non-motorized two- and three-wheelers, sedans, minivans and buses that provide ISM services are the main mode of travel for hundreds of millions of people across the Global South. These services are fundamental to the functioning of neighborhoods, communities, and regions and are critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 8.3, 11.2 and 13) and decarbonizing transportation.

The 1st Global Convening will center these systems and the people who move them in discussions about mobility, employment, affordability, better access, lower emissions, public health, and fairness in the places where these services really matter. We want to create space for the people who run and depend on these services to be active partners in their future.